Joshua Bassett

Joshua Taylor Bassett (born December 22, 2000) is an American actor and singer.

From 2017 to 2018, Bassett appeared in episodic roles in the television shows: Lethal Weapon, Game Shakers, and Dirty John.

His first substantial role was in early 2018 when he starred as Aidan Peters in the third and final season of the Disney Channel comedy television series Stuck in the Middle.

In August 2018, Bassett portrayed the role of Matt in a staged reading of the musical Calvin Berger.

The production ran from August 10 through August 12 at the Hudson Backstage Theatre in Hollywood, California.

In October 2018, it was reported he was cast in his first major role, as the male lead Ricky Bowen, on Disney+'s mockumentary musical drama streaming television series High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.

He is known for his starring role as high school student Ricky Bowen in High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (2019–2023), and for its accompanying soundtracks, for which he won a Children's and Family Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Song for a Children's or Young Teen Program.

In early 2019, Bassett appeared in a guest role–as Linus, a recovering teenage drug addict who is rushed to the hospital after an overdose–on the fifteenth season of the television series Grey's Anatomy. In July 2019, he was featured on American musician August Kamp's song "Evergreen", of the latter's debut studio album, 19: The Musical.

In November 2019, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series debuted on Disney+.

In December 2019, Bassett appeared in the documentary special, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series: The Special, which was released on Disney+.

Bassett had shared a snippet of the song on Instagram under the title, "I Know", back in late 2019 when the song had not entered production.

He followed it up with the second single from his EP, "Only a Matter Of Time", released on January 28, 2021.

In February 2021, Limbo, a short film that he had filmed back in 2015, was released on Amazon Prime Video and Vimeo On Demand.

Despite the delayed release, the short film marked his film debut.

Bassett played Caleb, an estranged young boy who reconnects with his father, the latter who is on a journey of self-reflection.

Later that month, he revealed the track listing, cover art, and release date of his EP.

On March 12, 2021, Bassett's self-titled debut EP was released.

He wrote, co-produced five of six tracks in the record, and played six instruments throughout the body of work.

In music, Bassett was signed to Warner Records in 2020 and has released four extended plays to date.

Bassett was born and raised in Oceanside, California, to parents Taylor and Laura.

He has five sisters, and was home-schooled.

His first introduction to musical theater was at age eight, over a decade before he starred as Ricky in High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, when he was in a community theater production of High School Musical on Stage!.

Since then, Bassett has starred in over 30 musical productions.

He moved to Los Angeles when he was 16 years old to start acting, living in his car for some time to get by.

Bassett co-wrote the duet "Just for a Moment" with co-star Olivia Rodrigo for the series' soundtrack, the latter which was released on January 10, 2020.

Both, the debut season and his performance received positive reviews.

Shannon Miller of The A.V. Club praised him for his talent, musical ability and "handling of dramatic material", and Kayla Cobb of Decider stated that Bassett has significant romantic chemistry with Rodrigo.

Megan Peters of Comicbook wrote that Bassett "will endear fans with his plucky determination to do Troy justice".

In early 2020, Bassett signed with talent and entertainment company United Talent Agency, as well as signed a recording contract with Warner Bros. Records.

after signing with Warner Bros. Records, He released his debut single, "Common Sense", on music platforms on April 3, 2020.

Later that month, Bassett appeared in the television special, The Disney Family Singalong, in which he performed "We're All In This Together" from High School Musical alongside the film's cast as well as cast members from the Zombies and Descendants franchises.

In May 2020, he was nominated for the Favorite Male TV Star category at the 33rd Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards for his role in High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.

Bassett's second single, "Anyone Else", was released on July 16, 2020.

In August 2020, he was a guest star participant on Nickelodeon's reality game series Unfiltered.

In October 2020, in an interview, Bassett revealed that he had worked on his six track debut EP which would be released soon.

In December 2020, Bassett appeared in the holiday special, High School Musical: The Musical: The Holiday Special, in which he performed "The Perfect Gift", an original song from the then-upcoming second season of the series and a cover of "Little Saint Nick" along with Matt Cornett.

The special was released on Disney+ while both songs were included in the accompanying soundtrack album which was released in late November.

That same month, he revealed in an interview with Good Morning America that his debut EP would be released in early 2021.

On January 14, 2021, Bassett released "Lie Lie Lie", the lead single from his then-upcoming debut EP, with a R3hab remix and an acoustic piano version released the following month.

The song peaked in the top thirty on the US Bubbling Under Hot 100 and in the top ninety on the OOC UK Singles, becoming his first entry on both charts.