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Anthony (Tony) Colvin-Baraka developed an early fascination with music, entertainment and publishing, vigilantly fine-tuning them all into what would become separate, yet equally successful careers.<\/p>\nAnthony (Tony) Colvin-Baraka developed an early fascination with music, entertainment and publishing, vigilantly fine-tuning them all into what would become separate, yet equally successful careers.<\/p>\n
It all began back in Michigan where Baraka attended Eastern Michigan University, majoring in African American Studies.\u00a0\u00a0He then worked his way up to Production Specialist for WGPR in Detroit before moving to Tuskegee to join WBIL Radio.\u00a0\u00a0There he brought fresh ideas and an eclectic aptitude to his various roles as a sales manager, account executive, and on-air personality.<\/p>\n
Inspired by a deep-seated passion for the written word, Tony partnered with his then-wife, Rhonda Baraka (now a successful screenwriter and director) in publishing TAFRIJA Magazine, one of the first Black-owned and operated entertainment magazines. It was distributed in record stores and at 50 HBCUs. The Barakas moved their operations to Atlanta where he founded Baraka Branding Group and served as president.\u00a0\u00a0He also worked as a national sales and marketing consultant for The Source\u00a0Magazine, Urban Plush Lifestyle Brand, Vose Magazine, Grip Magazine, Dapper Magazine, Uptown Magazine, and Jezebel Magazine.<\/p>\n
Tony was also the founder and CEO of the Southeast Urban Music Conference (SUMC) as well as the College Urban Music Fest.\u00a0\u00a0These vehicles offered singers, songwriters, artists, producers, managers, DJs, and independent labels an opportunity to interact with and perform in front of influential major label A&R reps and music industry executives.<\/p>\n
Anthony \u201cTony\u201d Colvin-Baraka, born on May 5, 1957, in Saginaw, MI, died at the age of 63.\u00a0 Legends are defined by their work and how it impacts the culture.\u00a0 We remember Tony Baraka\u00a0so others don\u2019t forget.<\/p>\n
#livinglegendsfoundation30 #blackmusicmonth #culturecreator #rootedinblackmusic<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Anthony (Tony) Colvin-Baraka developed an early fascination with music, entertainment and publishing, vigilantly fine-tuning them all into what would become separate, yet equally successful careers. It all began back in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25038,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"nf_dc_page":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[65],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25037","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment"],"yoast_head":"\n