Quincy C. Blue Jr., talented singer and lover of knowledge, dies of COVID-19 at 67

Quincy "Quinn" C. Blue Jr. was a talented singer, but he always thought he could improve.

He was the kind of singer who, if he could swing it, would go to karaoke seven nights a week out of his love of the craft. He took influences from Richie Havens and Jimi Hendrix, and his signature karaoke song was Dobie Gray's "Drift Away." He was in bands including Groove Courier, NRG and Exzit Only. And while he was an undisputed king of karaoke, he was determined to leave this world known as a great singer.

Paulette Heise, his companion of seven years, said there simply wasn't a lot of improvement for him to make because he was already a great singer. She said his kindness and passion for music, people and ease of connecting with others always shone through wherever he went.

"His passion that he put into everything, that was my favorite part about him," said Heise of Blaine. "No matter what he did or what we did together there was such great passion."

Blue died on Oct. 11 of COVID-19 after several weeks at Mercy Hospital-Unity Campus in Fridley. He had no known underlying conditions. He was 67.

The Detroit native moved to Minneapolis in 1975. He worked as a quality assurance technician at Magnetic Peripherals, Inc.-Control Data from 1978 to 1986, and at 3M from 1986 to 1996. Before retiring, he worked as production lead at Second Harvest Heartland, Minnesota's largest food bank, from 2003 to 2014.

Besides his love of music, Blue also loved his cats Racket and Sadie Mae, tinkering with computers and devouring as many books as possible. Growing up he didn't have much to read, so as a young boy he dedicated himself to reading the encyclopedia from cover to cover. While he could be reserved at times, Blue could to talk to anyone about almost anything.

"He was kind to everyone," Heise said. "He made friends easily, he didn't discriminate against anybody, he just became your friend."

Survivors include his parents Quincy C. Blue Sr. and Priscilla (Jackson) Blue, both of Detroit; sisters Gloria Blue of Tempe, Ariz., Brenda A. Beal of Conyers, Ga., Caroline Blue, Katina Blue and Wykina Blue, all of Detroit; brother Dennis Blue of Detroit; uncle Lee Curtis Jackson of Detroit; and aunt Hattie Sadler of St. Louis, Mo.

A memorial service will be held in spring or summer 2021.

Marissa Evans • 612-673-4280