Terrence "T.C." Carson (born November 19, 1958) is an American actor, voice artist, and singer, known for his performances across television, film, stage, and video games. He is best known for portraying Kyle Barker on the Fox sitcom, ''

Living Single ''Living Single'' is an American television sitcom created by Yvette Denise Lee that aired for five seasons on the Fox network, from August 22, 1993, to January 1, 1998. The show centers on the lives of six New York City friends who share perso ...

'', and is the original voice of Kratos in the ''

God of War A war god in mythology associated with war, combat, or bloodshed. They occur commonly in polytheism, polytheistic religions. Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been portrayed in their ...

'' video game series, playing the role from 2005 to 2013. Additionally, Carson lent his voice to

Mace Windu Mace Windu is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. He was introduced in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, prequel trilogy as a Jedi Master who sits on the Jedi Council, Jedi High Council during the final years of the Galactic Repub ...

in various ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...

'' media, including ''Star Wars: The Clone Wars''.

Early life and education

Born and raised in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Illinois, Terrence "T.C." Carson was the only child of his mother, who brought him up in the LeClaire Courts projects of the

Chicago Housing Authority The Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) is a municipal corporation that oversees public housing within the city of Chicago. The agency's Board of Commissioners is appointed by the Mayor of Chicago, city's mayor, and has a budget independent from that ...

. He credits his mother, who was a seamstress and a nurse's aid, with instilling in him a love of the arts. He pursued higher education at the

University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the f ...

, majoring in architecture and interior design, and in 1981 became a member of the Iota Phi Theta fraternity.

Career

Carson's artistic journey began on stage, where he showcased his talents in numerous plays and musicals. His performances include roles in ''

The Wiz ''The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz"'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls (and others) and book by William F. Brown. It is a retelling of L. Frank Baum's children's novel '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' ...

'', ''

Dreamgirls ''Dreamgirls'' is a Broadway musical, with music by Henry Krieger and lyrics and book by Tom Eyen. It is based on the show business aspirations and successes of R&B acts such as The Shirelles, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, and others, and p ...

'', and '' Ain't Misbehavin'''. He also toured nationally with productions such as '' Sesame Street Live''.

Television

Carson is best known for his role as Kyle Barker on the hit sitcom ''Living Single'', which aired from 1993 to 1998. His portrayal of the suave stockbroker earned him critical acclaim and a dedicated fan base. Years later, he would characterize his departure as a firing. He also appeared in other television series, including '' Greenleaf'', where he had a recurring role, and guest appearances on shows like '' Black Lightning'' and ''

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

''.

Voice acting

In addition to his on-screen roles, Carson has an extensive voice acting portfolio. His most prominent voice role is that of Kratos in the ''

'' video game series, a character he portrayed from 2005 until 2013, providing both voice and motion capture performances. His first voicing of Kratos was for the original ''God of War'' for the

PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October, in Europe on 24 Novembe ...

and his final voicing of the character was in ''God of War: Ascension'' for the

PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). It is the successor to the PlayStation 2, and both are part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. The PS3 was first released on ...

, in which he also did the

motion capture Motion capture (sometimes referred as mocap or mo-cap, for short) is the process of recording high-resolution motion (physics), movement of objects or people into a computer system. It is used in Military science, military, entertainment, sports ...

. Christopher Judge began to voice Kratos in ''

'' for the

PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013, in ...

in 2018. Carson also provided Kratos's voice where Kratos was a downloadable character in ''Everybody's Golf 5'' and a guest character in ''Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny'', ''Mortal Kombat'' (PlayStation 3 and

PlayStation Vita The PlayStation Vita (PS Vita) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 17, 2011, then in other international territories on February 22, 2012, and was produced ...

versions, 2011 and 2012, respectively) and ''PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale''. Carson voiced

in the 2003 animated series ''Star Wars: Clone Wars''; he reprised his role as Mace Windu in the 2008 ''Star Wars: The Clone Wars'' series. He has provided the male voice of Guillo in the

GameCube The is a PowerPC-based home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on September 14, 2001, in North America on November 18, 2001, in Europe on May 3, 2002, and in Australia on May 17, 2002. It is the suc ...

RPG ''Baten Kaitos Origins'' and is the voice of Touchstone in the

PlayStation Portable The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PA ...

shooter ''Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror''. Carson provided the voices of Samuel and Mr. Carson in the

PBS Kids PBS Kids (stylized as PBS KIDS) is the branding used for nationally distributed children's programming carried by the U.S. public television network PBS. The brand encompasses a daytime block of children's programming carried daily by most PBS ...

animated series ''Clifford the Big Red Dog''.

Film

Carson's filmography includes roles in movies such as '' Livin' Large!'' (1991), '' U-571'' (2000), and ''

Final Destination 2 ''Final Destination 2'' is a 2003 American supernatural horror film directed by David R. Ellis from a screenplay by J. Mackye Gruber and Eric Bress, based on a story by Gruber, Bress, and Jeffrey Reddick. It is the sequel to ''Final Destinati ...

'' (2003), where he played Eugene Dix, a schoolteacher and one of the survivors of the Route 23 crash. Carson portrayed Marcus Elkins in the ''A Wesley Christmas'' film series, beginning with ''A Wesley Christmas'' (2022), ''A Wesley Christmas Wedding'' (2023), and ''A Wesley South African Christmas'' (2024). He earned an NAACP Image Award nomination for his role at the 54th NAACP Image Awards in 2023. In 2024, Carson made his directorial debut with ''The Love Doctor'', a feature film written by David L. Rowell and Anthony Guilianti.

Music

As a vocalist, Carson has released a few albums and singles showcasing his

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

influences. His discography includes: * ''Truth'' (2002): A jazz/funk album featuring a mix of ballads, mid-tempo tracks, African rhythms, and

dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

funk tunes. * ''Live in Beverly Hills'' (2014): A live recording capturing Carson's dynamic performance style. * ''Come Together'' (2020): A single blending jazz, R&B, and

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

influences offering a message of unity and connection in the aftermath of

George Floyd George Perry Floyd Jr. (October 14, 1973 – May 25, 2020) was an African-American man who was murdered by a white police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota, during an arrest made after a store clerk suspected Floyd had used a counterfeit tw ...

's killing in May 2020. * ''InnerCity Jazz (LIVE)'' (2024): An eclectic mix of classics and new grooves. Carson's performance of " My Funny Valentine" on ''Living Single'' remains a fan-favorite moment from the series, showcasing his rich, velvety baritone and jazz-influenced vocal style. As his character, Kyle Barker, serenades Maxine Shaw ( Erika Alexander) with the classic ballad, the scene captures the depth of their complex romance, blending passion, vulnerability, and undeniable chemistry.

Awards and honors

Throughout his career, Carson has received several accolades: *

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

for "Fast Break to Glory" *Three-time

NAACP Image Award The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. The over 40 ...

nominee: ** Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Television Movie, Limited-Series or Dramatic Special for ''A Wesley Christmas'' ** Two nominations for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series for ''

'' *

Young Artist Award The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...

for Outstanding Young Ensemble Cast for ''A Mother's Courage: The Mary Thomas Story'' *

Joseph Jefferson Award The Joseph Jefferson Award, more commonly known informally as the Jeff Award, is given for theatre arts produced in the Chicago area. Founded in 1968, the awards are named in tribute to actor Joseph Jefferson, a 19th-century American theater st ...

for his performance in '' The Colored Museum'' at the

Victory Gardens Theater Victory Gardens Theater is a theater company in Chicago, Illinois dedicated to the development and production of new plays and playwrights. The theater company was founded in 1974 when eight Chicago artists, Cecil O'Neal, Warren Casey, Stuart Go ...

In 2017, Carson was featured on the cover of ''STS Entertainment & Fashion'' magazine.

Discography

* ''Truth'' (2002) * ''Live in Beverly Hills'' (2014)

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carson, Terrence C. Living people 21st-century African-American male actors 21st-century American male actors 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers American jazz singers American male television actors American male video game actors American male voice actors Male actors from Chicago University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni 21st-century African-American male singers 21st-century American male singers 1958 births 20th-century African-American male actors 20th-century American male actors