NEW ORLEANS – Louisiana will once again parade across the national stage during the holiday season, officially announcing floats and riders in both the 96th Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City and the 2023 Rose Parade® in Pasadena, California. Rose Parade® riders include a former patient of the Shriners Hospital in Shreveport and 20 Louisiana queens from around the state. The queens represent the best Louisiana has to offer. Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser and the Louisiana Office of Tourism made the announcements today during a news conference at Mardi Gras World in New Orleans.

New Orleans’ own Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue will heat up Thanksgiving Day aboard the Celebration Gator on November 24, 2022, in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Then, on January 2, 2023, the Louisiana Feed Your Soul Float presented by Louisiana Travel in the annual Rose Parade® will depict an icon of Louisiana – the riverboat or paddlewheel steamboat – decorated entirely with flowers, leaves, and seeds. Country Music Association Award winner, 2022 Academy of Country Music New Female of the Year winner, and Louisiana music ambassador Lainey Wilson will perform mid-parade for millions of viewers nationally and internationally.

“We’re excited to return to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Rose Parade to showcase all the ways you can Feed Your Soul in Louisiana. All of our riders are an excellent representation of the celebratory spirit of Louisiana,” said Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser. “We love a parade in Louisiana and we will be kicking off carnival season a few days early on January 2 when our float rolls through the streets of Pasadena.”

Five premier sponsors of Louisiana’s Feed Your Soul float presented by Louisiana Travel, or the Louisiana Celebration Riverboat, in the 2023 Rose Parade® represent convention and visitors bureaus and tourism boards from across the state including the Lafayette Convention and Visitors Commission, Natchitoches Convention & Visitors Bureau, Shreveport-Bossier Convention and Tourist Bureau, Tangipahoa Convention and Visitors Bureau, and Visit Baton Rouge. The Rose Parade® theme for 2023 is “Turning the Corner.” To underscore the theme, premier sponsors will share how their area of the state has turned a corner into a bright future.

“It is thrilling to be joined this year by our sponsors and to host these 20 Louisiana queens aboard the Louisiana float,” said Lt. Governor Nungesser. “All our efforts in the travel and tourism industry in Louisiana are focused on working with our local partners to drive visitation to every corner of the state. As I always say, if you can eat it, shoot it, catch it, or dance to it, we name a festival after it in Louisiana. This year’s riders are wonderful stewards of our festivals and culture, but also outstanding members of their community that demonstrate the welcoming and neighborly nature of Louisianans.”

The Rose Parade® will be broadcast on January 2, 2023, to viewers across the world. The television event airs on several networks including live telecasts in Armenia, the Caribbean, Latin America, and on American Forces Network.

Louisiana’s 2023 Tournament of Roses Parade float riders include:

Emily Leleux – Miss Scott Boudin Festival Queen IX (Premier CVB Sponsor)

Emma Giddens – Miss Merry Christmas (Premier CVB Sponsor)

Amber DeFatta – Shriners Hospital 100th Anniversary (Premier CVB Sponsor)

Kirstin Drozd – Ponchatoula Strawberry Festival Queen (Premier CVB Sponsor)

Rose Hudson – Karnival Krewe de Louisiane (Premier CVB Sponsor)

Catherine Blondiau – Plaquemines Parish Seafood Festival Queen

Amber Borne – Louisiana Cotton Queen LXVIII

Emma Carter – Queen Dixie Gem Peach LXXI

Jadyn Devillier – Gueydan Duck Festival Queen

Jordan Fuqua – Louisiana Association of Fairs and Festivals Queen

Jordan Gallegos – 87th Louisiana Shrimp & Petroleum Festival Queen

Avery Hebert – Louisiana Queen Sugar LXXIX

Mary Hunt – Miss Louisiana’s Outstanding Teen

Shelby LaSalle – 85th Greater New Orleans Floral Trail Queen

Leiton Leblanc – 2022 Breaux Bridge Crawfish Queen

Kaydee Meshell – Miss Zwolle Tamale Fiesta

Kelsey Mire – Louisiana Pecan Festival Queen 54

Allison Powell – 2022 Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation Queen

Gracie Reichman – Miss Louisiana America

KT Scannell – Miss Louisiana USA

Sadie Zaunbrecher – 85th International Rice Festival Queen