A Black People's History of Parties (Patreon)

Published:

2023-06-09 16:27:31

Imported:

2026-06

Content

I love to party. Do you? Let's discuss some fun black celebrations that have livened up black history-- from rent parties to jook joints to block parties to Freaknik-- and other stuff in between! How were early 20th century Harlemites highlighting a major New York issue? What did southern shindigs in Blues country say about the labor industry? What was the real magic of freaknik— and why was it shut down? You might be surprised to learn that black parties have represented, challenged, and embodied political, economic, and social discourse.

Sources + Further Reading

https://www.newspapers.com/image/403703607/

https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/local/2021/02/03/mississippi-blue-front-cafe-juke-joint-hot-spot-blues-music/3561427001/

https://www.jstor.org/stable/3070158?seq=40

https://19thnews.org/2023/04/freaknik-documentary-hulu-black-college-students-women/

https://www.atlantamagazine.com/90s/freaknik-the-rise-and-fall-of-atlantas-most-infamous-street-party/

https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2023/04/the-oral-history-of-freaknik

https://southernspaces.org/2006/inside-poor-monkeys/

https://americainclass.org/seminars11-12/artnewnegro/NegroExpression.pdf

https://mississippiencyclopedia.org/entries/juke-joints/

https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/02/world/americas/02iht-juke.4777626.html

https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/the-juke-joints-of-rural-northwest-jacksonville/

https://www2.oberlin.edu/library/papers/honorshistory/2001-Gorman/jookjoints/allaboutjooks/whatisjook.html

https://www2.oberlin.edu/library/papers/honorshistory/2001-Gorman/jookjoints/allaboutjooks/etymology.html

https://www2.oberlin.edu/library/papers/honorshistory/2001-Gorman/jookjoints/allaboutjooks/dischist4.html

https://www.jstor.org/stable/3514432?searchText=juke+joint+history&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Djuke%2Bjoint%2Bhistory&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%3A2789b1552d6ae4c98c5b49f3f59371a6&seq=1

https://aliciapatterson.org/bill-steber/good-times-fall-on-hard-times-in-mississippi/

https://www.openculture.com/2017/08/langston-hughes-personal-collection-of-rent-party-ads.html

https://www.theringer.com/movies/2020/3/9/21171026/house-party-30th-anniversary-history-kid-play

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-the-block-party-became-an-urban-phenomenon-180980560/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/403219256/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/403064860/

https://19thnews.org/2023/04/freaknik-documentary-hulu-black-college-students-women/

https://www.floridamemory.com/find?advanced%5B0%5D%5Bjoiner%5D=and&advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=240&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=11&advanced%5B1%5D%5Bjoiner%5D=and&advanced%5B1%5D%5Belement_id%5D=106&advanced%5B1%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B1%5D%5Bterms%5D=Two%20Spot%20(Jacksonville,%20Fla.)&layout=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/403313483/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/402971321/?terms=freaknik%20&match=1

https://www.americanbluesscene.com/2013/05/the-language-of-the-blues-buffet-flat/

http://dh.howard.edu/hilltop_902000/161

https://countryroadsmagazine.com/art-and-culture/visual-performing-arts/bentonia-blues-at-the-blue-front/

https://gardenandgun.com/articles/celebrating-bentonia-blues-with-legendary-bluesman-jimmy-duck-holmes/

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/blue-front-cafe

Files

A Black People's History of Parties

Customize your hair regrowth treatment with MDhair! Use my promo code 'INTMEDIA70' to get your first month of customized products at 70% OFF - https://bit.ly/intmedia-mdhair I love to party. Do you? Let's discuss some fun black celebrations that have livened up black history-- from rent parties to jook joints to block parties to Freaknik-- and other stuff in between! [Dancing, black parties, House party, freaknik Atlanta, Mississippi blues, delta blues, Robert Johnson, Did Robert Johnson sell his soul to the devil, Robert Johnson urban legend, Zora Neale Hurston, Robin D.G. Kelly, Malcolm X, rent party, William Seaberry, Monkey, Snoop Dogg, Queen Latifah, Outkast, Bessie Smith, Gullah Geechee, Juk, Piedmont Park, Atlanta University Center, Beverly Harvard, Howard University, Kasim Reed, 1996 Olympic Bombing, Newt Gingrich, Affirmative Action, Dancehall, Toasting, Abyssinian Baptist Church, Adam Clayton Powell Sr., Langston Hughes] Love the content? Support for $1/month on https://patreon.com/intelexualmedia Sources, essays, exclusive videos, a podcast, reading lists, and much more are available ON PATREON. 0:00- Intro 2:29- The Harlem Rent Crisis 3:43- Rent Parties 7:15- Buffet Flats 8:27- Queer Safe Spaces 9:46- Jook Joints 13:35- Poor Monkey's Jook Joint 16:15- Blue Front Cafe and Jimmy Duck Holmes 18:36- Bronx Block Parties and Hip Hop 21:42- The Rise of Freaknik 23:16- Freak 1993 and Gridlock 24:20- Freaknik 1994 26:05- Respectability Politics and Hip Hop 28:44- Freaknik 96-99 32:00- Consent and Sexuality at Freaknik 33:49- Parties on the Plantation 35:42- Conclusion