Event Recap

2nd Annual Legacy, Unity & Love: Black Future Month Celebration

February 14, 2026· DTLB Promenade, Long Beach· 500+ attendees

A day to remember — a powerful community gathering centered on culture, connection, education, and love.

A Day to Remember

The 2nd Annual Legacy, Unity and Love: Black Future Month Celebration was truly a day to remember. DIG LIFE was proud to welcome over 500 attendees throughout the day for a powerful community gathering centered on culture, connection, education, and love.

Community members seated on the DTLB Promenade watching youth drummers perform
The community gathers on the DTLB Promenade for an afternoon of music, art, and connection.

From the energy of our entertainers and vendors to the meaningful moments shared by families, youth, and community members, this year's celebration reminded us of the power of coming together in one space. We were especially honored to have World Famous VIP Records join us as a special guest and help make the day even more memorable.

DIG LIFE team with Cletus Anderson, founder of VIP Records in Long Beach
Honoring Cletus Anderson, founder of World Famous VIP Records in Long Beach.

Celebrating Legacy

Together, we celebrated important legacies and stories that continue to shape our future. We reflected on the impact of Ernest and Lillian McBride, learned from the history and resilience of places like Black Wall Street and Allensworth, and honored international icons such as Jomo Kenyatta and Nelson Mandela. These stories helped us remember that Black history is not only something to look back on, but something that continues to inspire how we move forward together.

We invite everyone to celebrate our culture just as we celebrate theirs.

The message behind Legacy, Unity and Love remains clear. Through shared experiences, education, music, art, and community engagement, we build tolerance, violence prevention, and overall peace in our neighborhoods. When people come together with respect and understanding, we strengthen the entire community.

Youth drummers performing on stage at the Black Future Month Celebration
Youth drummers set the rhythm for the celebration.

Thank You

We also want to give a heartfelt thank you to our supporters who helped make this event possible: Councilwoman Mary Zendejas (Long Beach Council District 1), Supervisor Janice Hahn (Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors), the Downtown Long Beach Alliance, Urban Society Long Beach, and the CRAY Project. Your support continues to help us create meaningful opportunities for the community to gather, learn, and grow.

Special thanks as well to our volunteers, donors, performers, vendors, and community partners. Your time, energy, and generosity helped bring this vision to life. We also want to recognize our performers — Poetic Moor, Ryck Jane, Ventage, Quiz, and DeMay — for sharing their gifts and adding so much heart and creativity to the celebration.

Thank you to everyone who showed up, supported, and helped create such a beautiful atmosphere of unity and love. We are grateful for every conversation, every performance, every smile, and every moment that made this event special.

See you next year.

With Gratitude

This celebration was made possible by our supporters and partners:

Councilwoman Mary Zendejas — LB District 1 Supervisor Janice Hahn — LA County Downtown Long Beach Alliance Urban Society Long Beach The CRAY Project World Famous VIP Records

And our performers:

Poetic Moor Ryck Jane Ventage Quiz DeMay

Turn Dreamz Into Goals

Every gift powers DIG STEP Academy and the Life Literacy: Game of Dreamz — keeping our programs free for the youth we serve.

Watch the celebration on YouTube →