Wyclef Jean Credits Mentor Quincy Jones for Inspiring His Genre-Defying Seven-Album Project 'Quantum Leap'
By
Jack Irvin
Crisp on the outside, thoughtful on the inside. A keeper.
Summary
Wyclef Jean, 56, is preparing to release a seven-album project called 'Quantum Leap' spanning multiple genres. He shares how his mentor Quincy Jones inspired his genre-crossing approach to music, noting that studying jazz while seeing Jones work with Michael Jackson and Aretha Franklin shaped his mindset. Jean discussed this at the 2026 Music Will Benefit in New York City.
Key quotes
· 1 pulledMy mentor was Quincy Jones, right? And Quincy, when I was coming up in high school studying jazz, I was like, 'Oh man, you could do jazz, but yet do Michael Jackson, do Aretha [Franklin].' So, it developed my mind.
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