Born in Houston, Mississippi in 1971. He moved with his family to East St. Louis, Illinois in 1978, and was drawn to the beautiful sound of a Hammond B3 organ he heard at church when he was 12 years old, and soon began playing the organ regularly during church services.
His parents recognized his talent and gave him a piano for Christmas in 1984. In 1985, Martin Luther King showed off his talent by joining his first big jazz band when he was in the 9th grade of high school.
The band director encouraged him to attend Lincoln High School in East St. Louis, which produced Miles Davis and many other talented musicians. And he promised a scholarship to music school if he joined the stage band program there. Tony enrolled in Lincoln High School’s JAZZ program, where he studied under saxophonist Ronald Carter and spent meaningful time honing his skills.
He later had the opportunity to participate in Lincoln High School jazz band festivals and numerous competitions in America and Europe.
He also attended summer school in 1988 at Birch Creek Music Center in Wisconsin and Jamey Aebersold’s Jazz Workshop in Illinois.
His experience paid off when he won his first first place in the Illinois All-State Music Composition contest while at Lincoln High School.
He then chose to attend Jackson State University in Mississippi on a scholarship.
After entering university in 1990, he spent several months performing as an orchestra pianist for Carnival Cruise Lines.
In the 1990s, he had the opportunity to perform on cruises and have sessions with many artists, honing his keyboard skills and gaining recognition as a songwriter and arranger.
He returned to Mississippi in early 1991 and began playing with the JSU jazz band.
Frank Foster, then leader of the Count Basie Orchestra, was watching the show and asked Tony to play Ernie Wilkins’ “Good Time Blues.” with the orchestra.
After that performance, Tony developed a good relationship with Count Basie Orchestra pianist George Caldwell, and in November 1999, Tony became Count Basie Orchestra’s fifth pianist. She has toured extensively with the Count Basie Orchestra in Europe, Canada, the United States, and Japan, performing at the world’s famous halls (Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, etc.) and participating in JAZZ FESTIVAL.
During his tenure, he worked with numerous artists including Manhattan Transfer, Patti Austin, Marlena Shaw, Carmen Bradford, Jimmy Cobb, Dianne Reeves, Hank Jones, Nnenna Freelon, Dianne Schuur, Jon Hendricks, New York Voices, and French entertainer Michel Leeb. are doing. He has made numerous television and radio appearances with the Count Basie Orchestra, and his skills have been credited to Russell Gunn’s Grammy-nominated Ethnomusicology: Volume 2, Roy Hargrove’s jazz/R&B project RH Factor, and Canadian artist Jeri Brown’s Juno-nominated album. You can also listen to it on Firm Roots etc.
After that, he became active as a SOLO jazz pianist.
He is currently forming his own trio band in Japan and is expanding his activities as a SOLO band.
Leadership from the University of Tennessee. She has worked in nonprofits for seven years. Some of her roles have been a Youth Development Professional and Volunteer Coordinator with the Boys & Girls Club, Resident Care Coordinator with Apartment Life, and a Grant Writer for Meharry Elam Mental Health Center during her masters degree program where she successfully helped the Center receive a federal grant! Jazzmin intertwines these social work skills with her passion for performing arts at Free Fyre. This has led her to perform at the National Museum of African American Music in Nashville, TN, the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, TN, the National Jazz Museum of Harlem, NY, and other cities like Chicago, Illinois and Atlanta, Georgia. Jazzmin chooses this path to show that the opportunities for social workers are limitless, and one doesn’t have to be famous to be a successful touring artist. Jazzmin lives her life purposefully, with the personal mission to empower others to live a transformed lifestyle.
