Rickey Lynn Carter (born November 9, 1981 in Shreveport, Louisiana) is an American rapper and former child actor. Later, he moved to North Dallas, Texas with his mother. At a young age, Carter was an actor on the children's television series Barney & Friends and the preceding Barney & The Backyard Gang videos portraying as "Derek".
Carter retired from acting in 1995.[1] As a teen, he sold drugs and he became a father to a daughter when he was seventeen-years-old. Carter is currently a rapper under the name Gifted Tha Go-Gitta.
Career[]
Barney[]
Barney & The Backyard Gang[]
Audition[]
Carter's mother informed him that he was going to audition for Barney & The Backyard Gang. Prior to his audition, he had never heard of the show and of the main character. Carter auditioned and got a callback. For his callback, he sung "Starlight, Star Bright". Carter eventually booked the role of "Derek" when he was at the age of seven. Carter debuted as "Derek" in the video Waiting for Santa.
Barney & Friends[]
After Barney & the Backyard Gang ended, the video series was spun into a television series titled Barney & Friends. Carter continued to portray as "Derek" for the first two seasons of Barney & Friends and a guest appearance in the third season.
Post-Barney[]
Carter returned to the set of Barney & Friends in Las Colinas in Irving, Texas with a few cast members from the first three seasons for a mini reunion.
For Carter today, Barney means "positive inspiration to people".
Personal Life[]
Barney[]
Following his time on Barney & Friends, Carter would get recognized in public for his role as "Derek".[2]
Gallery[]
Barney[]
Behind the scenes[]
Trivia[]
- David Joyner, who was one of Barney's costume performers, was Carter's acting coach prior to becoming Barney's costume performer.[1]
- Carter recounted a bit of his personal life during his appearance in the documentary I Love You, You Hate Me.
- In addition to Barney, Carter appeared in a Carl's Jr commercial in 1990.[3]
Videos[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Rickey L. Carter Retrieved August 12, 2022.
- ↑ Barney and Gang: a Look at the Past 30-Plus Years of the Friendly Purple Dinosaur April 10, 2018 Retrieved August 12, 2022.
- ↑ Carl's Jr Commercial (1990) June 12, 2022 Retrieved July 23, 2023.