For Black History Month, Billboard is celebrating by highlighting some of the greatest Black executives in music, and today we're celebrating Quincy Jones.
Quincy Jones
To start working with almost every major influencer in America, you know, from Louis Armstrong to Billy Eckstine, Ella, Sarah, Ray Charles, Aretha, Paul Simon, everyone.
Tetris Kelly
For Black History Month, Billboard is celebrating by highlighting some of the greatest Black executives in music, and today we celebrate Quincy Jones.
Tetris Kelly
The incomparable Quincy Jones is a staple in the music industry with 25 songs on the Hot R&B, Hip-Hop Songs chart, four of which reached No. 1, won an Emmy, a Tony, a Humanitarian Oscar and 28 awards Grammy. making him one of only 25 people to achieve EGOT status. He has an incredible resume and over 70 years of musical memories to be proud of.
quincy
Meeting Ray Charles was number one, playing with Billie Holiday at age 14 at Eagle Auditorium. He played with Billy Eckstine, he played with Cam Calloway…
Tetris Kelly 1:08
But it's not just his own hits on his CV, some of music's biggest legends have Quincy Jones to thank for their achievements. In 1961, Quincy became A&R director for Mercury Records. Three years later, he will become vice president and become the first African-American to hold a high-level executive position at a major American record label. Quincy has worked with some of music's greatest and is to be thanked for creating the Michael Jackson we know to this day.
Quincy Jones
Michael, that was an accident. We did 'The Magician'. And he said, because he helped me find producers and Michael, you don't even have the song and the photo yet. Let's not just think about that, let's go to the song when he asked me about the producer to see what he could do that hadn't been done before. He was thinking about the reins of his voice and that's what you like about production architecture, you know.
Tetris Kelly
There's no denying that Quincy Jones has changed the entertainment game.
Quincy Jones
I have been very blessed to be able to contribute to how it changes the way we are represented and received. We have come a long way since the days when it was necessary to see faces of color on television.
Tetris Kelly
Today we honor music titan Quincy Jones.
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