At the start of this month, we lost the legendary producer Quincy Jones.  A few days prior to his passing, I was telling my mother that after I posted my previous tribute to Frankie Beverly, Tito Jackson, and James Earl Jones, I had to stop for the rest of year.  However, once I heard that Q died, I knew had to do at least one more. 

Like nearly every celebrity I write a tribute for, I don’t exactly remember the first time I heard of Quincy Jones.  I can only assume it was around the time I fell in love with Michael Jackson.  As you all already know, he worked with Mike for the better part of a decade, and created two of the best albums in music history.  That was enough to make me love the man right there.

Around 1990, Q released a documentary entitled, Listen Up!  The Lives of Quincy Jones. I was about eight or nine then. Growing up, biographies, autobiographies, and documentaries always piqued my interest. On top of that, Quincy was Michael Jackson’s homeboy, so I had to see it.  When it watched the film, I learned so much about the man behind the music.  His upbringing in Chicago, his kids, the aneurysm he had back in the ‘70s, many of the songs he worked on, and that didn’t even scratch the surface.

Years later, around 2018, Ms. Rashida Jones, one of Quincy’s daughters, released an updated documentary simply entitled Quincy, where I learned even more about Mr. Jones.  This doc featured an elderly Quincy Jones, proud of the life he accomplished, but also mourning the loss of so many of his dear friends and family. 

It’s crazy just how much Quincy Jones contributed to music and what a talent he was.  Did y’all know that he was the one that created the “The Streetbeater,” otherwise known as the Sanford and Son theme?  

Any Austin Powers fans out there?  You can thank Mr. Jones for the killer song “Soul Bossa Nova,” which served as the theme for the trilogy.

Who out there loved to hear the classic song play whenever The Bride was about to kick some ass on Kill Bill?  Quincy Jones created that track as well.  It was originally the theme song to Ironside, a TV series from the 1960s and ’70s. By the way, “Ironside” is one of my favorite pieces of Q’s. I could listen to it all day.

Quincy Jones also made a slew of hits for artists like Frank Sinatra, Lesley Gore, Ray Charles (one of his closest friends), The Brothers Johnson, James Ingram, and he even gave Tamia her big break.

Let’s not forget how he helped Michael Jackson go from being a superstar to an out-of-this world legend.  As I said before, he produced two of the best albums ever made:  Off the Wall and Thriller.  He also produced the Bad album and worked with Mike on the “We Are the World” project.

And of course, you can’t forget the contributions Q made to TV and movies.  Mr. Jones helped create the soundtracks for The Wiz, Roots, In the Heat of the Night and The Color Purple. He was also the driving force behind the classic sitcoms The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and In the House (I realize that In the House didn’t have the same impact as Fresh Prince, but it’ll always be a classic in my eyes).

I know I probably shouldn’t say this, but Q also had an era that you won’t hear a lot about in other tributes.  He had a “I Don’t Give a Crap About What I Say” era that used to crack me up.  A few years back, he laid everything bare to Vulture, telling them how he believed that The Beatles weren’t great musicians (I doubt that), how Marlon Brando hooked up with half the men in the industry (who the heck knows), Richard Pryor was bisexual (Richard Pryor himself admitted this), and Elvis was a bad singer (that’s a matter of opinion).  He even had a lot to say about Prince, too.  He once swore up and down that Prince tried to run over Michael and LaToya Jackson in a parking lot during the famed James Brown concert where they both made an appearance (I don’t believe it).  Wild ass stories, but again, they cracked me up.

While I was writing this piece, Rashida Jones and a few of her siblings attended the Governors Awards to accept an honorary Oscar in Q’s memory. Rashida, who always had a close relationship with her dad, gave a really heartfelt speech, which is the best way to sum up this tribute. Check it out below:

Extremely talented and just as outspoken, Quincy Jones was a forced to be reckoned with. May he rest in peace.

Quincy Delight Jones: March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024

—Written by Nadiya