Shirley Murdock

Shirley Murdock started her career as a gospel singer in her birthplace, Toledo, Ohio. Her career started changing direction however as singer Roger Troutman hired Murdock as a backing singer for his family's band, Zapp.

As Zapp grew more successful, scoring several hits, Troutman started recording tracks with Murdock at his Dayton recording studio. The duet's first single, 'Girl, Cut It Out,' charted at #79 on the R&B charts in 1985.

Murdock was signed to Elektra Records when she put out the successful 'No More' which reached #24 on the R&B charts. Her self-titled debut album was released in 1986 and its second single, 'As We Lay,' put Murdock on the map in 1987 as it reached #5 on the R&B charts and #23 on the Hot 100. The album went gold after the success of another single, 'Go On Without You,' reached #5 on the R&B charts.

1988 saw Murdock's second release with A Woman's Point of View. The album scored one successful hit with 'Husband' which reached #5 on the R&B charts.

Murdock released her last R&B album in 1991, when she released Let There Be Love! The album had respectable success with 'In Your Eyes' which reached #7 and the album's title track reached #89 on the charts.

After her third release, Murdock went on hiatus for quite some time, until in 2002, she released her first gospel album, Home. In 2007, Murdock released her second gospel album, Soulfood.

In 2005, Murdock began her acting career, appearing in the movie Sweating in the Spirit. She is also to appear in the 2007 film, First Cousins.