Is Amani a Derrico? Deon Confirms His Brother Had a Son Before His Unexpected Death
Published June 7 2023, 11:56 a.m. ET
Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for those not caught up with 'Doubling with the Derricos'
Since their TLC debut in August 2020, the Derrico family has shared many ups and downs on Doubling Down with the Derricos. Led by Deon Derrico and his wife, Karen Derrico, the family of 16 always comes together to adjust to whatever life throws at them.
In Season 4 of the popular reality show, the Derricos face several challenges. One significant hurdle is the possible addition to their family just one year after they endured a tragedy in front of the world.
The potential relative, Amani, gave some hope to Deon and his mother, Marian “GG” Derrico, amid illness and death in the family. But is Amani really a Derrico? Here’s everything we know so far.
Is Amani a Derrico? He may be the son of Deon's late brother.
The Derrico family includes Deon, Karen, and their 14 kids — Darian, 17; Derrick, 12; twins Dallas and Denver; quintuplets Deonee, Daician, Daiten, Deniko, and Dariz; twins Diez and Dior; and triplets Dawsyn, De'Aren and Dyver — and GG. Before Season 4 of Doubling Down with the Derricos aired on May 30, 2023, fans revealed the family has possibly expanded once more.
In the trailer, Deon received a call from Amani, who told him via voicemail that he may be his nephew. Weeks later, fans saw the discovery in Episode 3, “We Didn’t Start the Fire.”
“My name is Amani,” Amani said in the voicemail. “Your brother Chris could possibly be my dad."
Chris, who died unexpectedly on January 27, 2020, seemingly never knew about or met Amani before he died and likely didn’t know he had a son. Although viewers won’t find out the results until a later episode, Deon has since confirmed Amani is a Derrico and Chris’s son!
In December 2022, the TLC star posted a photo of him and GG with his nephew next to an older image of Chris.
“Flanked by my beautiful mother GG and my handsome nephew Amani with a picture of his father, my brother Chris, on the wall behind us,” Deon captioned the photo.
Deon worried about his mother on ‘The Derricos’ before the DNA results.
While GG and Deon now know that Amani is a part of their family, GG admittedly needed the DNA test to confirm it first. During the season, the mother and son duo spoke to Amani via webcam, where GG asked her possible grandson if he would take a DNA test to confirm he is Chris’s child.
Although she felt like she “failed” her late son, GG said Amani being a Derrico could positively change her life. Throughout the season, fans have watched GG undergo chemotherapy treatments after her lung cancer returned at the end of Season 3.
In Season 4, GG said learning she may have another grandbaby she didn’t know about has brought a new, positive “purpose” in her life. The newfound joy made Deon worry that GG would be “devastated” if Amani weren’t their blood relative.
Thankfully, the family now knows the truth, which will likely affect future episodes of The Derricos.
Catch new episodes of Doubling Down with the Derricos on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. EST on TLC.
