2011 Lincoln MKX for ESSENCE Black Women in Music Event

The second Annual ESSENCE Black Women in Music event, scheduled to take place tonight will again be supported by Ford’s luxury division, Lincoln, the American automaker announced today. Specifically, it will be the 2011 Lincoln MKX crossover that will hit the red carpet.

The vehicle will also be used to shuttle the evening's Honoree GRAMMY Nominated Janelle Monae as well as special guest GRAMMY Nominated Big Boi of OutKast to the event. ESSENCE and Sean "Diddy" Combs will greet GRAMMY nominated artist Janelle Monae at the event.

According to Ford, the Lincoln MKX was recently received favorably by African American women as part of qualitative research conducted during the 2009 ESSENCE Music Festival.

Reactions to the vehicle were extremely positive with overall appeal of the vehicle being described as stylish, luxurious, elegant and classy. Late last year, Lincoln launched a new ad campaign called "Touch Me All Over" that was designed to highlight the technology, luxury and style found on the 2011 Lincoln MKX.

"Partnering with ESSENCE for this event is just one way that we are able to expose the brand to a group of luxury consumers in an environment that makes sense to them," said Shawn Lollie, Lincoln's manager of Multicultural Marketing. "We are providing an opportunity for attendees to engage with the product in a way that is unobtrusive and natural. We hope that by giving attendees an opportunity to take a closer look at the brand they will then be encouraged to learn more about our newest vehicle lineup."