Robert Allen Jones Kuumba

Robert Allen Jones Kuumba was born February 9, 1945, to the union of Dennis Glenn Jones, Sr., and Mary Hansard Jones, in Dayton, Ohio.

The youngest of seven children, Robert (affectionately called Bunny), was a naturally gifted child with a musical inclination demonstrated at a noticeably young age. He was continually encouraged by his parents and siblings to pursue this passion.

He attended Weaver Elementary and Roosevelt High Schools in Dayton. After moving to Sacramento, California to live with his sister, Sarah and her husband Alonzo, Robert graduated from Grant Union High School in Sacramento. After graduation, he attended Sacramento City College with a focus on music as a part of his studies. Having performed for many years with various local Dayton jazz and blues bands, he wanted to pursue music theory and composition.

Although he appreciated and performed various genres of music, Robert was a passionate Jazz aficionado. When he was just ten years old, he began performing as a percussionist with the organist “Boots” Johnson in Dayton.

A Vietnam Era Veteran who served in the U.S. Air Force, Robert became politically active after his military service. He joined the Black Movement and was trained as a Community Organizer under the tutelage of Maulana Ron Karenga of “US” Organization at the Black Congress in Los Angeles. After working with him several years, Maulana Ron Karenga (best known for creating the pan-African and African American holiday of Kwanzaa), honored Robert with the name “Kuumba” the sixth principle of Kwanzaa meaning “Creativity.”  After receiving that honor, Robert legally changed his name to “Robert Allen Jones Kuumba.”

He performed his first major recording as a member of the band “Brute Force.” While working in Boston, he performed with East Coast personalities such as Stan Strickland, Webster Lewis, and John Payne. In 1975, he returned to Dayton as a member of the renown funk group, the “Ohio Players” as a noted percussionist. While performing and recording with the “Ohio Players”, he continued to perform locally with other jazz artists and periodically with his son, Robert Sanae, local Musician/Composer/Producer, until around 2018 when his health started to decline.

Robert departed this life on Thursday, July 3, 2025. Proceeded in death by his parents, and his siblings:  Dennis Glenn Jones, Jr., Sarah Holman, Charles Jones, Lowell Thomas Jones, and David Jones. He is survived by his sister, Mary Louise Dunn, and four children Robert A. Jones (Sanae), Renée Lowe (Ray), Angela Jones, and Anyania Muse; his Grandchildren, and Great-grandchildren, a devoted niece, Katrina Dunn-Parker; his loving friend and confidant, Vurniece Jackson and numerous nieces, nephews, and friends.

Memorial service 11:30 am Friday, July 25, 2025 at House of Wheat Funeral Home, 2107 N. Gettysburg Ave., Dayton, OH. Calling hour 10:30 am- 11:30 am at which time family will receive friends. Interment Dayton National  Cemetery. 

Livestream link: :  www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063446216667

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