September 24, 2020

By Brian W. Carter

Contributing Writer

 

You know you can’t keep a good festival down, right?

Bakewell Media and The Los Angeles Sentinel announced that on Saturday, October 17, 2020, from        6 p.m. – 9 p.m. PST, the community is invited to experience Taste of Soul Virtually!  That’s correct, Taste of Soul will be coming BACK this year via a phone, tablet, laptop or television screen near you. Participants can access the Taste of Soul event via livestream at www.tasteofsoul.org. The Virtual Taste of Soul Show will be from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. PST and the Virtual Taste of Soul House Party will be from         8 p.m. – 9 p.m. PST.

Taste of Soul was the vision of Danny J. Bakewell, Sr., along with the help of his longtime executive assistant and community activist, Brenda Marsh-Mitchell. Together with city officials, community partners and friends, Taste of Soul has become the #1 family festival having attracted hundreds of thousands of people annually from Southern California and beyond as it continues to grow and shatter attendance records.

“Canceling our actual Taste of Soul Family Festival has certainly been disappointing to all of us at Bakewell Media, as well as our vendors, sponsors and hundreds of thousands of supporters who come out each year.  However, because of the overwhelming demand and request we received from the community, we felt we had to find a way to do something? 

 

I am appreciative of Zafar Brooks and our long-time sponsor and friends at Hyundai Motors America who stepped up to help us pull together our Taste of Soul Virtual Experience” said Danny J. Bakewell, Sr. Taste of Soul Founder/Creator and Chairman of Bakewell Media.

Historically held on Crenshaw Blvd, this annual Fall event, takes place every third Saturday in October, featuring local and international cuisine and merchandise from vendors, live entertainment on four stages and information from multiple organizations. Taste of Soul is a community event that highlights SoCal’s Black cultural experience fused with diverse cultures and traditions.The festival has been dubbed by Los Angeles Mayor, Eric Garcetti, as the largest one-day free street festival and event in all of L.A. city and county. 

The COVID-19 pandemic canceled the street festival due to social distancing guidelines. As we slowly lower the curve of the pandemic by following guidelines, you are invited to a welcomed distraction in the ‘15th Annual Taste of Soul Goes Virtual’ event. Sponsored by Hyundai, the virtual event will feature musical performances from Gospel, R&B, Old-school hip-hop artists and more!!

As the Los Angeles community and nation struggles to deal with the new normal of sheltering-in, Black businesses have been greatly impacted.

In the spirit of Taste of Soul, please continue to support local, Black businesses, which have been severely impacted during the pandemic. Please pick up an LA Sentinel newspaper and visit www.lasentinel.net as we support Black businesses affected by COVID-19 with the Black Business Advertising Campaign.

Also, remember COVID-19 is not over, continue to practice social distancing, wear a mask anytime you are out in public and please don’t gather in groups of more than 10.

Taste of Soul 2021 is currently scheduled for October 16, 2021 and will be BIGGER AND BETTER THAN EVER!

For more exciting line-up announcements for the Virtual Taste of Soul, follow Taste of Soul on Instagram and Facebook! Stay tuned in your weekly LA Sentinel (print and digital) for more information on how you can support Black businesses.

Category: Arts & Culture