Elvis Presley

Elvis Aaron Presley, born January 8, 1935, in Tupelo, Mississippi, and died August 16, 1977, at his Graceland estate at age 42, was an American singer and actor. Called the "King of Rock and Roll," he is considered one of the 20th century's most culturally important figures. His high-energy, sexually charged performances, blending influences from both Black and white musical traditions during a period of changing race relations, brought him huge fame and early controversy. Presley's family moved to Memphis, Tennessee, when he was 13.

He started his music career in 1954 at Sun Records with producer Sam Phillips, who aimed to introduce African-American music to a broader white audience. Playing guitar alongside lead guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black, Presley helped create rockabilly—a fast, backbeat-driven mix of country and rhythm and blues. Drummer D. J. Fontana joined in 1955 to complete the classic quartet, and that same year, Colonel Tom Parker arranged for RCA Victor to buy Presley's contract, managing him for the rest of his life. Presley's first RCA Victor single, "Heartbreak Hotel," came out in January 1956 and hit number one in the U.S. Within a year, RCA Victor had sold ten million Presley singles.

1956–1958: Commercial breakout and controversy

Through successful TV appearances and chart-topping hits, he became rock and roll's leading figure, though his style and promotion of then-marginalized Black music made many see him as a threat to white American youth's morals. Presley made his film debut in Love Me Tender in November 1956. Drafted into the military in 1958, he returned to recording two years later with some of his biggest commercial successes.

1968–1973: Comeback

He gave few concerts and, guided by Parker, spent most of the 1960s making Hollywood movies and soundtrack albums, most of which critics panned. His most famous films include Jailhouse Rock (1957), Blue Hawaii (1961), and Viva Las Vegas (1964). In 1968, he returned to live performance with the acclaimed NBC television special Elvis, which led to a long Las Vegas concert residency and highly profitable tours. In 1973, he gave the first solo-artist concert broadcast worldwide, Aloha from Hawaii.

Years of substance abuse and poor diet severely damaged his health, leading to his death in August 1977. Presley is one of history's best-selling music artists, with an estimated 500 million records sold worldwide. He succeeded commercially across genres like pop, country, rock and roll, rockabilly, rhythm and blues, adult contemporary, and gospel. He won three Grammy Awards, received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award at age 36, and has been posthumously inducted into multiple music halls of fame.

Achievements

He holds records for the most RIAA-certified gold and platinum albums, the most albums on the Billboard 200, the most number-one albums by a solo artist on the UK Albums Chart, and the most number-one singles by any act on the UK Singles Chart. In 2018, he was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Elvis Aaron Presley was born on January 8, 1935, in Tupelo, Mississippi, to Gladys Love (née Smith) and Vernon Presley. His twin brother, Jesse Garon, was stillborn 35 minutes earlier.

Elvis was very close to both parents, especially his mother. The family attended an Assembly of God church, where he first found musical inspiration. Vernon moved between odd jobs, and the family often depended on neighbors and government food aid. In 1938, they lost their home after Vernon was convicted of check forgery and jailed for eight months.

1935–1953: Early years

In September 1941, Presley started first grade at East Tupelo Consolidated, where teachers considered him "average." His first public performance was at a singing contest at the Mississippi–Alabama Fair and Dairy Show on October 3, 1945, when he was 10; he sang "Old Shep" and remembered placing fifth. A few months later, he got his first guitar for his birthday and took lessons from two uncles and a pastor at church. He later said, "I took the guitar, and I watched people, and I learned to play a little bit. But I would never sing in public.

I was very shy about it." In September 1946, he entered Milam school for sixth grade. The next year, he began singing and playing guitar at school, often teased as a "trashy" kid who played hillbilly music. He was a big fan of Mississippi Slim's radio show.

Slim's younger brother, a classmate, described Presley as "crazy about music." Slim taught him chord techniques and, when Presley was 12, scheduled him for two on-air performances. He froze from stage fright the first time but performed the following week. In November 1948, the family moved to Memphis, Tennessee. At L. C. Humes High School, he got a C in music in eighth grade.

When his music teacher said he had no singing talent, he brought in his guitar and sang "Keep Them Cold Icy Fingers Off Me." He was usually too shy to perform openly and was sometimes bullied for being a "mama's boy." In 1950, he started practicing guitar with neighbor Lee Denson. Together with three other boys—including future rockabilly pioneers Dorsey and Johnny Burnette—they formed a loose musical group. During his junior year, Presley began to stand out because of his appearance: he grew sideburns and styled his hair. He often went to Beale Street, the heart of Memphis' thriving music scene.