Leon George Thomas III (born August 1, 1993) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, record producer and actor. He began his career as a child actor on Broadway, appearing in the musicals The Lion King, Caroline, or Change and The Color Purple across the 2000s as well as voicing Tyrone in the Nick Jr. animated series The Backyardigans (2005-08) and starring in the film August Rush (2007). He gained wider recognition for starring as Andre Harris in the Nickelodeon teen sitcom Victorious (2010–2013).
Shifting focus onto his music career, Thomas achieved success in the 2010s as a member of the production duo The Rascals with Khris Riddick-Tynes. During this period, he co-wrote and co-produced for artists including his Victorious co-star Ariana Grande, Babyface, Drake, Rick Ross, SZA, and Toni Braxton. He also released three mixtapes and an extended play under Rostrum Records.
In 2022, he signed with Ty Dolla Sign's EZMNY Records and Motown. At the 67th Annual Grammy Awards, he won Best R&B Song for co-writing the SZA song "Snooze". He achieved critical and commercial success with his second album, Mutt (2024), which became his first entry on the Billboard 200. Its lead single, "Mutt", became his first solo entry on the Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at number six. At the 68th Annual Grammy Awards, he received six nominations, including Album of the Year and Best New Artist, and won Best R&B Album for Mutt and Best Traditional R&B Performance for "Vibes Don't Lie".
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Life and career
Thomas was born in Brooklyn, New York City, to Jayon Anthony and Leon George Thomas II. His maternal grandfather is John D. Anthony, a jazz musician and opera singer who appeared on Broadway in Jimmy and Porgy and Bess. Thomas' parents divorced when he was young and his mother remarried to musician Jon Kevin Jones when he was 6 in 1999. He has a younger half sister through his mother's second marriage. Thomas made his Broadway debut at the age of 10 in 2003 as Young Simba in the Broadway production of The Lion King. In 2004, he appeared as Jackie Thibodeaux in the original Broadway cast of Tony Kushner's Caroline, or Change. and toured with the company during its five-month run in Los Angeles and San Francisco, California. Thomas also performed in the Broadway production of The Color Purple. In 2007, Thomas appeared in the film August Rush as Arthur, performing the song "La Bamba", and briefly after signed a development deal with Nickelodeon appearing as the singing voice for Tyrone in the animated series The Backyardigans. Thomas has also guest-starred on Jack's Big Music Show and Just Jordan. He also appeared as Harper in the iCarly episode "iCarly Saves TV" and was featured on The Naked Brothers Band "Christmas Special".
He played a main character on Victorious, portraying Andre Harris, which premiered on Nickelodeon on March 27, 2010. Thomas also appeared as Andre in the crossover episode between Victorious and iCarly, iParty with Victorious. He also appeared as himself in an episode of True Jackson, VP. On August 2, 2011, the soundtrack album Victorious: Music from the Hit TV Show was released, with Thomas featured in the songs "Song 2 You" and "Tell Me That You Love Me". On June 5, 2012, Victorious 2.0: More Music from the Hit TV Show was also released, with Thomas featured in the songs "Countdown" and "Don't You (Forget About Me)". Victorious ended production in July 2012 and the series' last episode aired on February 2, 2013.
In 2012, Thomas started to record his first mixtape called Metro Hearts; it was released on August 1, 2012. Songs on the mixtape include "Forever", "Bad", "Moving On", "Vibe", "Like Clay", and "Never Look Back". The mixtape also included a cover of Drake's "Take Care" with Ariana Grande. Thomas co-wrote the song "Ain't No Other Me" for the British girl group Stooshe, which features as a deluxe edition track on their debut album, London with the Lights On. Thomas co-wrote four songs on his former co-star Ariana Grande's 2013 album Yours Truly. He also co-produced four songs on the album, in addition to the song "Last Christmas" from Grande's EP Christmas Kisses, as a member of production duo the Rascals alongside Khristopher Riddick-Tynes. His production work under the Rascals was also included on Toni Braxton and Babyface's Grammy Award-winning album Love, Marriage & Divorce, contributing to the solo "I'd Rather Be Broke", performed by Braxton.
Filmography
Discography
Broadway appearances
The Lion King
Caroline, or Change
The Color Purple
Tours
Headlining
Mutts Don’t Heel World Tour (2025–2026)
Supporting
Big Time Rush – Big Time Summer Tour (2012)
Bruno Mars – The Romantic Tour (2026)