Bio

Micah Thomas was born in 1997 in Columbus, Ohio. He started playing songs on the piano by ear at the age of 2, and shortly afterwards he started private piano training. He gained much of his first performing experience when he was in high school, working with Byron Stripling, Christian Howes, and the Columbus Youth Jazz Orchestra, among others.

In 2015, Micah Thomas received the Jerome L. Greene Fellowship from the Juilliard School, and received his Master of Music (M.M.) degree in 2020. He is now touring and performing locally and internationally, both as a leader of his own trio, a steady member of the Immanuel Wilkins Quartet, and as a sideman for Joshua Redman, Ambrose Akinmusire, Lage Lund, Billy Drummond, Zoh Amba, Giveton Gelin, Stacy Dillard, Joel Ross, Nicole Glover, Melissa Aldana, Etienne Charles, Harish Raghavan and others.

In June 2020, Micah Thomas released his first album, Tide, which received positive reviews from the New York Journal, The New York Times, JazzTimes, and Financial Times, among others. He has since recorded three other albums as a bandleader; his second album, Piano Solo, was awarded the Grand Prix du Disque Award, his most recent record, Mountains, was released September 2024 through Artwork Records. He has also appeared on several albums as a sideman for Immanuel Wilkins, Billy Drummond, Zoh Amba, Giveton Gelin, and Walter Smith III. In the beginning of 2024 Micah Thomas was voted ‘Up-and-Comer of the Year’ by The New York City Jazz Records, ‘Best International Artist of the Year’ by Jazz News x Jazz Magazine, and ’25 for the Future’ by DownBeatMagazine.

Micah was a 2022-23 The Jazz Gallery Commission Resident, and a 2023-24 Roulette Commissioned Artist, as well as the curator for the 2022 SWR NewJazz Meeting. Micah also regularly teaches both privately and at The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, and was a faculty member at the 2024 Siena Jazz Workshop.

“Micah is a special one. His playing has a restlessly inventive and futuristic tilt while simultaneously remaining deeply rooted in the history of the music – all delivered with curiosity, patience, humor and care. I make a point to hear him as often as I can, as he always inspires and is constantly evolving. To me, Micah is one of the most exciting musicians of his generation.” - Aaron Parks

"I randomly saw a live feed of Micah playing solo, and for the second time ever – Sullivan Fortner being the first – I heard a pianist a generation or so younger than me who instantly became one of my favorite musicians. I think he was playing ‘Gone with the Wind,’ or a similar standard, in a fully formed, original voice, so clear and refreshing. We ended up getting together for a duo rehearsal, and I felt that I had finally found something – something I hadn’t even realized that I had been waiting for." - Lage Lund

"[I am] tagging him as one who has a unique style as well as all the tools needed to make a major contribution to the world of jazz piano." - Fred Hersch