Quincy Jones
Known for: Sound
Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award nominations, 28 Grammys, and a Grammy Legend Award in 1992. Jones came to prominence in the 1950s as a jazz arranger and conductor before working on pop music and film scores. He moved easily between musical genres, producing Lesley Gore's major pop hits of the early 1960s (including "It's My Party") and serving as an arranger and conductor for several collaborations between the jazz artists Frank Sinatra and Count Basie in the same time period. In 1968, Jones became the first African American to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song for "The Eyes of Love" from the film Banning. Jones was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Score for his work on the 1967 film In Cold Blood, making him the first African American to be nominated twice in the same year. Jones produced three of popstar Michael Jackson's most successful albums: Off the Wall (1979), Thriller (1982), and Bad (1987). In 1985, Jones produced and conducted the charity song "We Are the World", which raised funds for victims of famine in Ethiopia. In 1971, Jones became the first African American to be the musical director and conductor of the Academy Awards. In 1995, he was the first African American to receive the academy's Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. He is tied with sound designer Willie D. Burton as the second most Oscar-nominated African American, with seven nominations each. In 2013, Jones was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as the winner, alongside Lou Adler, of the Ahmet Ertegun Award. He was named one of the most influential jazz musicians of the 20th century by Time.
Filmography
Series
Saturday Night Live
Self - Host & Musical Guest
1975
Series
The Colbert Report
2005
Series
Great Performances
Self
1971
Series
Ironside
1967
Series
The One Show
Self
2006
Series
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
Self
2003
Series
The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer
2005
Series
Steve
Self
2017
Series
Sacrée soirée
Self (archive footage)
1987
Series
The Boondocks
2005
Series
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
Quincy Jones
1990
Series
Carpool Karaoke: The Series
Self
2017
Series
The Oscars
Self
1953
Titel, Thesen, Temperamente
Self
1967
Sternstunde Kunst
Self
1998
Series
Life Goes On
Dan Webster
1989
Film
Fantasia 2000
Self - Host
2000
Series
Classic Albums
Self
1997
Series
Best Week Ever
2004
Series
The Kennedy Center Honors
Self
1978
Series
Empreintes
2007
Film
Austin Powers in Goldmember
Quincy Jones
2002
Film
Ennio
Self
2022
Series
Legends
Self
2006
Film
Michael Jackson: A Life in Music
Self (archive footage)
2026
Film
Sidney
Self
2022
Film
The Wiz
Emerald City Gold Pianist (uncredited)
1978
Series
Soundbreaking
Self
2016
Film
The Greatest Night in Pop
Self (archive footage)
2024
Series
Sherman's Showcase
Quincy Jones
2019
Film
Sandy Wexler
Self
2017
Film
Thriller 40
Self (archive footage)
2023
Film
Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration
Self
2001
Big World Cafe
1989
Film
Lill-Babs 40 år som artist
Self
1994
Film
Score: A Film Music Documentary
Self
2017
Film
The Groove Under the Groove
2026
Film
Quincy
Self
2018
Series
America Beyond the Color Line
Self
2004
Film
The Earth Day Special
Self
1990
Series
MADtv
Self
1995
Film
Michael Jackson: Number Ones
Self (archive footage)
2003
Series
Science Fiction Film Awards
Self
Film
Michael Jackson: The Legend Continues
Self
1988
Film
2022 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
Self (archive footage)
2022
Film
Survivor's Guide to Prison
Self
2018
Film
Richard Pryor: Omit the Logic
Self
2013
Film
Michael Jackson: The One
Self
2004
Film
Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool
Self - Musician
2019
Film
We Are the World: The Story Behind the Song
Self
1985
Film
Jay Sebring… Cutting to the Truth
Self
2020
Film
Diane Warren: Relentless
Self (archive footage)
2025
Film
Diana
Self
1981
Film
Marvin Hamlisch: What He Did For Love
Self
2013
Film
Michael Jackson's Journey from Motown to Off the Wall
Self
2016
Film
The World of Nat King Cole
Self
2004
Film
Paul Simon: Under African Skies
Self
2012
Film
Once Upon a Time Michel Legrand
Self
2024
Film
Brando
Self
2007
Film
Ronnie's
Self (voice)
2020
Film
Anouk Aimée, la beauté du geste
Self
2012
Film
Oprah & The Color Purple Journey
Self
2023
Film
The Cosby Show: A Look Back
Self
2002
Film
Quincy Jones, Music Man
Self (archive footage)
2025
Film
Looney Tunes 50th Anniversary
Self
1986
Film
It's Black Entertainment
Self
2002
Film
It Must Schwing: The Blue Note Story
Self
2018
Film
Sinatra 100: An All-Star Grammy Concert
Self
2015
Film
Devil's Pie: D'Angelo
Self
2019
An All-Star Celebration Honoring Martin Luther King Jr.
1986
Film
Dionne Warwick: Don't Make Me Over
Self
2021
Film
Sidney Poitier: One Bright Light
2000
Film
Sammy Davis, Jr.: I've Gotta Be Me
Self
2017
Film
Henry Mancini: 100 at the Hollywood Bowl
Self
2024
Film
The N Word
Self
2006
Film
Like a Rolling Stone: The Life & Times of Ben Fong-Torres
Self
2021
Film
Q: The Man
Self
2009
Film
David Foster: Off the Record
Self
2019
Film
Davi's Way
Self
2018
Film
Sergio Mendes in the Key of Joy
Self
2021
Film
Kareem: Minority of One
Self
2015
Film
Quincy Jones : 75th Birthday Celebration Live at Montreux
Self
2008
Film
The Black Godfather
Self
2019
Film
ReMastered: The Two Killings of Sam Cooke
Self
2019
Rising Above the Blues: The Story of Jimmy Scott
Self
2012
Film
Genius. A Night for Ray Charles
Self
2004
Film
Iceberg Slim: Portrait of a Pimp
Self
2012
Film
King of Kings: Chasing Edward Jones
Self
2024
Film
King: Man of Peace in a Time of War
Self
2007
Film
Herb Alpert Is...
Self
2020
Film
The Jazz Baroness
Self
2009
Film
Listen Up: The Lives of Quincy Jones
Self
1990
Film
Q85: A Musical Celebration for Quincy Jones
Self
2018
Film
The Real Malcolm X
1992
They All Came Out to Montreux
Self
2023
Film
Quincy Jones: A Musical Celebration in Paris
Self
2019
Film
Frank Sinatra Spectacular
Self - Conductor
1965
Film
Quincy Jones... The First 50 Years
Self
1998
Film
Count Basie: Through His Own Eyes
2020
The Jackson Family Honors
Self
1994
Film
Quincy Jones: In the Pocket
Self
2001
Film
Feel Rich: Health Is the New Wealth
Himself
2017
Film
Kylie Minogue V The Bee Gees
Self (archive footage)
2022
Film
A Great Day in Harlem
Self - Narrator
1994
Film
Benny Carter: Symphony in Riffs
Self
1990
Film
Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1
Self
2018
Film
I Go Back Home - Jimmy Scott
Self
2016
Film
The Weeknd: 103.5 Dawn FM
Self (voice)
2022
Film
I Love Quincy
Self
1984
Film
Live and Swingin': The Ultimate Rat Pack Collection
Self (archive footage)
2003
Film
Intimate Portrait: Natalie Cole
Self
1999
Film
Wiz on Down the Road
Self - Music Arranger / Emerald City Gold Pianist
1978
Film
Oscar Peterson: Music in the Key of Oscar
Self
1995
Film
Frank Sinatra Memorial
Self
2000
Film
Tony Bennett: Forget Me Not
Self
2022
Film
Letter to the President
Self
2005
Quincy Jones: The Many Lives of Q
2008
Film
Jazz Open Stuttgart 2017 - Festival of World Stars and Child Prodigies
Self
2017
Film
The Unforgettable Nat King Cole
Self
1989
Film
New Order Story
Self
1993
Film
The Jazz Ambassadors
Self
2018
Film
The Phil Collins Big Band - Live at Montreux 1996
Self
1996
Film
Creating Ragtime
Self
1998
Film
The Distortion of Sound
Self
2014
Film
Montreux Jazz Festival 2013 - Remember Claude Nobs
Self
2019
Film
Jazz Icons - Quincy Jones Live in '60
2006
Film
Jacob Collier: In the Room Where It Happens
2022
Film
Wheedle's Groove
Self
2009
Film
Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes
Self
2023
Film
Quincy Jones: Breaking New Sound
Self
2008
Film
Prince: Musical Portrait
Self
1989
Film
Celia: The Queen
Self
2008
Film
Quincy Jones: 50 Years in Music - Live at Montreux
1996
We Are Universal
1971
Film
Experience Montreux
Self
2013
Film
Quincy Jones & Friends - Live at Jazz Open Stuttgart
Self
2017
Film
Wayne Shorter: Live at Montreux 1996
1996
Film
Lesley Gore: It's Her Party
2001
Film
Lady Be Good: Instrumental Women In Jazz
Self
2008
You Don't Own Me
Self
2021
An Evening with Quincy Jones
2008
Film
Miles Davis with Quincy Jones and the Gil Evans Orchestra Live at Montreux 1991
Himself
2013
Film
More Than Jazz
Himself
2016
Film
Don Lewis and The Live Electronic Orchestra
Self
2024