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Three years ago, at the age of 12, ventriloquist / singer / actress Darci Lynne won first prize in NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” competition. Two years later, she returned for “The Champions” and was a finalist, further boosting her talent and popularity. Since then, she has toured the country, had her own prime-time Christmas special, and made appearances in “The Grand Ole Opry”, “Christmas in Rockefeller Center”, Disney’s “Fancy Nancy” and many more. ‘others.
On Friday, March 6, the Oklahoma teenager will perform at the Florida Strawberry Festival in Plant City. She recently spoke to Reel Faith’s about the festival, about how life has changed since winning the AGT and staying grounded after becoming a household name.
Can you tell me a bit about what has happened since AGT won? How has life changed?
Definitely, my life changed that day. It was crazy. I had to do so many things that I had never been able to do. So many opportunities have presented themselves to me. It really boosted my career and I got noticed in public. It was crazy. I’ve been on tour for almost three years now and it’s been super amazing. I had my own Christmas special on NBC. I was invited to Nickelodeon and I went to Food Network. I was able to do so many things. I have so many opportunities and it has been amazing. And there are still more exciting things to come. I can’t talk about it yet.
Do you do a lot of festivals?
I think I had a festival, the festival. I mostly do fairs, but I think they are quite similar. But glad to come back to Florida, have been there, but happy to come back.
When you play it at a fair or festival, I think it broadens an artist’s audience. They are not necessarily there to hear you, but people who are there for the festival, and that exposes your talent beyond your base.
Yeah, I think that’s cool, especially when I’m doing fairs, it’s not just my fans buying tickets. People who see the promos and billboards are like “Oh my God, I’m very curious to see this girl” and I think that’s cool. I’m excited to maybe even win a few fans, people who admire what I do.
Darci, who was your inspiration?
When I started, what inspired me to learn ventriloquism was that I met a girl who was ventriloquist, she was 18 at the time, she is older now, but she was super nice and gave me tips and advice. I was just fascinated by what she was doing. I had never seen anything like it in my life. So I went home and learned about my bathroom mirror myself and just practiced and once I got in I learned even more about ventriloquism. I got to know Terry Fator and Jeff Dunham, I would sit for hours and watch their YouTube videos. Just watching them inspired me a lot and gave me inspiration to train. watched them and learned how they do it. Terry Fator and Jeff Dunham are great inspirations for me. And then finally, Gary Owen, I don’t know if you know who he is, but he’s a local ventriloquist who lives where I live. And he took me and taught me everything he knows who he was an inspiration. And he’s been doing it for over 30 years. So yeah, there were a lot of people who inspired me.
And you’re not just a great ventriloquist, I know you have a great singing voice too.
Oh thank you very much. Yes, I’ve been singing since I was six.
Do you still sing, or are you mostly ventriloquist now?
I still sing. On my show, I sing four songs myself. I have four solo songs in my show. So it’s really fun. I do “Feeling Good”, “Sucker” by the Jonas Brothers and “Fly Me to the Moon and” We Are Family “at the end.
Obviously, as a young girl in the public eye, you are a role model. How do you feel about this?
When I first started ventriloquism, I never realized the impact it would have on people around the world. I got so many videos and posts about how little girls and boys learned ventriloquism and taught themselves because I had. And I just think it’s really cool to be able to be in the spotlight and have a platform and be able to explain to young kids that it’s okay to do something new and achieve your dream and do whatever you wanna do and shine. And that it is quite possible for you to do it, and you are quite capable of doing it. So I think it’s really cool to be that person and to be able to inspire other people to be who they are and to be themselves.
What do you say keep you to the ground?
This business can be really toxic and crazy. I didn’t move to LA after winning. We decided to stay in our house, our hometown, and I was still going to school, and my family was like my rock. They have gone a long way in helping me to be myself and not change for the world. And my friends too, even though I am doing online classes now, I can still see my friends and still feel normal. And I think that’s what really helped me.
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