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JD McCrary
American actor and singer From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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JayDon McCrary[1] (born July 18, 2007), known mononymously as JayDon (formerly as JD McCrary) is an American singer, actor, and dancer. He starred in The Lion King (2019) as the voice of young Simba, played Kenny Payne in The Paynes, and also appeared in the 2019 film Little.[2] In 2025, he signed with Usher and L.A. Reid's record label Mega, as a joint venture with Gamma.
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Career
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2015–2019: Career beginnings and acting
McCrary began his acting career in 2015 at age 8 on K.C. Undercover, where he appeared on two episodes.[3] In December 2016, he made a guest appearance on Childish Gambino's song "Terrified".[4] He then had live performances on Little Big Shots singing The Jackson 5's "I Want You Back",[5] The Ellen Show singing "Who's Lovin' You",[6] and the 60th Annual Grammy Awards to support Childish Gambino's "Terrified".[7] In December 2017, he sang the national anthem before a Los Angeles Clippers game after a viral singing display a few weeks prior.[8] In 2017, he later appeared on I'm Dying Up Here and Teachers as minor roles.
On January 14, 2018 he released his first official single called "Inviting All of You".[9] On August 13, 2018, it was announced that JD McCrary became the youngest artist to sign with Disney Music Group's Hollywood Records, as he released the music video to his second single "My Name" on August 28.[10][11] On January 24, 2019, he released the first single after signing to the label called "Keep in Touch."[12] He stars in The Paynes on the Oprah Winfrey Network.
In 2019, McCrary co-starred in the Universal comedy film Little, and provided the voice of young Simba in the live action remake of the Disney film The Lion King.[13][14][15] McCrary said that "Donald Glover [who voices adult Simba] is so talented that [I] actually did have to take it into consideration, because if Simba is going to grow up to be some sort of figure and you know of it, you have to keep that motive."[16] Also that year, McCrary portrayed a young Michael Jackson in the BET series American Soul, which premiered in February. On April 19, McCrary released his debut EP, Shine, which includes production from Jermaine Dupri and Bryan-Michael Cox.[17] he is also appearing as the New School Co-Captain and the Musical Guest on the hit comedy show Wild' n Out.
2024–present: Musical career
In 2024, McCrary rebranded his musical stage name to his birth-name, JayDon. On November 8, 2024, he released his first single under his new stage name, "Ah! Ah!" featuring 310babii.[18] In 2025, it was announced that he officially signed with Usher and L.A. Reid's record label Mega in partnership with Larry Jackson's gamma.[19][20] In 2025, he released his two singles, "Lullaby" and "I'll Be Good". The latter of which received a music video on April 24, 2025.[21]
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Artistry
In an interview with Vibe, McCrary cited Michael Jackson as his biggest influence, as well as Chris Brown, Stevie Wonder, Bruno Mars, Justin Bieber, Omarion, Bobby Brown, Usher (whom he his currently signed to and mentored by) and Mario.[22][23]
Discography
Extended plays
Singles
Guest appearances
Filmography
Film
Television
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References
External links
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