Among the celebrants cheering loudly for Leon Thomas as he accepted his Breakthrough of the Year Award at Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players 2025 was his mother, Jayon Anthony.
Smiling at his mother on Thursday night (Sept. 4) at Unveiled in Brooklyn, Thomas noted that she paid for his first studio session and ever since then he’s been in a studio recording. Approaching the podium to accept the award, Thomas initially engaged the audience in a call-and-response chant reminiscent of church: “God is good… all the time!” Then, in addressing his solo career takeoff, he said, “This has been 22 years in the making, and a lot of talks I had with God are a big part of my journey.”
In his accompanying Billboard cover story — “Rebirth of the Cool” — chronicling his rise from former Nickelodeon star to Grammy-winning songwriter (SZA’s “Snooze”) to solo artist in his own right, the musician and producer also paid another tribute to his singer mother: “I always tell people I’m my mom’s startup,” he said. “We started this journey when I was 10 and I’m 31 now. She understands how hard I’ve worked and how alone I felt sometimes.”
That hard work has paid off over the last 18 months for Brooklyn native Thomas. Released in August 2024, “Mutt” is the first single from his same-titled second studio album. The song’s slow burn since its release culminated in his first Hot 100 hit (No. 12), first No. 1s on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot R&B Songs and first RIAA platinum certification. And not only did “Mutt” cement Thomas’ breakthrough as a solo artist, the track — along with the entire album — upended R&B’s status quo by way of live instrumentation, vibrant fusions of soul, rock and funk plus insightful lyrics.
As longtime friend and fellow R&B star Kehlani noted in the cover story, “Leon’s disrupting this easy, poppy R&B that we had going on. Something like ‘Mutt’ being so successful shows that you don’t have to compromise. You really can stay true to the genre. It’s made me proud to look at my friend, who I’ve seen play the back seat in so many sessions, be the star.”
Thomas, signed to Ty Dolla $ign and Shawn Barron’s EZMNY label, is prepping a seven-track EP for October featuring what’s described as “a notably funkier, and at times more psychedelic, collection of tracks.”
In the meantime, watch Thomas’ full R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players 2025 acceptance speech above.
