Quincy Jones has apologised for a recent string of controversial comments he made about stars including The Beatles and Michael Jackson.
The 84-year-old record producer has admitted he was wrong for making a string of "silly" comments in interviews, including claiming The Beatles were the "worst musicians in the world", slamming Taylor Swift’s songwriting capabilities, and accusing the late Michael Jackson of "stealing" the inspiration for many of his biggest hits.
Quincy admits that his loved ones have staged a "family intervention" to get him to apologise, and he claims he has now "learned his lesson".
On Twitter, the star wrote: "A couple weekends ago, my six daughters (who I’m beyond proud of ) took me aside to do a surprise ‘family intervention’ because of some silly things I’ve said in two recent interviews &…I have LEARNED MY LESSON. Let me tell you, I’m so grateful for my daughters because they aren’t scared to stand up to their daddy. I am an imperfect human & I’m not afraid to say it. And I’m sorry & I’m not afraid to say it.
"When you’ve been fortunate enough to have lived such a long & crazy life (& you’ve recently stopped drinking- three years ago!), certain details about specific events (which do NOT paint the full picture of my intentions not experiences) come flooding back all at once, & even at 85, it’s apparent that "wordvomit" & bad-mouthing is inexcusable. (sic)"
During his recent interviews, Quincy had also touched on important issues such as his desire to tackle racism, and has now apologised that his "bad mouthing" comments have taken away from the importance of those topics.
He continued: "One of the hardest things about this situation is that, this bad-mouthing has contradicted the very real messages I tried to relay about racism, inequality, homophobia, poverty …you name it. And of course I don’t want that. I have already reached out to my friends privately, but when you live a public life, you have a responsibility to be an example, & since I do lead a public life, I wanted to make an apology. (sic)"
Quincy rounded off his Twitter message by apologising to those he "offended", and thanking his family for making him realise the error of his ways.
He wrote: "I’m sorry to anyone whom my words offended & I’m especially sorry to my friends who are still here with me & to those who aren’t. There friends are like blood family to me. To my dear family & Friends … thank you for your grace. Thank you for calling me out when I’ve clearly made a mistake…many mistakes.
"Even though sometimes it’s difficult to receive criticism or discipline (especially publicly), I want you to know I hear you. I hear ALL of you…& I thank you. So, I encourage you all to please grow with me & keep on keepin’ on. Love, an 85 year old bow-legged man who is still learning from his mistakes. (sic)"