Quincy Jones US Music Giant and Ukraine Supporter, Dies at Age 91

US music producer, composer and 28-time Grammy winner Quincy Jones passed away on Sunday, Nov. 3, at the age of 91 in Los Angeles. His family did not disclose the cause of death.

“Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’s passing. 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,” the family said in a statement.

Jones enjoyed an illustrious career spanning more than seven decades and across multiple genres, working with musical acts from jazz icons Count Basie and Miles Davis to pop idols such as Elvis Presley and Amy Winehouse.

Jones is also famous for producing Michael Jackson’s bestselling “Thriller” album, released in 1982, which topped the chart of bestselling albums of all time with over 72 million copies sold worldwide. 

Jones won 28 Grammy Awards from 79 nominations throughout his career.

In 2014, Jones was also a vocal supporter of Ukraine’s Euromaidan revolution, even recording a video message on the YouTube channel run by Ukrainian boxers and activists Vitali Klitschko and Wladimir Klitschko during the revolution, where Vitali later became the mayor of Kyiv.

“As the world gathers this evening to welcome in the New Year, and all of the hopes and aspirations that it may bring, I wanted to take a moment to send my best wishes and admiration for each and every one of you there in the square in Kyiv and throughout Ukraine who have peacefully joined together to stand up for democracy and all of the freedoms that it entails,” Jones said.

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“There’s no more noble cause than fight for justice and equality, and as you continue on this most righteous of endeavors, know that you are not alone in your struggle, that the world is watching,” he added.

He then quoted US civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., whose civil rights movement in the 1960s largely dictated Jones’s political views.

“As the great American Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. once said, our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.

“History has proven time and time again that in [sic] a society rooted in democratic ideals will always overcome one rooted in oppression of any kind,” Jones added.

Jones is survived by his daughter, actress Rashida Jones from his marriage with actress Peggy Lipton of “Twin Peaks” fame. Alongside Rashida, Jones is survived by daughters Jolie Jones Levine, Rachel Jones, Martina Jones, Kidada Jones and Kenya Kinski-Jones; son Quincy Jones III; brother Richard Jones and sisters Theresa Frank and Margie Jay.