You never know. Your mama or one of your aunties may be seen in an upcoming Hulu documentary entitled Freaknik: The Wildest Party Never Told, which tells the story of Atlanta’s legendary Freaknik celebration that dominated the South in the 1990s.
Since it was announced that the documentary would showcase the life and times of the era, scores of people have been taken aback by its release. But why? Well for some, they fear that either they or someone they know may be seen in a bad light in the film, which may not show themselves in the best light.
In a clip a woman shared on TikTok, she admitted that she attended the festival throughout the 90s and had a blast but “I’m just praying that Jesus be a fence. I’m praying that Jesus just be a big, tall privacy fence. That’s my prayer this Easter, this Good Friday,” she says in the video. “That’s my prayer. I will say this, though, I will say this… like when they would bring out those video cameras and start recording, I immediately removed myself from that situation. If you see ya girl in the documentary, hey, man, at least I’m fully clothed. At least all my clothes is on. That’s all I got. That’s the best I got. But yeah, y’all, they ‘bout to put our business out in the street. Some of us might be on TV, so get your parental controls together.”
On Twitter, users jested about their relatives potentially being seen in the documentary, specifically for those who have older relatives who attended HBCSs in the 80s and 90s. The popular festival was eventually shut down for good in 1999 after Atlanta city officials cited that it had become a security risk.
A year before, the Associated Press reported that Freaknik was the base of many “sexual assaults, violence against women and public safety concerns.”
Hulu’s description of the film “recounts the rise and fall of a small Atlanta HBCU picnic that exploded into an influential street party and spotlighted ATL as a major cultural stage. Can the magic of Freaknik be brought back 40 years later?”
Since being shut down, Freaknik has reignited in Atlanta, where people can visit Morris Brown College and Lakewood Amphitheatre to relive the memories in a day-long concert.
