Joshua Bassett

Joshua T. Bassett (born December 22, 2000) is an American actor and singer. He is known for his starring role as Ricky Bowen in High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.

Early life
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 7, 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 as J.V. Jock No. 2. 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.

Career
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 to August 12 at the Hudson Backstage Theatre in Hollywood, California.

In early 2019, Bassett appeared in a guest role on the fifteenth season of the television series Grey's Anatomy. In November of that year, he starred in his first major role, as the male lead Ricky Bowen in the Disney+ mockumentary musical drama streaming television series High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. Bassett co-wrote the duet "Just for a Moment" with co-star Olivia Rodrigo for the series' soundtrack. 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 and Rodrigo have significant romantic chemistry. In December 2019, Bassett appeared in a behind-the-scenes special, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series: The Special, which premiered on Disney+.

In early 2020, Bassett signed with talent and entertainment company United Talent Agency, as well as signed a recording contract with Warner Records. He released his first 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 said 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 one of the guest star participants on Nickelodeon's reality game series Unfiltered. In December 2020, Basset appeared in a 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 High School Musical: The Musical: The Series and "Little Saint Nick" along with Matt Cornett. The special was released on Disney+.

In February 2021, Limbo, a short film that Bassett 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. On March 12, 2021, Bassett released his self-titled debut EP, with the lead single, "Lie Lie Lie", being released on January 14, 2021, along with a R3HAB remix and an acoustic piano version of the song released in February 2021. He co-produced five out of six tracks in the EP and played six instruments throughout the body of work. That same month, Bassett was once again nominated for the Favorite Male TV Star category at the 34th Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards, for High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. In April 2021, he conducted a one-night virtual concert titled "A Night with Joshua Bassett", in which he performed ten songs backed by a full band from EastWest Studios in Los Angeles. The virtual concert was broadcast live on his website, while tickets were up for sale on his merchandise store. It was also recorded and later released as a concert film on Prime Video, iTunes, Vudu, and Microsoft Movies & TV. In May 2021, Bassett released a follow-up single titled "Feel Something". Later that month, he reprised his role as Ricky Bowen in the second season of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. Bassett wrote the Christmas themed original song, "The Perfect Gift", for the sophomore season's soundtrack. Despite of the season receiving a mixed response from critics and viewers, his performance was praised. In October 2021, Billboard placed Bassett in its Billboard 21 Under 21 list, which represented rising artists in the music industry under the age of 21. In December 2021, he released his second EP that consisted of a trio of singles, titled "Set Me Free", "Crisis", and "Secret". The EP was titled after the three songs.

In February 2022, Bassett released a single titled "Doppelgänger", co-directing the music video for the song with YouTuber and fellow creative Elle Mills. He co-starred along with actor and dancer Ciara Riley Wilson in the music video for the song. The following month, he became a brand ambassador for clothing retailer American Eagle's "Members Always: Future Together" campaign alongside Madelyn Cline, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Michael Evans Behling, Coco Gauff, and Mxmtoon. In April 2022, Bassett starred in a supporting role as Anthony, the protagonist's older brother, in the Disney+ original musical comedy film Better Nate Than Ever, directed and written by Tim Federle and based on his 2013 novel of the same name. The film received generally positive reviews. TJ O'Connell stated that his performance as Anthony "truly brings so much emotional weight to this movie. He represents that approval we need that we think is out of reach." while Joshua Axelrod of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote that Bassett "sells Anthony’s growth as he finally begins to understand his little brother". Later that month, he won the award for Favorite Male TV Star (Kids) at the 35th Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards for his performance as Ricky Bowen in High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. In May 2022, Bassett announced his self-titled debut concert tour featuring stops in the United States, Canada, and Europe.

Upcoming work
Bassett is set to return for the third season of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, which is scheduled to premiere on 27 July 2022 on Disney+. He will also commence his first headlining tour on 9 September 2022, in Toronto, Canada.

Philanthropy
In January 2021, Bassett opened his online merchandise store, donating 100% of his proceeds from the merchandise to charity. Current charities that his merchandise store supports include Jack.org, Bring Change to Mind, Teen Line, and Sunrise Movement. Other charities that Bassett's merchandise store has supported include Court Appointed Special Advocates, The Young Feminist Fund, and A Long Walk Home.

Bassett donated 100% of his proceeds from his song "Crisis", the lead single from his widely streamed December EP "Crisis / Secret / Set Me Free", to mental health organizations. In addition, Bassett donated one dollar for every pre-save of said EP to mental health organizations, raising over twenty thousand dollars. Additionally, Bassett donated a portion of every VIP ticket for his upcoming American/European tour to a charity of the buyer's choice.

In March 2022, Bassett was selected to be an ambassador for the American Eagle "Members Always: Future Together" philanthropic campaign. Through this initiative, the brand will award $200,000 in grants to twenty young people igniting change in their communities. For Mental Health Awareness Month, Bassett, through the program, partnered with mental health awareness nonprofit organization Bring Change to Mind and was a speaker on mental health to local LA high school students at the organization's SoCal Summit.

Personal life
Bassett sings and plays piano, guitar, ukulele, bass, drums, and some saxophone. On May 10, 2021, he came out as a member of the LGBTQ+ community during an interview.

In January 2021, Bassett became seriously ill and was hospitalized with septic shock and heart failure: "[The doctors] told me that I had a 30% chance of survival. They told me that if I had not checked into the hospital within 12 hours, I would have been found [dead] in my apartment."

In August 2021, Bassett revealed in an interview that he'd dealt with bad body image issues that developed into "serious problems" around the time the first season of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series was airing.

In December 2021, Bassett disclosed that he experienced sexual abuse as a child and teen.

Headlining

 * Joshua Bassett's Tour 2022 (2022)