OKC's Darci Lynne shares her passion for songwriting ahead of debut single 'Push Our Luck'
In conjunction with her return to the "America's Got Talent" stage in the new spin-off "AGT: Fantasy League," multitalented Oklahoman Darci Lynne is preparing to launch a new stage in her musical career.
The Oklahoma City singer-songwriter, ventriloquist and actress, who was just 12 years old when she won the 12th season of "America's Got Talent" in 2017, has announced plans to release her debut single.
Her country-rock tune "Push Our Luck" is due out Feb. 5 and is available for pre-order.
The 2023 Deer Creek High School graduate told The Oklahoman last week in a Zoom interview that she is pursuing a music career full time.
"When I was 12, I was going on ('America's Got Talent') with this out-of-the-box talent, and I was like, 'Oh, my gosh, are people gonna appreciate this the way that I appreciate this?' And they did. And it's brought me all the way to this point. And it's just been crazy," she told The Oklahoman.
"Now I'm like, 'Oh, OK, I have this new passion.' It's the same fiery passion I have for ventriloquism that I have for songwriting. So, it's different to go on now as a 19-year-old, because I'm still like, 'Oh, my gosh, are people going to appreciate this?'"
How did Darci Lynne showcase 'Darci 2.0' in her first 'AGT: Fantasy League' performance?
Darci Lynne — whose full name is Darci Lynne Farmer — advanced to the semifinals on "America's Got Talent: Fantasy League" on Jan. 22, earning the last of 20 semifinalist spots during the fourth and final qualifying episode of the new spin-off series, which debuted on New Year's Day on NBC.
Now sporting a butterfly tattoo on one arm, Darci Lynne took the "AGT" stage with her familiar puppet pal Petunia in her "Fantasy League" debut. But the divaesque bunny character was perched in her own little plush chair instead of on Darci Lynne's arm.
Covering the Kiki Dee Band's soulful anthem "I've Got the Music in Me," the Oklahoma native started out swapping verses with Petunia and clearly controlling the puppet before picking up an electric guitar, leaving the bunny behind and strutting across the stage to an increasingly rollicking rendition of the 1970s hit.
"This is the future, Petunia," Darci Lynne declared as the puppet danced on its own but the performer continued to alternate between singing and voicing the rabbit.
Although the "Darci 2.0" performance, as she dubbed it, got mixed reviews from the "AGT" judges, who encouraged her to stick with the simple ventriloquism they first fell in love with, the studio audience gave Darci Lynne a resounding standing ovation and voted her through to the semifinals.
The "AGT: Fantasy League" semifinals will air Jan. 29 and Feb. 5 on NBC. Darci Lynne will perform again on Feb. 5, the same day she's releasing her new single.
What Oklahoma musical duo did Darci Lynne work with on her debut single 'Push Our Luck?'
Those who need further proof that she's no longer the same shy 12-year-old they first met on "AGT" should consider the inspiration for "Push Our Luck," which Darci Lynne said she wrote based on "those first-time feelings when you're out on a date."
"I think most of us have stayed out after curfew because we were having so much fun, so I really hope when people listen to this song they’re brought back to a moment, a person or a time where they pushed their luck," she said in a statement about the upcoming single.
Darci Lynne wrote "Push Our Luck" with fellow Oklahomans Maggie McClure and Shane Henry, the husband-and-wife duo known as The Imaginaries. She first collaborated with the fellow Sooner State performers while making the inspirational movie "A Cowgirl's Song," which filmed in and around Chickasha in 2021.
After acting for the first time in the yet-to-be-released biopic "Reagan," Darci Lynne played a supporting role in "A Cowgirl's Song," which became her feature film debut when it bowed in theaters and digitally in spring 2022.
Now streaming on Netflix, the musical coming-of-age story centers on Hailey Mays (Savannah Lee May), an Oklahoma teenager who longs to become a country music star like her grandma but suffers from stage fright. Darci Lynne plays her sister, Brooke, who used to be a barrel racer with big rodeo dreams but gave them up after she was injured in a car accident. Their once-famous grandma, Erin Mays ("Charlie's Angel" Cheryl Ladd), has declined to perform since her beloved husband was killed in that same accident.
When the girls' dad, Dean (Jason Alan Smith), naively tries to help a pal and gets in trouble with the law, Hailey, Brooke and Erin must put aside their fears if they're going to help him get out of jail.
Along with acting in the film, too, The Imaginaries penned and produced the "A Cowgirl's Song" soundtrack. Darci Lynne wrote and recorded with the duo an original song called "Just Breathe" for the movie. The "Just Breathe" video has earned more than 2.5 million views on YouTube.
Where did Darci Lynne record her first single, 'Push Our Luck?'
After recording it at Yackland Studios in Nashville, Tennessee, releasing her debut single "Push Our Luck" is the chance for Darci Lynne to build on the opportunities she's found as a result of winning "America's Got Talent."
After all, she's already embarked on multiple national tours, performed on the Grand Ole Opry, opened for Fergie at Caesar’s Palace on New Year’s Eve, starred in her own NBC Christmas special and finished in second place on a previous "AGT" spin-off, 2019's "America's Got Talent: The Champions."
Darci Lynne will continue her run on the new "AGT" series as "America's Got Talent: Fantasy League" continues at 7 p.m. Mondays on NBC, with episodes streaming the next day on Peacock.
'AMERICA'S GOT TALENT: FANTASY LEAGUE:' When will Darci Lynne perform?
"America's Got Talent: Fantasy League" airs at 7 p.m. Mondays on NBC, with episodes streaming the next day on Peacock. Darci Lynne will perform on the Feb. 5 semifinals episode.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: What to know about Darci Lynne single releasing in early February
