Erika Cintron: Creating Magiazine And The Magic of Creatives Of Color

Magiazine is a digital publication founded and curated by Erika Cintron with the mission to uplift and empower creatives of color. What started off solely as an online platform has blossomed into a zine fair/ community event that Miami creatives flock to. As an artist Erika (aka Brujamoney) became frustrated with the limited exposure and opportunities to monetize her art so she decided to embark on a journey of creating a movement to fill the void for herself and her fellow artists. Erika is the embodiment of a she-preneur and is using her talents to make sure everyone comes up too! Check out our interview to learn more about the inspiration behind Magiazine, how the name Brujamoney came to be, and projects launching this summer!

How did Magiazine start? 

We started off as an independent digital publication that focused on giving creatives of color a platform to express themselves, in their own way. 

What does the name Magiazine mean? 

Zines, in general, are a culture of magazines that are typically niche and concise; they're individually printed and/or pressed publications. Magia means magic in Spanish, so it's a magic-zine.

What is the mission of Magiazine and what inspired you to launch it? 

The mission is to uplift and empower creatives of color. I started it because as an artist I was frustrated with the few structures put in place to monetize my art through. I didn't like that the only options artists had to promote their work didn't give them a platform or encourage them to use their voices, which made them susceptible to being overwritten or copied by others. This all came about mostly because as an artist I wasn't given the blueprint on how to market and sell my work, so I wanted to create it for myself and others. Too many artists get trapped in the narrative of the "starving artist" and I hate it. I want creatives, especially creatives of color, to understand that their work has value and can be monetized but while staying true to what they want to do. Magiazine as a whole focuses on the inherent magic of creators of color, and the things that are embedded in our culture, history, and ancestry. This type of open celebration sheds light on a version of ourselves that major platforms aren't going to talk about unless they find a way to fetishize and change it to fit their narrative for us. I wanted to create something that wasn't going to edit our story to fit some profitable or popular idea of who we are. I wanted it to be all about us, in our voice.

What tools is Magiazine using to empower artists? 

Aside from providing them with exposure at the Magiazine Fair, we've partnered up with organizations like the Urban League of Broward County and Artserve to link artists with educational programs. For example, at the last Magiazine Fair James Schermer, from the Artists as an Entrepreneur Institute (AEI) came to talk about the 4-week program he runs at AEI to teach artists how to create businesses to monetize their art. He typically offers the programs for $100, but Magiazine was able to partner up with him and provide our attendees with 50% off of the registration fee.

Bless and be blessed

What would you like to be best known for?

I'd like to be known for my community involvement and commitment to being socially aware. I'm a spiritual person and not only feel connected to my purpose but everyone's as a whole. I've tried to focus on promoting holistic wellness and self-care by sharing tools for everyone to become the best version of themselves.

How does spirituality play a role in who you are and how you engage with the community? 

I was raised in a household that was really open minded about religion. We attended any type of spiritual service that seemed interesting, so as a result I never really subscribed to any one religion in particular. I believe that all religions in some way can help each of us gain perspective to our relationship with God, the Universe, or however you prefer to call it. I can tune into other people's energy and understand how it works with mine, which I think gives me an advantage when engaging with the community.

Is that kinda how the name "brujamoney" came about?

My original name on Twitter was "erikamoney" but it wasn't necessarily one I chose for myself. My used to friends called me "money bags" because I always found a way to make money on the side or was working several jobs, so it stuck with me. I deleted my Twitter and then when I decided to come back the name erikamoney was already taken. I'm already known as "La bruja" because I have an ability to heal and connect with people, so naturally, I chose my name to be @brujamoney!

Tell me about your most recent self-care project! 

My latest project is called #HealYoSelf. It's a collaboration with Camarilla Complex, which is a blog curated by 7 women dedicated to creating what they call "cheat codes", which are super useful life hacks. The project is a digital wellness summit put curated to help everyone improve their lives. We're going to have experts in different fields that are going to give us all easy and strategic ways to tackle areas we feel we need help with. Anyone who signs up will be able to choose they days and topics they want to tune into based on our schedule. It's going to be really cool! 

What are some of your favorite books? 

Siddartha by Hermann Hesse changed the way I look at life. It gave me a true perspective on how unfaithful we can sometimes be to our dreams and desires. Another book that helped in my maturity was The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz because it taught me how to step out of my own perspective and take into consideration the way that other's are and why they are that way. Also, any book by Junot Diaz is amazing; he's my favorite author. 

What should we look forward to from you in the near future? 

We're expanding into a lot of things! I'm creating content for Magiazine and keeping in mind that I want it all to be of relevance to people's lives. I'm making sure that everything we put out is to help people grow spiritually, physically, and emotionally. 

If there was one message you could get out to the world, what would it be? 

Bless and be blessed. 

Learn more about Magiazine at Magiazine.com  and follow on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Tumblr.