A cultural celebration of Black joy and visibility returns to the nation’s capital on Sunday, Oct. 19, as Nationals Park in Southeast gears up to host the city’s third annual Black on the Block.
Now in partnership with Live Nation Urban, the highly-anticipated festival will feature food, music, giveaways, and more than 80 Black-owned businesses, promising a family-friendly event where the vendors are the headliners and the Black dollar is the bottomline, according to sisters and co-founders Char and Lanie Edwards.
“Circulating the Black dollar is what we can control – we have so much buying power…you could see the impact that we have,” Lanie Edwards, 30, told The Informer. “It’s really important for us to make sure that everything Black on the Block does, the vendors are at the forefront. That’s the heart and soul of the entire event, and I think people see that and they want to be a part of it.”
At the height of the pandemic and resurged Black Lives Matter Movement, Black on the Block launched in 2021 with a means to boost visibility for businesses based in Los Angeles, California, eventually expanding to a national model that, since its inception, regularly attracts hundreds of thousands of attendees.
With activations, giveaways, and more fun-filled moments, Black on the Block annually hosts a family-friendly event that recognizes the power of connectivity and the double-duty dollar. (Courtesy photo)
Char Edwards, 32, a graduate of Howard University, noted the District was a priority expansion in 2022 given the duo’s familial and collegiate roots in the metropolitan area. More than that, she highlighted the city as the footprint of the vision amplified through the year-round festival, which includes honoring the breadth and beauty of each stop on the national tour.
“D.C. is a place that connects culture, it connects businesses, and there’s just so much creativity in that city,” said the older sister, later noting some of the event’s benefits. “We’ve got art, fashion, music–it’s the perfect ‘Sunday funday.’”
This Sunday’s highlights include sets by D.C.’s Jae Murphy, DJ Wildchild, Rosegold, K-Meta, Chubb E. Swagg, and Little Bacon Bear, in addition to the slew of new and returning vendors, including: Elevated Kitchen, Black is Love, London Chippy, Best Life Organics, Rich Grillz, plus dozens more.
Beyond amplifying local culture, Lanie Edwards says Black on the Block creates a visual of the importance of forging safe spaces for Black leadership and representation to shine. The younger Edwards sister touted “the infinite loop of everyone giving back to each other” that serves an impact beyond the one-day festival, even noting its role in building networks, communal relationships, and even setting the stage for “some Black on the Block love stories.”
“Things like that are…the small things that really add up,” said the George Washington University alumni, “and I think 10 years from now, [it’s] gonna be those stories of ‘I met this person at Black on the Block, and they changed my life.’”
As the sisters anticipate yet another fruitful celebration on Oct. 19, each emphasizes that, if nothing else, Black on the Block thrives in a moment when joy and upliftment is crucial to the state of Black progress – both economically and individually.
With a nod to the goal of the market-turned-cultural movement, and hopes for longevity, Lanie Edwards touts the festival as a moment of pride for Black Washingtonians of all ages, and a mirror of investment in the future of each community it serves.
“Even just as simple as…providing a safe space for as long as we can, and boosting that economy even if it’s just for the day, it turns into long-term things or even success stories,” she told The Informer. “The kids…can see what our community is capable of, and what they can achieve and attain. It’s a very safe, joyful space, no matter where we are, and I think that’s important now more than ever.”
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Source: Washington Informer
