Freaknik was the place to be in the 1980s and ’90s.
In the first full-length trailer for the Hulu documentary, Freaknik: The Wildest Party Never Told, celebrities who were there share stories about what the Atlanta street party was really like.
“Freaknik was the greatest Black gathering in America,” rapper and producer Lil Jon recalls.
“To be able to be in the middle of the street dancing — laughing, playing your music, it’s a moment,” adds the project’s executive producer, Jermaine Dupri.
Back in the day, the iconic Atlanta street party drew hundreds of thousands of people and helped put Atlanta on the map culturally.
“It was lit,” Love & Hip Hop Atlanta star Rasheeda says.
“There wasn’t no social media, we barely had internet,” co-executive producer Luke “Uncle Luke” Campbell quips in the trailer.
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According to the official description, “The film offers an intimate glimpse into an enduring legacy, while acknowledging the complexities it introduced into the social fabric and leaving an indelible mark on the cultural landscape of Atlanta and beyond.”
It includes interviews with the event’s founders, along with former Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, Erick Sermon, CeeLo Green, Rico Wade, Kenny Burns and more.
Freaknik dates back to 1982, when students from Spelman and Morris Brown colleges organized a small picnic in Atlanta for HBCU students to celebrate spring break, according to a 1997 report by Associated Press.
The gathering gained national attention when it was mentioned on the sitcom A Different World, and began to attract students from other cities as well as local residents.
But the street party caused traffic nightmares, reports of shootings, drug use, and sexual assault. By the mid-90s business leaders and residents became fed up with the chaos and pressured Atlanta leaders to banish Freaknik from the city
Mega-producer Jermaine Dupri first revealed details about the documentary in December 2022. Initially described as a docuseries, Hulu now says Freaknik: The Wildest Party Never Told will air as a documentary.
The project comes from Mass Appeal in association with Swirl Films. Additional executive producers include 21 Savage, Terry “TR” Ross, Melissa Cooper, Alex Avant and Tresa Sanders.
Geraldine L. Porras and P. Frank Williams are executive producers with Porras serving as showrunner and Williams as Director. Eric Tomosunas executive produces for Swirl Films and Peter Bittenbender executive produces for Mass Appeal.
Freaknik: The Wildest Party Never Told streams March 21 on Hulu.
Check out the trailer above.
