Wuthering winds, wet weather and low temperatures were no match for the thousands of attendees donning cherry blossom-themed merchandise and high spirits at the National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade on Saturday.
Kicking off with the Pink Tie Party in March to raise funds for the festival’s free programming, the parade culminated a month-long series of springtime fun with a celebration of international exchanges and alliances, as well as the beauty and diversity of District culture.
Presented by Events DC, with support from Amazon and Japanese airline ANA, the 2025 parade echoed the foundation of togetherness and cultural excellence that precedes the history of the cherry blossoms in Washington. The event featured live entertainment, marchers from nationwide, and performers like the Neema Dance Collective, who celebrated their parade debut this year.
“The parade at the end of the day is one big celebration, and to me, it’s the culmination of the work that we’ve done for the previous year,” said Grace Johnson-Wright, owner and founder of Neema Dance Collective in Temple Hills, Maryland.
The dance company counted among dozens of acts that lit up Connective Avenue in Northwest D.C. on Saturday, which included a plethora of pink decor, along with gigantic floats, all in the name of “blossom magic.”
The two-hour celebration commenced with an electric opening performance of “Spring into the Fun,” sponsored by Events DC, which immediately set the tone for the day with boastful energy and literal flying colors.
During the event, live hosts Gio Benitez of ABC News, TV personality Carson Kressley and WJLA’s (the local ABC affiliate) Megan Clarke humorously kept up with the hype on the grounds. In addition, WJLA’s Michelle Marsh and Adam Longo facilitated the televised content that will be nationally syndicated from April 20 to June 30.
Meanwhile, guest appearances like Quad City DJ’s and CAMEO, along with renowned marching bands from the DMV, Florida, Georgia and North Carolina performing musical renditions of popular tunes, proved the parade was a momentous occasion for the nation.
The breadth of DMV culture also shone through the mix of local figures and sponsored presentations at the parade. To name a few treasures: a Metro-themed float, a performance from Miss Maryland 2024 Bridget O’Brien, and the joint ride along of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and the Ambassador of Japan, His Excellency Shigeo Yamada, who each took to Connective Avenue in festive attire and all smiles.
“That’s what happens here in D.C.,” said Benitez at the top of the broadcast. “You feel that celebration, and you feel the spirit of spring right here with you.”
As a native Washingtonian, Johnson-Wright shared that she’s been attending the parade and other National Cherry Blossom Festival events since she was a child; but now, being a part of the culminating celebration, brings a much more gratuitous perspective.
“I was nerve-cited, as the kids say, but I was super excited for them to be able to experience this,” said Johnson-Wright. “It seals the deal for me, in my mind.”
History, Importance of the National Cherry Blossom Festival and Parade
Since its inception in 1927, the National Cherry Blossom Festival has served as a spring staple in the nation’s capital. The parade, which started in 1935, has been a means of highlighting the cross-cultural connection with the U.S. and Japan, the beauty of D.C., and the strength of artists, organizations and community leaders in the District, nation and world.
“It’s always an honor to represent our great city,” said John Gibson, chief of operations for the Eastern High School Blue and White Marching Machine, who celebrated its sixth year in the parade with participants holding a Washington Informer banner as the band marched. “There are emissaries from Japan, Japanese visitors come here, and [it’s] not just seeing students from across the U.S., but I think it’s always special when they see Washington, D.C. marching bands and students.”
What started out as a commemorative moment for the United States and Japan, who gifted the District with 3,000 cherry blossom trees as a sign of friendship in 1912, now sits as an impetus of cultural recognition for both nations, exceeding its value beyond the namesake flowers.
“The National Cherry Blossom Festival continued its tradition of bringing engaging experiences to our community and visitors around the world this year. The 2025 National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade was vibrant, marked by an array of amazing performers and marching bands from across the nation, energizing Constitution Avenue,” said Diana Mayhew, president and CEO of the National Cherry Blossom Festival.
Mayhew further noted how the seasonal celebration leverages a well-rounded approach to enhance community engagement and entice residents with the cherry blossom spirit all month long, beginning on March 20.
“Beyond the iconic parade, we were thrilled to host an array of events, from celebrating young artistic talent from all eight wards of the District with the Student Art Showcase to fostering community spirit at the joyful Oxon Run Pinknic and Kite Fly or the zones of fun and entertainment at Petalpalooza,” Mayhew continued. “We are looking forward to next year’s Festival in 2026.”
University of the District of Columbia (UDC) alumni Anderson Hall, a first-time attendee and participant in the parade, touted the event as a “remarkable” occasion that offers Washingtonians a homely experience, while inviting all attendees into the best of the nation’s capital.
“It’s offering [something] that not everybody gets to experience,” Hall told The Informer. “You get the meat of the parade in front of you in D.C., and people get excited to see [what else] is in store in the downtown area every day.”
With the DMV well-represented throughout the parade route, the event also emphasized the diversity and cross-cultural connections between the budding nations 113 years ago.
“I’d like to thank each and every American friend who cherishes these blossoms, and joins us in celebrating the friendship between Japan and the United States that these blossoms represent,” said Yamada at the opening ceremony for the National Cherry Blossom Festival.
Performers, Attendees Share What the Annual Parade Brings to D.C. and Beyond
Local institutions sponsored and participated in the parade, including The Washington Informer, who presented the Eastern High School Marching Band; Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton with D.C.-area Girl Scout Troops; and UDC, whose trek down Connecticut Avenue introduced a soul-stirring performance from the National’s Children Chorus.
“It is a badge of honor for Eastern to always represent the city whenever given the opportunity, and The Washington Informer being a storied paper…not just to Washington, but specifically the Black American community,” said Gibson, “it was really an honor to be presented by them.”
Similarly, Johnson-Wright said one of the things she’s notoriously revered about the parade is the sacred space it holds for native Washingtonians, such as herself.
“I love how [the parade] touches on the culture of D.C. Things like the Metro and Eastern High School and specific landmarks that only we know about,” said Johnson-Wright. “It feels very home-based, very much so DMV culture.”
Youth performer Jahrae Holmes said the exposure to various cultures and backgrounds made performing on behalf of Neema Dance Collective that much more “fun, but different.”
She and fellow dancer Ryleigh Morgan McLean encouraged future performers to approach the opportunity with a positive mindset, emphasizing having fun and embracing all the parade has to offer.
“It was a great experience because I’ve never done something big like this,” said Ryleigh, 10. “I just kept my mind in cool places to get my body and my mind ready for dancing.”
Further, Johnson-Wright pointed out that the celebration offered valuable exposure to the realities of show business for the youth performers.
“We had to be in line for telecom, they had to learn new TV vocabulary, and listen to different producers and get directions from different places and know how to be on for the cameras,” she told The Informer. “I’m excited for them to get that piece of information so they can take that further in their entertainment careers. There’s no business, like show business.”
Moreover, Gibson touted the value of diverse cultural arts that the National Cherry Blossom Festival offers both Washingtonians and visitors alike.
As the Blue and White Marching Machine trains to represent Washington, D.C., at London’s New Year’s Day Parade in December, Gibson lauded the annual cherry blossom event as the “perfect” opportunity to not only showcase the significance of cross cultural arts in the DMV, but propel students with the valuable teachings it exposes to them to.
“When students are engaged at early ages, they just excel. It certainly helps them with other disciplines, structure, it strengthens their interpersonal skills, it teaches them teamwork and leadership,” Gibson told The Informer. “This was a perfect and excellent opportunity for an international convergence of cultures that these students were able to participate in.”