[1] Willie Thomas was raised in Orlando, Florida and started playing the trumpet around the age of 10.
In the 1950s, Willie was a member of the Third Army Band, where he met and played with pianist Wynton Kelly, which became his first real break into the New York jazz scene.
[2] In his 45 years as a jazz trumpeter, Thomas has performed or recorded with many jazz greats including the MJT+3 with Frank Strozier and Bob Cranshaw, the Slide Hampton Octet with Freddie Hubbard and George Coleman, the Woody Herman Orchestra, the Al Belletto Sextet, and singer Peggy Lee.
[7] Thomas married American jazz singer Jerri Winters.
[2] Willie Thomas died at his cabin in Olga, Washington on February 16, 2019, three days after his 88th birthday.