Legendary musician Quincy Jones has passed away at age 91. His publicist, Arnold Robinson stated that he died at his home in Los Angeles on Sunday, November 3. In his last moments, he was with his family as told to the Associated Press.
“Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’ passing,” the family said in a statement, according to the AP.
They added, “And although this is an incredible loss for our family, we celebrate the great life that he lived and know there will never be another like him.”
Jones’ family
Quincy Jones, a legendary musician, is survived by seven children: Rashida, Kidada, Kenya, Quincy III, Jolie, Martina, and Rachel. He also has three grandchildren named Isaiah, Quincy IV, and Nea.
His achievements
He has won numerous music awards including 28 Grammys in total, making him the second most-awarded artist ever. Out of 80 nominations since 1961, he won Producer of the Year three times, and both Album of the Year and Song of the Year twice.
Close-to-death experience
He had a close call with death in 1974 when he was 41. He had two brain aneurysms and needed two surgeries. Doctors told him he only had only one per cent chance of making it, but he survived.
Childhood
He had a tough childhood. At just 14 years old, he ran away from home because his stepmother was abusive – she wouldn’t even call him by his name until he was 57.
He lied about his age to join the National Guard, saying he was 18, but faced a lot of racism there. Born in Chicago in 1993, he started out playing trumpet in jazz bands with famous musicians like Lionel Hampton and Dizzy Gillespie.
His works
As a music producer, he helped make many famous artists even more successful, including Frank Sinatra, Michael Jackson, Paul Simon, and Aretha Franklin. One of his biggest hits was Michael Jackson’s Beat It from 1982, where he brought in Eddie Van Halen to play the famous guitar solo. His music did well too – his album Body Heat reached number 6 on the Billboard charts in 1974. In total, he’s had 13 songs on the Hot 100 list and several albums in the Top 20.
