Leon Thomas took Phoenix to the church of funk at Van Buren show

The first thing I did upon entering the Van Buren on December 21 to see Leon Thomas headline was spill my cup of water all over my shirt and the floor. Arriving just late enough to miss the opening act, Ambré, I quickly got a security guy to help clean it up before someone did a slip-n-slide into one of the exposed steel beams that line the Van Buren showroom walls. A sloppy start would not stop me from encountering ‘The Mutt,’ as Leon Thomas lovingly refers to himself.

Phoenix was set to experience night twenty-six of the US leg of Leon’s Mutts Don’t Heel tour. A sucker for wordplay, the tour name immediately hooked me. An exclamation that some dogs are beyond control, yet the subtext whispers that those same wild breeds never quite heal from the scars of love.

Leon Thomas’ standout sophomore effort, “MUTT” (which received an extended deluxe release this year, subtitled “HEEL”), was undoubtedly one of the more remarkable music drops of 2024, marrying the nostalgic, genre-defining sound of ’90s R&B and soul with the trap and 808-heavy sound of modern R&B. The project was followed by “PHOLKS,” an EP showcasing Thomas’ hulking electric funk side. Where “MUTT” asked the listener to nod their heads to the beat, “PHOLKS” demanded them to move their hips to the groove. Admittedly, I was more excited to dance to the funk cuts over the crooning of the album of the tour’s namesake, ready for the entire display nonetheless.

The Van Buren stage was set with floor-to-ceiling drapes replete with a gigantic, shimmering bust of Leon Thomas’ head suspended precariously above the stage like Damocles’ sword. The pop funk of Leon Thomas came with a giant Funko Pop of Leon Thomas. Leon set the pace with singles and album cuts from “MUTT,” including “Vibes Don’t Lie” and “Farfetched” with a Fender Strat slung across the chest.

Going lick for lick with his tour bassist, introduced as his “brother, Obie,” the pair shredded guitar solos across the tracks, making them feel larger than life. Couples peppered throughout the audience swayed hypnotically in awe of the rock-laced R&B being served. Thomas delivered instructions to bark at the end of each song if the vibe in the room was, in fact, not lying. I did my best impression of a Cane Corso bark, even if it came out a bit more Pomeranian to the people around me. I howled for that Fender to pop and twang with tracks from the “PHOLKS” EP, and Leon did not let this dog down. 

I marked my territory in the crowd, gyrating and two-stepping as Leon bounced from “My Muse” to “Just The Way You Are”. Just as I started to feel a bead of sweat, Leon tossed his guitar to the side, kindly motioned for his drummer to get out of the way, and took over on the sticks. A deft display I’ve seen from other multi-instrumentalist maestros such as Anderson.Paak and River Tiber. The crowd responded with energy and screams, even if they were a bit too “grown and sexy” to truly cut a rug like the songs deserved. Men dressed to the nines stood planted, acting as sentries for their ladies who were truly letting loose. A guy standing next to me did not move for any song the entire night, but seemed to be enjoying himself with the most subtle of head nods. To each their own, but I came to move it. Leon reminded the frenzied crowd that the funk has always been within him, playing “Blue Hundreds” from his debut album “Electric Dusk”. The lights refracted off the enormous Leon Thomas bust, creating a disco ball effect throughout the venue. 

Leon quipped at the crowd, asking if anyone remembered him “from his acting days”. Thomas’ beginnings harken back to starring in the short-lived, but popular, Nickelodeon original series “Victorious” alongside none other than megastar pop icon Ariana Grande. At 13, he was writing songs such as “Song To U” which made it into the show. I never watched it, but I remember him as Eddie on HBO’s “Insecure.” He didn’t have the signature red dreads he has these days when he made his appearance as a notch in Issa Rae’s belt on the critically acclaimed series.

The undisputed high of the night came when Leon and crew got to the crowd favorite “YES IT IS,” a track that feels as warm as a gospel hymn. The entire room sang along to the chorus.

Then, in a move that spun heads, Thomas extended the outro and remixed it with the classic Floetry song “Say Yes.” Hands extended to the roof as we all were taken to church. We were receiving the gospel of R&B at this late Sunday service. What was very clear to me at this point of the show was that Leon was bigger than the Van Buren stage. Phoenix was truly blessed to have seen him at this level. Leon Thomas is an act that demands to be seen in an arena, or even better, a stadium. 

I wondered if the “PHOLKS” EP was the soft launch of a bigger, rock-and-rolling, funk-fused R&B sound that could make him a household name. Would winning Best R&B Song at the 2026 Grammy Awards put Leon on the big stage? With one Grammy already under his arm for his collaboration on SZA’s “Snooze,” the question scratched at the back of my mind as a tired Phoenix audience couldn’t keep up with Thomas, robbing us of an encore performance I learned was given to other cities that had the stamina.

The grown and sexy crowd whimpered out after Thomas closed the show with the titular track “MUTT”. We were all bark and very little bite.

See you next time, Leon. I promise these Phoenix mutts won’t heel on your return.