Quincy Jones is one of those living legends whose life deserves a miniseries. From conducting Frank Sinatra to producing the iconic Michael Jackson records, he is easily in the Top 5 music producers and arrangers of all time. So when he speaks, we listen.
I’m slightly upset with myself that I didn’t know about this interview sooner, but GQ sat down with Mr. Jones in 2018 for a conversation about life and music. I would’ve been just as nervous as Khalid (if not more) if I were tasked to interview one of my favorite music producers ever. Yet, the nuggets dropped by the legend are pure gold.
I suggest watching the entire 31-minute video, but here are 3 nuggets I took away from it.
It starts with the song.
“A great song can make the worst singer in the world a star. A bad song can’t be saved by the three greatest singers in the world.”
Learn instruments.
“It opens up a door for you to learn what music is really about. And there’s only 12 notes!” He then proceeds to give a quick lesson on scales:
The power of music.
“Music and water will be the last things to leave this earth because we can’t live without water or music.”