A deeper look into a piece of music trivia: Duke Ellington and the Masons

​By Jess Santacroce
Music Writer, Phoenix Radio

Everyone knows who Duke Ellington was as a musician, but when you search for information about him, multiple articles about his birthplace or his fashion sense are always included in the results. Fans especially love to write “fun facts” articles about Ellington. One piece of Duke Ellington trivia that seems to always make the list but is never explained is that Duke Ellington was a Freemason or Mason. What does that mean? We’ve all heard of the Masons, but who are they, and where did they fit in to Duke Ellington’s story?

Despite conspiracy theories, the Masons are really just a very large fraternity and service organization

Masons trace their history back as far as the 1300s, but what we know today as freemasonry began in the 1700s in England. The Masons came to America before the country even officially formed, as many of the founding fathers were Masons. While the Masons do indeed gather in secrecy and perform odd rituals that would probably seem frightening to outsiders, the point behind the rituals is to encourage moral growth, namely the values of integrity and service to others.

This focus on service extends far beyond performing rituals meant to encourage it. Masons are known for charitable community projects ranging from scholarships for students entering college to nursing homes and blood donation programs. Beyond official work, Masons are strongly encouraged to quietly show up and serve whenever there is a need they can help meet in their community.

Emphasis on service does not make the Masons immune to the evils of society...but many have also been a force for change

While freemasonry has always been focused on gathering to encourage each other to serve those in need, it is made up of human beings, with the same failings as all human beings. Freemasonry was and is not untouched by the evils in our society and our history, and that includes segregation.

Duke Ellington fans who look for information about his life will find that he was a “Prince Hall” Freemason. The term “Prince Hall” does not refer to any particular ritual or charity, but to “Prince Hall,”  a black man who founded his own Masonic Lodge in 1775 because he could not join an existing lodge with white members. Ellington was inducted into one of these Prince Hall lodges, Social Lodge #1 in Washington, D.C,, in 1932, at the height of his music career. 

True to their commitment to serving others and working for what is right, Prince Hall Freemasonry did not just quietly splinter off and hold meetings. Prince Hall Freemasons, including Duke Ellington, were a strong force in the fight for the abolition of slavery, the end to segregation, and the expansion of civil rights to all American citizens, regardless of ethnic background.

Today, the Masonic organization that Ellington joined still exists, and continues to be a force for social change. While most Masonic lodges welcome men of any and all ethnic backgrounds, there are some that still have not updated their policies to include welcoming members regardless of race. Prince Hall lodges are almost universally recognized, with forty out of fifty states accepting them as official Masonic lodges.

Those who rely on AI for their information will find some misinformation about Ellington’s lodge. AI search results claim there is no current record of Prince Hall Social Lodge #1 and it is not known whether it still exists. Ignoring AI and searching around the rest of the internet reveals a webpage copyrighted as recently as 2024, with links to a facebook page advertising a golf tournament scheduled for June 5, 2026.

Duke Ellington was not just a Mason, he was a Shriner

Like most fraternities, the Masons have titles, ranks, and degrees within their membership. The highest rank in the Masons is a Master Mason. Once a person is a Master Mason, they may also choose to become a Shriner, or a Master Mason who is accepted into a shrine. Details of what it takes to become a Master Mason and a Shriner are of course some of the secrets of freemasonry, but this does mean that Ellington reached the highest possible level of his fraternal organization.


While Ellington’s membership in the Masons and Shriners certainly reflected his values, there is no credible evidence that Masonic themes are in any way incorporated into his music. Celebrity conspiracy story fans are going to be disappointed by the Ellington-Masons link, as there are no secret codes in any song titles and there were no coded gestures made on stage indicating membership in the Masons or any Masonic principles or statements. The only suggestion that Ellington’s music was Masonic in any way comes from an old web page belonging to an individual lodge with no direct connection to Duke Ellington.  The site appears to have been written independently by a member. On one page, the site’s unnamed writer says that a DJ played the song “I’m Beginning to See the Light,” which was co-written by Duke Ellington, looked it up on wikipedia, and read that the song was inspired by his joining a Masonic lodge. This theory falls apart on two points. Wikipedia is not a reliable source of information, as the articles on it can be too easily edited by anyone, and the lyrics to the song were not even written by Duke Ellington.


For some accurate information about Duke Ellington’s music, be sure to tune into “Masters of Jazz” hosted by Lou Santacroce, exclusively for Phoenix Radio. On Sunday, March 15, 2026, Duke Ellington’s music will be featured during the “artist of the week” segment of the program from 3 p.m. until 4 p.m. EST.