We participate in a lot of festivals and conferences each year. They are usually a lot of fun as we get to see the faces of the roots we trace and meet new people too. Last weekend was our first time participating in The African American Heritage Festival in Baltimore this weekend.

What a pleasant surprise! We shared the Arts, Education, and History Village with a wide range of organizations from Gene-All-of-Us to the National Great Blacks in Wax Museum to the Hip Hop Institute Baltimore to Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Africana Studies. We enjoyed meeting and talking with folks from DC, Baltimore, Philly, NY, and even Seattle as well as other African American entrepreneurs. Shout out to Salaam Wiliams and Darren Brown, who recently opened a vegan and vegetarian bakery called Sweet Tooth Dessert Shop in Baltimore!

But as a music lover, I have to tell you that the best part of the weekend was the entertainment. On Friday night, Teena Marie celebrated 30 years of making music. Has it been 30 years? Portuguese Love. I’m a Sucker for Your Love. Square Biz. I Need Your Lovin. Behind the Groove…the list goes on. 30 Years!

On Saturday night, En Vogue represented for sisters in their 40′s. They don’t have 30 years worth of music but they brought it for the hits that they do have. Hold On. Whatta Man. My Lovin’. They jammed.

Then on Sunday…Miss Anita Baker turned it out! Did you know that she has eight Grammys? She and her band were spectacular.

Thanks to Visionary Marketing Group for inviting us to participate in the Festival. Anytime you can educate during the day and get your groove on at night, it’s a good day!