This year’s annual Hot Corner Celebration and Soul Food Festival is celebrating 25 years with a full week of festivities and events that began this past Monday, June 9. Taking place on the historic Hot Corner block of downtown Athens at the intersection of Washington and Hull streets, the festival honoring Black entrepreneurs and community leaders of the past and present has grown exponentially since its inception.
In 1999 Homer Wilson, owner of the family business Wilson’s Styling Shop located on Hull Street, formed a group to research and document the history of Hot Corner with the goal of honoring the businesses that were part of the community known historically as a prosperous area for Black entrepreneurs in the early 20th century. The Hot Corner Association was officially formed in 2000, and the first Hot Corner Festival was organized to celebrate this history.
“It has grown from, I guess we started out about 200 or 300 people 25 years ago, and it’s over 2,000 now,” says Wilson. “One thing I really like about it is that we keep it a community event, we keep the history of Hot Corner and we make it very diverse.”
The Hot Corner Association became a nonprofit organization to continue the mission of preserving the history of Hot Corner. The festival is an anchor event open to everyone that keeps this history alive and invites Athens to share Black culture through a variety of informational initiatives, musical performances, local art, kids activities, soul food and more.
The week has started out with a three-day Gospel Revival held at the Morton Theatre taking place June 9–11 from 6–8 p.m. Each night is led by a different church group: First United Methodist on Monday, Ebenezer Baptist Church West on Tuesday and the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship on Wednesday. On Thursday there is an invitation-only festival participant reception hosted by Marcel Mincey of the youth education nonprofit MEU Radio. Special entertainment includes Mikhayla Robinson Smith, Athens’ current poet laureate; Blacknerdninja (Eugene Willis), co-founder of CreativeSpace; and TR Thompson, the “Athens King of R&B.”
On Friday evening from 6–8 p.m. the annual opening gospel program will take place at First AME Church on Hull Street. There will be performances by New Grove Gospel Choir, Empowerment Daughters of Praise Dance Ministry, Jus Sabrina Ministries, Morton Chapel Male Choir, Gospel Aires, Marcus Brown and Friends of Hot Corner Ensemble.
The all-day block party takes place on Saturday, June 14 from 11 a.m.–11 p.m. The streets at the cross-section of Washington and Hull will be lined with information booths from local organizations, an assortment of small business vendors, barbecue and soul food. There will also be a car and bike show at the perimeter of the festival.
The opening reception begins at 11 a.m. on the main stage with a flag presentation, song and greetings from the Hot Corner Association and community leaders. The morning and afternoon entertainment from 11:30 a.m.–4 p.m. is kicked off with a spiritual devotion and leans heavily toward a gospel- and poetry-filled lineup. There is a break in entertainment at 4 p.m. for an awards presentation, including a moment to spotlight community leaders.
Things pick back up from 4:30–11 p.m. with a variety of musicians from hip-hop and R&B artists to party ensembles and more. The “dancing in the street” party has a special extended time this year in honor of its 25th anniversary. The full schedule of events can be seen below.
One of the special things about Hot Corner’s entertainment is that most of the acts can only be seen in the downtown area during this annual celebration. It draws musicians and genres that are not always present in the downtown music venues. When asked what about the Hot Corner Festival brings so many people downtown that might not usually feel comfortable or invited to the area, Wilson says, “There was an old saying that has always lingered with Hot Corner: spirituality. They believe in the spirit, there’s a spirit over this place and that spirit continues to survive year after year, day after day. The spirit protects us and keeps us safe.”
The largest Hot Corner landmark that has persisted through time is the Morton Theatre, built in 1910 by Monroe Bowers “Pink” Morton, and it stands tall as a backdrop to the festival each year. It is known as one of the first and oldest surviving vaudeville theatres in the U.S. Last month it was announced that the Morton Theatre will be included in the Chiltlin’ Circuit Heritage Trail, a project of the Georgia Historic Preservation Division, Fox Gives and New South Associates. This multi-year initiative is in its first phase of identifying and studying historic venues, but its mission is to “help educate the public about the legacy of African American entertainment during the South’s segregated Jim Crow Era,” according to a press release. As a business that has long been appreciated by the Athens community, it’s an honor for it to be recognized on a greater scale.
WHAT: Hot Corner Festival
WHEN: Saturday, June 14, 11 a.m.–10 p.m.
WHERE: Downtown Athens
HOW MUCH: FREE!
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