Freaknik-themed party called off

Owner of Atrium events facility asks for focus on serious issues.

So much for Freaknik 2016. The owner of the Stone Mountain site where a Freaknik-themed party had been scheduled says that party is now canceled.

“In light of the year that black lives matter, we don’t think Freaknik does,” Terry Brantley, owner of the Atrium events facility, told the AJC. His comment referenced the modern-day civil rights movement Black Lives Matter and said he wanted the community to focus on serious issues such as combating violence and police brutality, not a rehash of a party known for tying up traffic in the 1990s.

Brantley’s facility has stayed busy for more than two decades hosting a range of cultural events, fashion shows, weddings, birthday parties, family reunions and other gatherings.

Recent offerings there have included a performance by R&B vocal group the Delfonics and reggae artists Richie Spice & The Elements Band.

The so-called “Freaknik” event was booked simply as a party at the facility’s indoor pool — like many other events the Atrium hosts. Then an energetic promotional blitz, including posters billing the party as “Freaknik,” sent #FreaknikATL soaring to the top of Twitter’s “trending topics” list this week.

“It’s just another pool party at the Atrium,” Brantley said Wednesday of the supposed Freaknik 2.0.

And now it’s not.