Laura Hess-Hay Is an Experienced Manager – Facts about Ahmad Jamal's 3rd Wife

Legendary pianist, Ahmad Jamal, was married to his third wife and manager, Laura Hess-Hay, for two years. Hess-Hay is a business owner whose companies have been in existence for decades.

Although their marriage didn't last long, the pair maintained a healthy personal and professional relationship. They remained close, and Hess-Hay continued as Jamal's manager for the rest of his life. Hess-Hay always spoke positively of her ex-husband.

Hess-Hay was the pianist's third marriage after the first two marriages ended in divorce. One of the divorces was controversial and even got the artist to spend time in police cells. Sadly, Jamal died in April 2023.

Laura Hess-Hay Loves Her Family

Not much is known about Hess-Hay's younger years. However, according to her Facebook, she is a native of Napa, California. Additionally, she attended the University of Miami.

She feels blessed to have been given a precious family and friends, which means so much to her. Hess-Hay is grateful for every opportunity they get to visit her. In 2022, her grandchildren, brother, and sister came over for Thanksgiving. She cherishes the moments spent with her grandchildren.

Hess-Hay's love for children is not limited to her offspring only. She has posted about charitable causes she supports. One of her posts was about a little boy named Henry battling a neurological disorder and needing financial assistance for his treatment. Another post was a GoFundMe for Amy, a carer who had gone through open heart surgery.

Laura Hess-Hay Has Extensive Management Experience

There is little background information available about Hess-Hay's professional life. However, in 1982, she founded Ellora Management Inc, a talent management company. Among its most famous clients are Jamal, Hiromi, Marialy Pacheco from Germany, and Hakan Basar from Turkey.

Besides owning the company, she has worked in various departments of Ellora, including design, management, and at Ellora Spa, an offshoot founded in 2000. The Spa offers advanced skincare, therapeutic massage, yoga, and pilates. Their unique ambiance is helped by beautiful music and flowing water.

As his wife's client and recording his music under Shubra Productions, which she was the president of, Jamal considered her his most significant critic.

Hess-Hay played a vital role in her husband's career. After the release of some of his earlier songs with her label, she said:

"This is our beginning — our sharing of the gifts of one of the master musicians of this lifetime — my beloved husband, Ahmad Jamal."

Laura and Ahmad Jamal Maintained a Good Relationship after Their Divorce

Before Hess-Hay married Jamal, he had been married and divorced twice, first as a teenager and later to Sharifah Frazier in the early 1960s. Jamal and Frazier's marriage ended in 1982, the same year he and Hess-Hay married. However, their marriage was also short-lived as they divorced in 1984, only two years into it.

The couple did not mix business with pleasure, as Hess-Hay continued to be her ex-husband's manager after their divorce. They maintained a good relationship, both professionally and personally, up until the passing of the famed Jamal, a former collaborator of Chester Thompson, Phil Collins' fellow drummer.

Jamal was a feature on Hess-Hay's Facebook, where she would tell of her love and adoration for Jamal. In 2015, she posted a photo of him and Hiromi captioned, "The 2 loves of my life!" Additionally, she listed him as part of her family on her Facebook profile and was called Jamal's wife during a visit to Steinway Hall in 2016.

One of Jamal's previous marriages had had a bad ending which, at one stage, even resulted in his arrest for falling behind on support payments for his nine-year-old adopted daughter, Mumeenah Aliyyah. Jamal and Aliyyah's mother, Maryam, were married in 1950 and divorced in 1962.

Sadly, in April 2023, the celebrated influential Pianist passed on at his home in Ashely Falls, Massachusetts. According to his daughter, Sumayah, the 92-year-old had succumbed to prostate cancer.