PARKERSBURG - Logan County's Landau Eugene Murphy Jr. will bring his style of crooner classic music to the Smoot Theatre in two shows next month.
Murphy, 37, winner of the sixth season of the NBC television show "America's Got Talent," will perform at the Parkersburg theater on Dec. 16 and 17 at 8 p.m.
Murphy, a former car washer, performed the Frank Sinatra classics "My Way" and "Fly Me to the Moon" in the competition to the final acts in the show. He is performing in Las Vegas and is ready to release his first album, "That's Life," later this month.
In a telephone interview Wednesday, Murphy said there have been changes in his life since winning the nationally-televised talent show.
"My life has changed a whole lot," he said. "I can't go out to many places any more. I can't go the Wal-Mart without people recognizing me."
Murphy said while he won "America's Got Talent" performing a certain type of music, he is not limited to that genre.
"I love all kinds of music, from Motown to hip hop to country to southern rock," he said. "The only music I haven't done is bluegrass. It's not because I don't like it; it's because I haven't been to places where it's performed. I love many different styles of music."
Murphy said the music he will bring to his shows will be what was seen on television. He said it's a classic style experiencing a resurgence in popularity.
"My show is basically the 1960s 'rat pack' music," he said. "It's the classic crooner music from the American songbook."
Murphy said he recently performed in Las Vegas and may be back in the summer of 2012 for a show where he will perform with Steve Wonder and others.
Murphy was born in the Logan County town of Holden and lived there until he was 10 years old.
"When I was 10 we moved to Detroit," he said. "It was very different from Logan County. Here almost all of the black people I saw were family; there were not many of us here. But in Detroit it was different, almost everybody it seemed were just like me."
In 1999 Murphy returned to Logan and in 2005 he and his wife, Jennifer, were married.
Murphy said his singing started at home.
"My performing started in the living room at home," he said. "With my brothers and sisters, we were always trying to be Michael Jackson or the Four Tops. Music was big in our house. I came from a family that had a lot of parties and music was a big part of that.
"It's in my blood line."
Murphy sang in the church where his grandfather was pastor.
" I sang there, but it was different," he said. "I didn't want to do only church music. I like to do my own music and not be like anyone else."
Murphy said some of the music he sang in church were songs he wrote.
"I'm a singer and a songwriter, dancer, artist, barber and basketball player," he said.
Murphy said the one thing he brings back from the "America's Got Talent" is the friendships he formed with some of the other performers on the show.
"I really got to be friends with so many," he said. "People like Silhouettes, Team iLuminate and many others; there were also those behind the scenes that made it all possible."
Murphy said when he first went on the show he felt like he was judged from the beginning by his appearance on stage. Of course, he said, that all changed when he began to sing.
"At first I had gum in my mouth and I had to take it out so I could talk to the judges," he said. "I just wanted to go to New York and sing Frank Sinatra music."
Murphy's performance in Parkersburg will be one of several in the state during December. He will have two shows in Charleston, along with shows in Morgantown, Chester and after Christmas in Princeton.
Felice Jorgeson, director of the Smoot Theatre, said as of Wednesday evening Murphy's two shows in the 720-seat theater are sold out. While the Smoot has had a number of shows that have been sellouts, this is the first time two shows for the same performer have been sellouts, she said.
