At 10:42 p.m. Tuesday, the DJ at Magic City grabbed the mic.
“We just made history!” he shouted, and the crowd cheered, hands in the air. As the opening of DJ Khaled’s “All I Do Is Win” came through the speakers, he added: “We’ve got the first Black female governor!” People raised their drinks and showered dancers in dollar bills as the performers danced with renewed fervor.
The burst of celebration came after an evening of watching results come in. Throughout the night, TVs at Magic City usually tuned to sports or entertainment were locked on Fox News as race tallies rolled in nationwide – a network choice that drew critiques from several patrons in the room. Still, the broadcast served as an unexpected backdrop for the club, one central to the vision for Magic City’s viral “From the Polls to the Poles” event, which was announced on their Instagram on Election Day with a caption that read “The vote is yours. The night is ours.”
“I Voted” stickers dotted shirts and suits around the room. One patron danced with a sign that read “Madam Governor,” bobbing from a booth. Even the menu joined the theme: showing an “I Voted” sticker at the kitchen window scored a basket of Magic City’s iconic lemon pepper wings for a discounted price of $15.
The Associated Press had announced the race for Keisha Lance Bottoms, a Democrat, earlier in the evening — making her the first Black woman elected governor in U.S. history. But inside Magic City, the TVs mounted around the club were muted and on a slight broadcast delay. The reality didn’t fully land until the DJ grabbed the mic at 10:42 p.m., cutting through the blaring music to transform the night into an outright civic celebration.
For one Magic City regular who asked not to be named, the night’s appeal was straightforward. “We want to see Magic City, a little bit of victory, a lot of wings, good friends, good company, and good drinks,” she said.
Celebrating a groundbreaking win inside a landmark club felt like a uniquely Atlanta experience. Opened in 1985, Magic City helped launch Southern hip-hop, according to the STARZ docuseries Magic City: An American Fantasy, which premiered last year. Over the decades, the club’s dancers and crowds often decided which songs would break out before radio did, the series’ producers told Georgia Public Broadcasting, launching Atlanta-area artists like OutKast and Migos to stardom.
But for the people who work and gather there, the club means something more personal.
“It’s a place where people can come be themselves,” said a 35-year-old Magic City cook. “You can find different types of talent, different types of skills, different types of jobs, people doing any and everything they can to be the best version of themselves. They find like-minded people here doing the same thing.”
Tucked in a corner between the bar and the kitchen, he watched from the side as festivities unfolded near the stage, while a long line began forming at the window to pick up wings.
Nearby, one first-time visitor continuously showered the dancers with one-dollar bills, his “I Voted” sticker still clinging to his shirt. “People are cheering left and right for the blue sweep,” the 23-year-old said, keeping an eye on the crowd. “That means something to me.”
Right next to the stage, two dancers stood side by side between sets, touching up their makeup and counting cash under the glow of the colored LED lights.
“I’m just happy that I was able to be a part of an experience,” said BB, one of the dancers, chatting with her coworker as the room hummed around them. “I’m happy to be here while history is being made.”
As midnight passed, the lines outside the club grew longer and the music kept thundering through the speakers. The celebration rolled on into the early morning hours — a landmark night that encapsulated the spirit of Atlanta.
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