Quincy Jones, renowned for creating the iconic “Thriller” album and for bringing together artists for the 1985 charity single “We Are the World,” had a celebrated career as a composer and trumpeter, breaking barriers in both music and film.

Jones passed away on Sunday, as confirmed by his publicist. He was 91 years old.

Throughout his extensive career as an arranger and producer, Jones amassed an impressive total of 27 Grammy Awards, leaving a lasting impact alongside music legends like Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, and Lesley Gore.

Born on March 14, 1933, to Sarah and Quincy Delight Jones, he grew up in the crime-ridden neighborhoods of Chicago during the Great Depression with his younger brother, Lloyd. His mother struggled with mental illness, which led to her being institutionalized when he was just five years old, prompting his father to move the family to Bremerton, Washington.

At the age of 11, after a break-in at the Armory recreation center in Bremerton, Jones discovered an upright piano inside. He later recounted that this moment steered him away from a youth filled with minor criminal activities towards a path in music.

This fateful encounter led Jones to explore multiple instruments before choosing the trumpet. By age 14, he was already performing on the club scene alongside his friend Ray Charles. His musical journey included genres from jazz to big band and bebop. After high school, he toured internationally with acclaimed jazz musicians Lionel Hampton and Dizzy Gillespie.

Eventually, Jones returned to the United States broke in 1961, where he began paying off debts by working at Mercury Records. He rose through the ranks to become Vice President in a predominantly white company.

In 1965, he moved to Hollywood, lured by the prospect of scoring films. To their surprise, executives learned he was Black after hiring him for Gregory Peck’s “Mirage.” He made history with two Oscar nominations for “The Love of Ivy” (best original song) and “In Cold Blood” (best original score) in 1968. Furthermore, he became the first Black musical director at the Academy Awards in 1971 and took on the role of executive producer for the show in 1996.

However, Jones faced significant health challenges, having survived two serious brain aneurysms in 1974, which resulted in a metal plate in his head that meant he could never play the trumpet again. Despite this setback, he continued to create music, contributing scores to shows like “The Bill Cosby Show,” “Sanford and Son,” and the acclaimed miniseries “Roots,” for which he won an Emmy award.

While working on “The Wiz,” he crossed paths with Michael Jackson. Their collaboration on Jackson’s “Off the Wall” album in 1979 cemented his status in music history, eventually leading to other monumental successes like “Thriller” and “Bad.” Together, they also co-produced the charitable hit “We Are the World” in 1985, which earned three Grammy Awards.

Jones also co-produced “The Color Purple” and played a significant role in introducing Oprah Winfrey to a wider audience, including producing its Broadway adaptation. In 2013, Winfrey honored Jones by inducting him into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Over his remarkable career, Jones’s contributions can be found as a producer, composer, conductor, arranger, or performer on over 400 albums, along with composing approximately 35 film scores.

He is survived by seven children: Jolie Jones Levine (from his marriage to actress Jeri Caldwell), Martina Jones and Quincy Jones III (from his second marriage to model Ulla Andersson), Kidada Jones and actress Rashida Jones (from his third marriage to “Mod Squad” actress Peggy Lipton), Rachel Jones (from Carol Reynolds), and Kenya Julia Miambi Sarah Jones (with actress Nastassja Kinski).

As Quincy Jones aged, the drive that transformed him from a jazz musician into a music industry giant never faded. He established the production company behind “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” released an autobiography in 2001, and collaborated with Lionel Richie to create another version of “We Are The World” following the 2010 Haiti earthquake.

In 2018, his daughter Rashida, along with director Alan Hicks, documented Jones’ extensive and diverse career in the Netflix film “Quincy.” Rashida described the two-hour documentary as “a starter pack,” noting she recorded 800 hours of footage and sifted through 2,000 hours of archival material.

“He’s had such a monumental life,” Rashida shared in a joint interview with YSL News. “I am continually amazed that all these experiences reside in one person, who just happens to be my dad.”

Jones expressed that he feels emotional every time he watches the film, pointing out that the narrative of his life underscores themes of family, love, and maintaining perspective.

“Never give up,” he advised. “Maintain humility alongside creativity, and carry grace through your successes. Just being behind a No. 1 record doesn’t make you superior to anyone else.”

This story has been revised to include more information.