Born in Richmond, Virginia, Thomas Jefferson Edwards was an R&B singer most remembered for his 1958, Billboard No. 1, "It's All in the Game". He sang his hit song on The Ed Sullivan Show, on 14 September 1958. The song was composed by the then future U.S. Vice-President, Charles G. Dawes in 1912, as "Melody in A Major", with lyrics written in 1951 by Carl Sigman.

Edwards originally recorded and charted the song in 1951, but it only climbed to #18 on the charts then. The better-known 1958 version was on the same record label (MGM) and backed by the same orchestra leader (Leroy Holmes), but with a different arrangement more suited to the rock and roll-influenced style of the time.

Although Edwards recorded a number of other songs, none came close to achieving the same level of success, although several of his songs later became hits for other artists (such as "A Fool Such As I" by Elvis Presley, "It's All in the Game" done by Cliff Richard and The Four Tops, and "Morning Side of the Mountain" done by Donny and Marie Osmond).

He died after suffering a brain aneurysm in his hometown of Richmond, Virginia, at the age of 47. The liner notes of his 1994 Eric Records release The Complete Hits of Tommy Edwards, claim his death was caused by alcoholism. While the two may be related, there is no conformation of this.