Once flat broke and homeless, Theron Denson put himself on the road to stardom by reproducing the style of legendary crooner Neil Diamond – and calling himself Black Diamond!

“People get the most perplexed looks on their faces during my first few songs,” says Denson, 38. “They can’t get over hearing a white Jewish guy’s voice coming out of a black guy’s body”.

Denson was working at the front desk in a Charleston, W.V. hotel, serenading guests as they checked in with a few bars from Diamond’s 1981 hit “Hello, Again”. But his co-workers complained and management told him to shut up or get out. Denson quit in the fall of 2000 and started singing to his heart’s content – and getting paid for it to boot.

Denson performed at birthday parties and college concerts in the South and Midwest. Before he could say Sweet Caroline, he was on his way to Hollywood to appear on Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show.

“It just sort of happened,’ he explains. “I listen to his music over and over to memorize the lyrics, but I don’t really make a concerted effort to sound or move like him.”

Even at the tender age of 11, folks at his hometown church thought he sounded like the multiplatinum-recording artist. “Women would turn around in their pews and say “Young man, you sound just like Neil Diamond.” At that time, Denson didn’t have a clue about the 62-year-old legend who made such classics as “I’m A Believer, September Morn and Song Sung Blue”. Then a pal invited him to see the sequined icon perform. “He’s more than just a singer, like Cher or Elvis or Donna Summer,” adds Denson, “he’s an entertainer.”

Diamond has been thrilling audiences since his 1966 album “The Feel of Neil Diamond.” He’s released more than 50 albums – 19 have gone platinum, 28 are pure gold. He also earned a Grammy for the Jonathan Livingston Seagull movie score.

He’s a hard act to follow but one day, to his own amazement, Denson found himself on stage making the same gestures as Diamond. He’s now added costumes to complete the image and says: “Being that I’m not white, I figured I’d better throw something special in there.”