罗伯·托马斯

Robert Kelly Thomas (born February 14, 1972) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He is the lead vocalist for the Florida-based rock band Matchbox Twenty, which he formed in 1995 and with whom he has released five studio albums. As a solo act, he is best known for his guest performance on Santana's 1999 single "Smooth", which won three Grammy Awards, peaked the Billboard Hot 100 for 12 consecutive weeks, and in 2018 was named the second-most successful song in the chart's history. His 2005 single, "Lonely No More," was his first to be released as a lead solo artist. It peaked at number six on the chart and led his debut solo album, ...Something to Be (2005), which peaked atop the Billboard 200.

As part of Matchbox Twenty, Thomas performed and wrote the band's string of commercially successful singles, including "Push", "3AM", "Real World", "Back 2 Good", "Bent", "If You're Gone", "Mad Season", "Disease", "Unwell", "Bright Lights", "How Far We've Come", and "She's So Mean". Thomas has also been a credited songwriter for other artists including Willie Nelson, Mick Jagger, Marc Anthony, Pat Green, Taylor Hicks, Travis Tritt, and Daughtry. In 2004, the Songwriters Hall of Fame gave Thomas its first Hal David Starlight Award, which recognizes young songwriters.

Early life

Thomas was born at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl, Germany to Bill and Mamie Thomas. Bill Thomas was a United States Army sergeant. Thomas has an elder half-sister, Melissa, from his mother's previous marriage. The Thomas family returned to the United States when Thomas was six months old.

Thomas's parents divorced when he was two years old. Following the divorce, Thomas lived with his mother and sister. They were poor and moved frequently, often staying with Mamie's mother in Lake City, South Carolina. His grandmother was an alcoholic. She owned a small country store and gas station, where she also sold moonshine and marijuana under the counter. He grew up listening to country music and idolized the "big stars who lived ... hard lives", like Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard. Their stories inspired him to be a songwriter.

Thomas and his mother and sister moved to Sarasota, Florida, when he was 10. They settled in the Orlando area the following year. Around this time, Thomas received his first musical instrument: A Casio keyboard. A friend taught him to play, and Thomas practiced by trying to reproduce the songs he heard on the radio. He also acquired a guitar with no strings which he used as a prop while he pretended he was in a rock band.

Thomas's home life was not stable. Thomas describes his mother as an alcoholic who occasionally beat him. When Thomas was 12, his mother was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma and given only six months to live. His sister ran away from home to get married, leaving Thomas to care for their mother on his own. She eventually entered remission. Mamie dated a series of men, some of whom beat her; she loved wild parties. Thomas sometimes woke up to find "10 strangers sleeping off last night's booze-a-thon in the living room".

Thomas attended Lake Brantley High School in the Orlando suburb of Altamonte Springs. He joined the choir in an unsuccessful attempt to attract the attention of a girl that he liked. His choir teacher saw potential in him and told him to keep working. To impress girls at parties, Thomas wrote and played music. A few months before graduation, Thomas dropped out of high school, saying his "regular life was in such disarray that going seemed ridiculous". He later earned a GED.

When he was 17, Thomas was convicted of stealing a Camaro and spent two months in county jail. For the next two or three years, Thomas was homeless. Occasionally, he would stay for a few days or weeks at the homes of various friends. At other times, he would hitchhike around Florida and South Carolina. Soon after getting out of jail, Thomas connected with several musicians. He played in a series of cover bands and began writing songs in earnest. Thomas said that "in songwriting I felt special for the first time. And all I wanted to do was get out of Florida." One of his bands, Fair Warning, earned a three-week job playing at a hotel in Vero Beach. They were fired three days into the job after they were caught stealing beer and candy from the hotel. At one point, Thomas was a member of another band, Tidal Wave, which played mostly surf tunes.

Career

1993–1995: Formation of Matchbox 20

In 1993, Thomas formed the band Tabitha's Secret. Brian Yale was the group's bass player. Paul Doucette earned a spot as drummer after answering an ad. Guitarists Jay Stanley and John Goff rounded out the band. The band was popular in the Orlando area, where they played in bars and nightclubs. Most of their songs were written by Thomas, including "3 A.M." This song, inspired by his time taking care of his mother, was the first that he had ever written and liked. In an effort to recreate that magic, his writing shifted to focus more on emotions inspired from his own life.