When someone of Quincy Jones’ stature passes away, their past comments are given new life. In the aftermath of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ arrest, the great producer’s opinions on the Bad Boy founder’s music ability—or lack thereof—are resurfacing.
According to the Huffington Post, at a Spotify event in June 2012, Jones was not impressed with Diddy’s producing style, explaining that the “Coming Home” artist “couldn’t recognize a b flat.” He went on to note that “P. Diddy has a doctorate in marketing…. He’s got clothes companies and Ciroc vodka,”
As you would expect, the 28-time Grammy winner’s comments got a lot of attention, which led to him issuing a clarification on Facebook, writing, “No controversy, no diss. I have nothing but love and respect for Diddy and all that he has achieved as an artist and an executive. Always have and always will,” per Daily Mail.
Those last sentiments may not have aged well, but he wasn’t wrong about the rest of it. Long before lawsuits and an arrest ruined his reputation and career, Diddy wasn’t exactly setting the musical world on fire. His recent releases sounded like a ‘90s/early 2000s artist who couldn’t figure out the modern music business. He’d become a nostalgia act, who wasn’t ready to admit he was a nostalgia act.
No matter what happens with his various sexual assault lawsuits and the sex trafficking, racketeering and conspiracy charges against him, no one’s first conversation about Combs will involve his musical influence. He will always be known for his legal issues now.
Frankly, when it comes to music, we should usually consider Quincy Jones’ opinion the smartest one. From Frank Sinatra, to Dinah Washington, to Miles Davis, to Michael Jackson, the man worked with actual legends. He’s forgotten more about music than most of us will ever know. He knew exactly what Diddy the music producer was about, and he wasn’t impressed, because he knew what real production was.
