The lead singer of Irish band Hermitage Green has unexpectedly found himself performing on an American news show.
Up until last week you might not have recognised the name Dan Murphy.
The Limerick musician has been out of action for much of the covid pandemic as lockdowns have prevented him from performing with his band as he would usually do.
However, the talented singer and musician has been keeping himself busy and set up a TikTok account.
He sat in his kitchen with his harmonica and his phone and recorded a video of him playing and beatboxing to post online.
The response was overwhelming and even led to an invite to perform on US TV.
Dan explained: “I started a Tik Tok a few weeks ago just to post some harmonica videos. Just some beatboxing and jamming around really.
“I posted a video two weeks ago of me playing in my kitchen during lockdown and it’s gotten over a million views now, which is so bizarre because I only had like 100 followers when I shared it.”
The video also caught the attention of Chicago based news station, WGN News.
The anchor questioned the validity of Dan’s performance and invited him to join them live on the show via video link to showcase his skills.
Dan was happy to oblige although he did joke that his kitchen was not the usual setting for one of his performances.
He said: “I had one eye on the screen and another eye on my neighbour outside roaring at her young fella to come in for his dinner…
“I’m halfway through playing a tune and I’m wondering if there are thousands of people in the US that can also hear this woman screaming.
“But it was a nice taster of performing live again, something I’ve missed a lot over the last year and a bit.”
The harmonica is an underused instrument in modern music according to Dan, and he is delighted he has been able to show its versatility and range with his videos.
He explained; “I’ve been playing Harmonica for about ten years.
“Lee Oskar of Lee Oskar Harmonicas and the band WAR has been a huge mentor to me.
“I think the Harmonica is such an understated and versatile instrument, so I love to be able to shed a bit of light on it and show people how much of an amazing little invention it is.”
As the lockdown restrictions continue to ease in Ireland and around the world Dan and his band Hermitage Green plan to return to performing live later this year.
Take a look at the interview on WGN News as Dan’s shows off his skills.
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