In a surprise development announced on August 25, 2025, ESSENCE Ventures confirmed that Caroline Wanga will not be returning from health leave, effectively stepping down from her role as President & CEO after nearly four years at the helm. She initially stepped away from her duties in September 2024 due to health concerns.
Taking the helm in June 2020, Wanga presided over a transformative period for ESSENCE. Under her leadership, the company embraced expansion and revitalization across a suite of beloved brands. Including the core Essence magazine, Afropunk, Beautycon, and Essence Studios. Richelieu Dennis, founder and chairman of Sundial Technology & Media Group (ESSENCE’s parent company), praised her tenure, saying:
“We are profoundly grateful to Caroline for her leadership, vision, and unwavering advocacy of Black women and culture… Her expertise in culture, equity, and organizational change has fueled progress across the ESSENCE Ventures portfolio.”
In her own statement, Wanga reflected on her time with the company:
“The opportunity to serve Black women as CEOs of home, culture and community will forever represent pride, to do my best to serve will forever represent courage, and fulfilling my next purpose calling will forever represent conviction.”
Wanga also addressed recent criticism surrounding the timing of her departure and its overlap with the rollout of this year’s Essence Festival of Culture. She emphasized that her health leave predated the festival’s planning and warned against jumping to conclusions:
“#ImHighlyPercentSure that some missing knowledge has led to false assumptions regarding my leave as President/CEO, that predated the activation of operational planning for a significant annualized event… My holistic career experiences… have NO PROVEN ROLE in the current state of affairs within the company and its supporters.”
The announcement also coincides with the release of her memoir, I’m Highly Percent Sure, published in May 2025, further highlighting Wanga’s drive toward storytelling and cultural advocacy.
