Charlotte Soul Festival in First Ward ParkCandice BoatwrightThis year’s event will feature a main music stage, a dance stage, a health and wellness zone, a community empowerment zone, the Soul Expressions Art Walk, a family fun zone, a marketplace and a food court.The dance stage will offer interactive classes throughout the day, including sente, dancehall, belly dance, praise dance, line dance, Afro Sass and mindfulness and breathing sessions.The Health and Wellness Zone will include services from Novant Health’s Community Care Cruiser, with blood pressure checks and A1C screenings; mobile mammograms; blood drive; and vaccinations administered by Gaston Pharmacy. Charlotte Soul Festival in First Ward Park.Candice BoatwrightThe Community Empowerment Zone will feature Bank of America’s Better Money Habits and First Time Home Buyers programs, the Urban League of Central Carolinas, and Mecklenburg County’s Office of Economic Development and Office of Community Resources.Walters said the Soul Expressions Art Walk will showcase and offer for sale work by 10 Black artists. The marketplace will include 30 Black-owned businesses. The food court will feature food trucks and dessert vendors. The family fun zone will include inflatables, face painting, a crafts tent, a young entrepreneurs market and lawn games.Charlotte Soul Festival in First Ward Park.Candice BoatwrightAll musicians, vendors, instructors and business owners participating in the festival are Black, but Walters said the event is open to all.”Celebrating Black people and Black art doesn’t mean that only Black people can come,” she said. “Charlotte Soul Fest is for everyone.”Walters expects between 8,000 and 10,000 attendees this year.Charlotte Soul Fest takes place Saturday, Sept. 5, at First Ward Park, 301 E. 7th St., Charlotte, N.C. Admission is free. For more information, visit charlottesoulfest.com.



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