Growing up on Long Island, New York, Ricky Downes always possessed a fascination with both voice over and performance, actively participating in his school’s theatrical productions and creating animated shorts of his own, which always featured his voice.

 

While earning his B.A. in Visual and Media Arts at Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts, Ricky’s passion reached fruition. He became involved in various performance projects at school, including a sketch comedy troupe, Police Geese, and the college’s satirical news show, where Ricky performed various characters, celebrities, and politicians both onscreen and behind the mic.

Since graduating in 2015, Ricky started pursuing voice acting professionally, performing in various TV commercials, Internet web spots, and animated shorts. In his free time, Ricky can be seen in and around New York City, performing stand-up comedy, bringing his animated and zany persona to life on stage.
 

In 2020, Ricky received international and Internet fame when he re-recorded the entirety of the Broadway smash hit Hamilton, but in the voices of Jim Henson's The Muppets including favorites such as Kermit the Frog as Alexander Hamilton, The Great Gonzo as Aaron Burr, Miss Piggy as Eliza Schuyler, and Fozzie Bear as both Thomas Jefferson and the Marquis de LaFozette. The video garnered millions of views, received appraisals from major publications including USA Today, Broadway World, Nerdist, and Screen Rant. The video can be seen on Ricky's YouTube channel.

Ricky has been instructed and taught by professional voice over artists and scholars including Heather May, Aleks Wierzbicki, and his mentor and coach Debi Derryberry of Nickelodeon’s Jimmy Neutron fame.