American Jazz Piano Great Ahmad Jamal Dead at 92

In this file photo taken on August 04, 2016 US jazz pianist and composer, Ahmad Jamal (born Frederick Russell Jones) performs during a concert in the Marciac Jazz Festival in Marciac. (AFP)
In this file photo taken on August 04, 2016 US jazz pianist and composer, Ahmad Jamal (born Frederick Russell Jones) performs during a concert in the Marciac Jazz Festival in Marciac. (AFP)
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American Jazz Piano Great Ahmad Jamal Dead at 92

In this file photo taken on August 04, 2016 US jazz pianist and composer, Ahmad Jamal (born Frederick Russell Jones) performs during a concert in the Marciac Jazz Festival in Marciac. (AFP)
In this file photo taken on August 04, 2016 US jazz pianist and composer, Ahmad Jamal (born Frederick Russell Jones) performs during a concert in the Marciac Jazz Festival in Marciac. (AFP)

Ahmad Jamal, a towering and influential US pianist, composer and band leader whose career spanned more than seven decades and helped transform jazz, pop and hip-hop, has died at age 92.

Jamal released about 80 albums, building friendships and influence with greats such as Miles Davis, and was sampled by rappers including Nas, helping to lure a larger pop audience to jazz.

He won myriad awards over the course of his career, including France's prestigious Ordre des Arts and des Lettres in 2007 and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017.

Born Frederick Russell Jones in a humble suburb of Pittsburgh in 1930, he first sat down at a piano when he was three years old and began studying music seriously when he was seven.

He converted to Islam and changed his name when he was 20, though he avoided the more political side of the era's Black Power movement, putting his focus on a "search for peace".

The jazz scene he entered in the 1950s was often characterised by a hectic, explosive style.

By contrast, Jamal's playing was spartan and reserved, surprising his audience with long empty stretches, sudden breaks and romantic flourishes.

It took a while for people to catch on.

"His musical concept was one of the great innovations of the time, even if its spare, audacious originality was lost on many listeners," the New Yorker wrote last year.

But many were paying close attention.

Though they never collaborated, Davis often paid homage to Jamal. In his autobiography, Davis wrote: "(Jamal) knocked me out with his concept of space, his lightness of touch, his understatement, and the way he phrased notes and chords and passages."

He worked in a trio -- most notably with bassist Israel Crosby and drummer Vernel Fournier with whom he recorded his breakthrough album, 1958's "Ahmad Jamal at the Pershing: But Not for Me", which stayed on the Billboard magazine charts for more than 100 weeks, becoming one of the best-selling instrumental records of its time.

'Alternative universe'

US music critic Ted Gioia wrote that Jamal "opened up an alternative universe of sound, freer and less constrained than what we had heard before. The rules of improvised music were different after he appeared on the scene."

"The Awakening" from 1970 developed the sound -- "a fine example of Jamal's stately and understated elegance" in the words of Pitchfork -- but it also had a long afterlife, influencing hip-hop artists in the coming decades, sampled most famously by Nas on his 1990s hit "The World is Yours".

Jamal never stopped experimenting, bringing in explosive percussionist Manolo Badrena in the 1990s and still recording critically lauded work into his late 80s.

"I live an exciting life, and when you live an interesting life, you keep discovering," Jamal told AFP during a visit to France in 2012.

"Musicians blossom and build themselves. Some basic things are still there in my music, the melodic sense for example, but the density of sound has changed with age, and the rhythmic part has become more elaborate," he added.

His death, reportedly from prostrate cancer, was confirmed to US media by his family.



Viola Davis Makes Younger Self Proud as US President in ‘G20’ 

Actor Viola Davis attends the special screening of "G20" at the Regal Times Square on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in New York. (AP)
Actor Viola Davis attends the special screening of "G20" at the Regal Times Square on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in New York. (AP)
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Viola Davis Makes Younger Self Proud as US President in ‘G20’ 

Actor Viola Davis attends the special screening of "G20" at the Regal Times Square on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in New York. (AP)
Actor Viola Davis attends the special screening of "G20" at the Regal Times Square on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in New York. (AP)

For Viola Davis, seeing her first images of a strong Black woman on television when she was growing up became an inspiration for her role as the US president in the thriller film "G20."

The 1974 American crime drama series "Get Christie Love!" starring Teresa Graves as an undercover detective immediately captivated Davis.

"Whenever she would arrest someone, she was like 'You're under arrest, baby!' and I was like 'Oh my God! Oh my goodness!' and she would throw men off balconies," Davis told Reuters.

"When you see it, you can believe it. When you see it, you can see yourself in it and there's something about being seen that forces you to see yourself," she added.

"G20," which arrives on Amazon Prime Video on Thursday, is directed by Mexican director Patricia Riggen and follows Davis' character US President Danielle Sutton, who protects her family and other world leaders when a G20 summit in Cape Town, South Africa is infiltrated by terrorists.

The movie also stars Anthony Anderson as Danielle's husband and first gentleman Derek Sutton, "black-ish" actor Marsai Martin as their daughter Serena Sutton, and Christopher Farrar as their son Demetrius Sutton.

Davis specifically requested Anderson to play her movie husband because of their close bond.

"We've always had a great relationship, just in the same network, traveling in the same circles, having the same friends," Anderson said.

However, both Davis and Anderson admitted that their biggest bonding experiences came from collecting free items together at gifting suites.

"I didn't want to mention that. We like the free stuff,” said Davis, triggering a fit of laughter from both of the actors.

Another thing about the movie that amused Davis was thinking about how her younger self would be ecstatic to see her playing the role of Danielle.

"That 6-year-old Viola has been serving me. My job is to make her squeal. My job is to make her really excited about who she's going to become," Viola said.

Davis is known for her EGOT status, which stands for a winner of the Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards, and is one of the highest honors for a performer in Hollywood.