A born-and-raised ‘Harlemite’, Que Jones, also known as Q730 to his peers, has always
has maintained his focus and passion for music as long as he can remember. Hip Hop
played a major part in his life. So, in his effort to develop original sounds, he insists that
the music remains “raw and organic”. “I’ve always been attracted to music from playing
with my great grandmother’s upright piano at the early age of five, to learning how to
play drums on my window guards from a next neighbor. So, this passion comes
naturally to me.”
Beginning his career as a DJ and collecting vinyl, DJing taught Que about tempos and
how to blend and vocals. “It was basically training my ears. Producing tracks or just
getting the listener’s reaction when I played tracks has always been my therapy.”
Que continued to hone his production skills, producing demos for the underground
legend Percy P, The Rhyme Inspector in the early pioneering days of Hip-Hop music in
New York City.
He’s also applied his passion toward developing other artists’ work, including sharing a
studio with Kanye West back in ’96 working to round out the “Down to Earth” album for
artistic Grav. He later managed, engineered, and shepherded production for HAZMAT
studios located in Harlem. “Those Hazmat years were a great experience and it helped
me get my production skills up, and work with certain clients like Loaded Lux and Head
Ice. I was surrounded by nothing but talent. My skills had got so sharpened that I landed
a placement on the Bulletproof Love soundtrack.”
Que’s career journey was certainly not all elevation – he and his team eventually had to
shut down their studio due to some extreme life challenges. Though, his passion for
music continued to sustain him, and he leaned into inspiration and musical legend
Quincy Jones for inspiration. “[Quincy Jones] once said “Every great producer is a great
collaborator.” So, Que pressed onward, seeking new partnerships and began working
with artist Elpee and childhood friend Geno, where he began learning more about the
business of music. This newfound knowledge and great relationships helped him secure
a collaborative placement on the late DJ Kay Slay’s Street Sweeper album. Fueled by
the joy of this accomplishment, he worked diligently to pursue another placement and
subsequently landed on the Diplomatic Immunity album, by Harlem-based rap team,
Dipset.
Since enjoying these major career highlights, Que continues to grow and elevate and
eagerly anticipates the heights of new sounds and creativity with the Music division of
Gotham Buds as a Managing Partner.
