D has an amazing voice. And she also spends a lot of time hiding it—or at the very least, confusing people. That’s what great ventriloquists do. At age 12, the pre-teen singer has become the youngest, fastest-rising ventriloquist on everyone’s radar.

Her  audition for the judges—Simon, Heidi, Mel B. and Howie—was such a  that Mel B. hit the Golden Buzzer, meaning that Farmer gets to go straight to the live shows.

Puppets and ventriloquists are popular on the show. Ventriloquists   (Season 2) and   (Season 10) have already walked away with the million dollar first place prize.

“I really think that’d be a fun experience and enjoyable for the whole . And I really want to be on that stage in front of the judges,” says Farmer, who believes you can learn from and roll with rejection. “It's good to get critiqued, so you can get better—and I want to do that.” Wise beyond her years, Farmer has the support of her entire family when it comes to pursuing her dreams.

Last summer at the  in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, people—from novices to high-profile entertainers—were scrambling to the pre-teen with the bubbling personality and adorable puppet entourage. Farmer and I spent a little time chatting about her journey into ventriloquism for my , where she assured me that I’m not too old to throw my voice into the puppetry arena.

 credits another young girl with introducing her to the power of puppets. “It all started about three years ago when I went to a pageant in Las Vegas. I won the pageant with a girl who did ventriloquism…And in exchange for winning, we got to travel the United States and perform for a lot of shows and people. And I was just so fascinated with ventriloquism and how she did it. I didn't even know what it was before I saw her. And so I asked her for tips and pointers, and she was nice enough to give them to me.”

Farmer went home, practiced in her mirror for a few weeks, and then asked her mother for a puppet.  Misty Farmer wasn’t expecting that request from her daughter. “‘You’re a singer, not a ventriloquist’,” recalls Darci, repeating her mom’s response. But a little persuasion and some talent can go a long way.

“I begged, and begged, and begged, and then she surprised me with an eBay puppet— because we didn't know what we were doing— for my 10th .”

Less than two years later, Farmer would be collecting professional puppets that would join her on stage to wow audiences and fans— including  , the host of NBC’s , where Farmer was joined by her puppet sidekick and yodeling companion Katie.

Farmer loves ventriloquism, singing and performing, but as a young student, she is also busy juggling school responsibilities—using her skills to fulfill a few academic assignments here and there. “I actually did a project with my puppet one time in fourth grade. I made up a song that went with the rhythm to a song I do now. And I had to make up a song about a penguin and research and put information in the song about a penguin. And I sang it with my duck, because I didn't have a penguin puppet, but close enough,” says Farmer.

So has the young ventriloquist ever thrown her voice to trick her siblings or get them into a tiny bit of trouble?

“I have not, but I would really like to try to do that someday," giggles Darcy, reminding me that she may be on the fast track for early stardom, but she’s still a normal kid.