Quincy Jones, the legendary music icon whose illustrious career spanned over six decades and broke numerous boundaries across various roles—including musician, songwriter, producer, conductor, arranger, artist, and humanitarian—has passed away at the age of 91. His remarkable journey in the music industry and beyond has left an indelible mark on the world.

According to Jones’ publicist, Arnold Robinson, the 28-time Grammy Award recipient—out of an incredible record of 80 nominations—and a proud member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame passed away on Sunday night (November 3) at his home located in the prestigious Bel Air area of Los Angeles, surrounded by his beloved family. His extraordinary contributions to music and culture will be deeply missed.

“Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’ passing,” the family expressed in a heartfelt statement. “Although this is a profound loss for our family, we gather to celebrate the remarkable life he lived, knowing there will never be another talent like him.”

“He is truly one of a kind and we will miss him dearly; we take comfort and immense pride in knowing that the love and joy, which were the essence of his being, were shared with the world through all that he created. Through his impactful music and his boundless love, Quincy Jones’ heart will beat for eternity.”

Surviving Quincy are his seven children, including the talented actress Rashida Jones.

“Quincy Jones is the ultimate music renaissance man,” noted fellow music legend Clive Davis in an interview with Billboard back in 2013. “Quincy remains ever young and vital, possessing an imagination as vast as the biggest heart in the world.”

Spanning an extraordinary career that encompassed more than 60 years, Jones collaborated with a multitude of musical greats, ranging from his mentors Count Basie and Clark Terry to icons like Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, and Michael Jackson. Among his many groundbreaking accomplishments, Jones produced the best-selling albums of Jackson, including Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad. Additionally, he secured the rights to the novel The Color Purple, casting a young Oprah Winfrey in Steven Spielberg’s acclaimed 1985 Oscar-nominated film adaptation. Furthermore, he led the historic recording sessions for the 1985 charity single “We Are the World,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 charts. Notably, Jones made history as the first African-American to serve as a VP at a major record label when he took the A&R helm at Mercury Records in 1961, producing several hits for Lesley Gore, starting with her 1963 debut single “It’s My Party.”

Jones also shattered racial barriers by being the first black composer to gain recognition for his film scores. His initial theatrical feature score was for Sydney Lumet’s The Pawnbroker in 1964. With the support of influential figures like Lumet, Henry Mancini, and Sidney Poitier, Jones composed music for two groundbreaking films released in 1967: the best picture Oscar winner In the Heat of the Night and In Cold Blood, adapted from Truman Capote’s bestselling novel.

Transitioning into television, Jones crafted memorable theme songs for iconic series such as The Bill Cosby Show, Ironside, and Sanford and Son. He also served as the executive producer for the beloved show The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, which starred a young Will Smith, and for In the House, featuring LL Cool J.

“Quit” was never a part of Jones’ vocabulary, as he remarkably survived two brain aneurysms in 1974. Following his first aneurysm, he recounted in his 2008 book, The Complete Quincy Jones: My Journey & Passions: Photos, Letters, Memories & More from Q’s Personal Collection, “It didn’t seem like I’d survive, so my friends had organized a memorial service. … Despite this, they held the concert anyway.” With his neurologist by his side, he attended the service at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, where legends like Richard Pryor, Marvin Gaye, Sarah Vaughan, and Sidney Poitier honored his immense talent and lasting legacy.

Reflecting on his illustrious career during a milestone moment on his 80^th birthday, Jones shared with Billboard, “I feel incredibly fortunate to have lived in a time where I could collaborate with every individual who helped shape the history of American culture. It’s part of God’s plan, and you simply have to open your heart and embrace all aspects of it.”

Quincy Delight Jones Jr. was born on March 14, 1933, in Chicago to parents Quincy Delight Jones Sr. and Sarah Frances Jones. He grew up alongside his only full-blood brother, Lloyd. His mother, who worked at a bank, was later institutionalized for schizophrenia, while his father worked as a carpenter and played semi-professional baseball.

Quincy Sr. divorced Sarah shortly after her institutionalization and remarried a woman named Elvera, who had three children from a previous relationship. Together, they had three more children, creating a large family of eight siblings.

“We lived in the heart of the largest black ghetto in Chicago during the Great Depression,” Jones recalled in an Academy of Achievement interview, “and every block was a breeding ground for every gangster, both black and white, in America. So, we were surrounded by that environment.”

In 1943, his father moved the family to Bremerton, Washington, and later to Seattle, where Quincy Jr. attended Garfield High School, igniting his passion for music by studying composition and learning to play the trumpet. As a teenager, he met a 16-year-old Ray Charles—a pivotal meeting depicted in the 2004 Jamie Foxx film Ray—who became an influential mentor and lifelong friend, leading to numerous collaborative musical projects.

While attending Seattle University, Jones participated in the college band and continued his music education, but completed only one semester before transferring to Boston’s Berklee College of Music on a scholarship. Ultimately, he left Berklee to join Lionel Hampton’s band as a trumpeter and subsequently established himself as an arranger for leading artists of the time, including Charles, Vaughan, Dinah Washington, Duke Ellington, and Gene Krupa.

As a solo artist, Jones signed with ABC Paramount Records in 1956 and moved to Paris a year later, taking on the role of musical director for Mercury Records’ French distributor Barclay Records. In addition to studying composition with the renowned Nadia Boulanger, he toured Europe as the musical director for composer Harold Arlen’s Free and Easy touring show. He formed a band called The Jones Boys, comprising jazz musicians from the tour; despite receiving rave reviews, financial struggles persisted.

“We had the best jazz band on the planet, yet we were literally starving,” he recounted to Musician magazine. “That’s when I realized there was a distinction between music and the music business. To survive, I had to comprehend the differences between the two.”

Jones began his collaboration with Frank Sinatra in 1958, arranging a benefit show, which later led to Sinatra hiring him to arrange his 1964 album It Might as Well Be Swing featuring the Count Basie Orchestra. His first Grammy win came in 1964 for the best arrangement of the Count Basie Orchestra’s “I Can’t Stop Loving You.” Jones then worked on the 1966 live album Sinatra at the Sands, which included his iconic arrangement of “Fly Me to the Moon,” famously played by astronaut Buzz Aldrin during the 1969 moon landing. Jones and Sinatra collaborated on various television shows and recordings, which led to additional arranging opportunities for artists such as Billy Eckstine and Peggy Lee.

“There was no ambiguity with the man. It was either black or white,” Jones reflected on Sinatra in his 2001 autobiography, Q: The Autobiography of Quincy Jones. “If he cared for you, he would do anything for you. If he didn’t, well, that was unfortunate. I knew he cared for me. Throughout our years of collaboration, we never once had a formal contract—just a handshake.”

Irving Green, the president and founder of Mercury Records, helped Jones secure a position as music director at the label. By 1964, he advanced to the role of VP, making history as the first African-American to hold that position at a major record label. During his tenure at Mercury, Jones also dabbled in film composition, scoring the critically acclaimed Pawnbroker for Lumet, which prompted his departure from Mercury to pursue further film opportunities in Los Angeles.

In 1965, Jones composed the score for Sydney Pollack’s debut film, The Slender Thread, featuring Poitier. He went on to score over 35 movies, including Walk, Don’t Run (1966), Enter Laughing (1967), Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969), The Italian Job (1969), Cactus Flower (1969), They Call Me Mister Tibbs! (1970), and The Getaway (1972).

In 1968, Jones made history as the first African-American to receive two Oscar nominations in a single year. He, along with his songwriting partner Bob Russell, became the first African-Americans nominated for best original song for “The Eyes of Love” from the romantic drama Banning, while his original score for In Cold Blood was also nominated. Over his career, Jones accumulated six Academy Award nominations, including best picture, original score, and original song for the 1985 film The Color Purple, which garnered a total of 11 Oscar nominations.

In 1971, Jones made history as the first African-American musical director and conductor for the Academy Awards. He later served as the executive producer for the Oscars in 1996. His acceptance of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1995 marked yet another milestone as the first African-American recipient. With a total of seven Oscar nominations, he shares the record for most nominations among African-Americans with sound designer Willie D. Burton.

Apart from his film work, Jones’ solo albums garnered both critical and popular acclaim, starting with 1969’s Walking in Space and including works like Gula Matari, Smackwater Jack, You’ve Got It Bad Girl, Body Heat, Mellow Madness, I Heard That!, Sounds … And Stuff Like That!, The Dude, and Back on the Block. His extensive songwriting catalog has been sampled by renowned artists, including the late Tupac Shakur and Kanye West. One of Jones’ most popular compositions is the 1962 track “Soul Bossa Nova,” which gained worldwide recognition through its use in various projects, including the 1998 World Cup in France and the Austin Powers films.

In 1975, Jones established Qwest Productions, where he arranged and produced albums for Sinatra and other major pop stars. He created the soundtrack for The Wiz (1978), starring Jackson and Diana Ross. Following this, he collaborated with the future King of Pop on a series of transformative albums, including the record-breaking Thriller.

“It’s safe to say that what we achieved—Michael Jackson, myself, Rod Temperton, Bruce Swedien, Jerry Hey, Greg Phillinganes, and my entire studio A-Team—with Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad will likely never be duplicated,” Jones remarked in a 2013 interview. “It was the perfect blend of talent, experience, and timing, with enough space for divine intervention.”

In 1980, Jones launched Qwest Records in collaboration with Warner Music Group, overseeing a diverse roster of artists, including Sinatra, the British post-punk bands New Order and Joy Division, James Ingram, Tevin Campbell, Andraé Crouch, Patti Austin, Siedah Garrett, Gregory Jefferson, and Justin Warfield.

In addition to his artistic endeavors, social activism played a vital role in Jones’ life. He was a strong supporter of Martin Luther King Jr. during the 1960s, worked with Jesse Jackson’s P.U.S.H. movement, and collaborated with Bono on various humanitarian initiatives. He founded The Quincy Jones Listen Up Foundation, aimed at building homes in Africa and empowering youth through educational programs centered around music and culture.

In 1985, Jones organized a star-studded lineup of music superstars at A&M Studios in Los Angeles to record the iconic benefit single “We Are the World,” famously instructing the artists to “check your ego at the door.” The Grammy Award-winning song raised over $63 million for famine relief in Ethiopia, demonstrating the power of music to unite for a cause.

In 1990, he established Quincy Jones Entertainment in a partnership with Time Warner, producing the beloved NBC sitcom Fresh Prince of Bel-Air that launched Will Smith’s acting career, as well as UPN’s In the House and Fox’s Mad TV, among other successful projects. In 1993, he co-founded QDE, Quincy Jones/David Salzman Entertainment, which produced films, television shows, and educational entertainment, and published magazines like VIBE and Spin.

Beyond his impressive collection of 27 Grammy Awards, Jones received numerous accolades, including the Grammy Living Legend Award, the Trustees Award, and France’s highest honor: Commandeur de la Legion d’Honneur. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2013 and most recently produced the 2014 documentary Keep on Keepin’ On, which highlighted jazz trumpeter Clark Terry and his mentorship of blind piano prodigy Justin Kauflin.

In his later years, Jones remained active in discovering and nurturing the next generation of artists, including Kauflin, Nikki Yanofsky, Emily Bear, and Alfredo Rodriguez. He performed at the World Peace Concert in Hiroshima, Japan, in 2013, initiated initiatives like Dubai Music Week through his Global Gumbo group of international artists, created the musical app Playground Sessions, and collaborated on branded merchandise ranging from headphones (Harman) to luxury watches (Audemars-Piguet). In 2013, he filed a $10 million lawsuit against MJJ Productions, controlled by the Michael Jackson Estate, and Sony Entertainment, claiming he was denied royalties from posthumous releases. The presiding judge ruled that the case would proceed to trial in June 2016.

At the end of his impactful career, Jones announced in 2023 a significant restructuring of Quincy Jones Productions, which included closing its artist management division. This decision reflected a shift toward prioritizing creative pursuits in music, film, and technology. Despite stepping back from artist management, Jones remained dedicated to mentoring young talent, celebrating the achievements of Grammy winners like Jacob Collier and Jon Batiste, and expressing gratitude for the contributions of outgoing division president Adam Fell. Even with these changes, Jones continued to support the next generation of artists right up until his passing.</