Charlie Murphy

Charlie Murphy (July 4, 1953 – August 6, 2016) was an American activist and singer-songwriter.

Biography Early life Charles "Charlie" Joseph Murphy Jr. was born in Baltimore on July 4, 1953. He was the third of seven children. His mother, Angela Murphy, was a nurse and his father, Charlie Murphy Sr., was a court stenographer. He was described as engaging and outgoing in high school, and was involved in theater, debate, and student government. Influenced by the civil rights and anti-war movements that he witnessed early in life, Murphy decided to devote himself to facilitating social change. While studying sociology at Loyola University Maryland, Murphy also worked as a camp counselor.

After graduating from Loyola, Murphy began working in youth mental health services in Roanoke, Virginia. After a time, however, he realized that he was "being asked to help these young people to adjust to a world in turmoil rather than to empower them to take an active role in making things better," and decided to transition from work in mental health to social activism through music. The two resided on Whidbey Island in Washington.

Activism At the age of 40, Murphy chose to leave his career in music to focus once again on helping youth. He served as Cultural Coordinator and then as Training Director for the Earth Service Corps, a national youth environmental program run by the YMCA. In 1996, he co-founded the youth development organization Power of Hope: Youth Empowerment Through The Arts with Peggy Taylor. He and Taylor would go on to found PYE Global: Partners For Youth Empowerment with entrepreneur Ian Watson in 2009. Murphy and Mulholland worked with PYE for several years, expanding its network to 15 countries and reaching millions of youth worldwide. He died at midnight on August 6, 2016.