The Weeknd has reminded his fans how important his “idol”, the late Quincy Jones, was to the “fabric” of his music.
The ‘Blinding Lights’ hitmaker took to social media to “celebrate” the legendary record producer, who passed away on Sunday (03.11.24), aged 91, and he shared a foreword he penned for Quincy’s 2022 autobiography ’12 Notes on Life and Creativity’.
He wrote on X: “My fans know how important Quincy was to the fabric of my music. I was given the opportunity to write a foreword to his book and tried to capture what he meant to me as a human. Let’s celebrate his life today (sic)”
In part of the foreword, in which The Weeknd – whose real name is Abel Tesfaye – refers to Quincy as “Q”, he wrote: “Q was my idol in every sense of the word and I tried to soak up any clues to greatness he may have left behind. I felt as though I knew him, because I practically did know everyone about him and his work, but we hadn’t yet met in person.
“Fast forward to 2015, when Victor Drai surprised me by bringing Q to my show at Drai’s Nightclub in Las Vegas. I nearly lost my mind after I heard that my idol was sitting on the side of the stage, about to watch me perform. As soon as I finished my last song, I couldn’t make it over to him fast enough. I was so laser-focused on meeting him (the reason why I even do music in the first place) that I barely even noticed there were fans on the other side of the stage, screaming my name, trying to grab my attention.
“The first thing Q told me as I approached him was, ‘Go to your fans. Take pictures and sign autographs with them. I’ll still be here waiting for you afterward. They’re more important.’ Out of all the lessons I learned from watching his public interviews or listening to his productions for hours on end, that one piece of instruction proved to be more meaningful. At that moment, he was teaching me something that I will never forget. Nothing is more valuable than the people around me, and giving back is always better than receiving.
“So Q, thank you. Thank you for everything you’ve taught me publicly, and everything you’ve taught me through your words and actions.”
Quincy worked with several music icons throughout his career, including the likes of Frank Sinatra, Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Ray Charles, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis, and Lionel Richie.