France-Atlanta 2016 got off to an unexpectedly hip hop-start the evening of Oct. 4 as the Atlanta Falcons Drumline warmed up on a particularly balmy evening for a separate event at the College Football Hall of Fame across Marietta Street from the Metro Atlanta Chamber where the launch event was held.

Mayor Kasim Reed, a Francophile thanks to his wifeSarah-Elizabeth who was a French major in college, went so  far to suggest that he might be motivated to rap his comments welcoming the 7^th iteration of the Oct. 12-21 event.