Elvis Presley
American singer and actor; King of Rock and Roll.
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the 'King of Rock and Roll', he is widely regarded as one of the most culturally significant figures of the 20th century. His energetic and sexually provocative performance style, combined with a mixture of influences across color lines during a transformative era in race relations, brought both great success and initial controversy.
- born
- January 8, 1935, Tupelo, Mississippi
- died
- August 16, 1977, Graceland estate, age 42
- field
- Singer, actor
- nationality
- American
- known_for
- King of Rock and Roll; pioneering rockabilly; iconic performances and films
Verified Timeline
Lore & Background
Elvis Presley was born in Tupelo, Mississippi, and moved to Memphis, Tennessee, at age 13. He began his music career in 1954 at Sun Records with producer Sam Phillips, who wanted to bring African-American music to a wider audience. Presley, on guitar with Scotty Moore and Bill Black, pioneered rockabilly, an uptempo fusion of country and rhythm and blues. Drummer D. J. Fontana later completed the classic quartet. In 1955, RCA Victor acquired his contract in a deal arranged by Colonel Tom Parker, who managed him for the rest of his career. His first RCA single, 'Heartbreak Hotel', became a number-one hit in 1956, and within a year RCA sold ten million Presley singles. Presley made his film debut in Love Me Tender in 1956. Drafted into military service in 1958, he relaunched his recording career two years later with commercially successful work. Guided by Parker, he devoted much of the 1960s to Hollywood films and soundtrack albums, many critically derided. His famous films include Jailhouse Rock (1957), Blue Hawaii (1961), and Viva Las Vegas (1964). In 1968, he returned to the stage with the NBC special Elvis, leading to a Las Vegas residency and profitable tours. In 1973, he gave the first concert by a solo artist broadcast worldwide, Aloha from Hawaii. Years of substance abuse and unhealthy eating compromised his health, and he died in August 1977 at Graceland at age 42.
Reader's Guide
Elvis Presley is one of the best-selling music artists in history, with an estimated 500 million records sold worldwide. He was commercially successful across 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. He holds records for the most RIAA-certified gold and platinum albums, most albums charted on the Billboard 200, most number-one albums by a solo artist on the UK Albums Chart, and most number-one singles by any act on the UK Singles Chart. In 2018, he was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. His legacy as a cultural figure stems from his role in popularizing rock and roll and blending musical traditions during a transformative era, though his performance style and promotion of African-American music initially sparked controversy.
Did You Know?
- Elvis's twin brother Jesse Garon was stillborn 35 minutes before Elvis was born.
- His first public performance was at age 10, singing 'Old Shep' at the Mississippi–Alabama Fair and Dairy Show, where he placed fifth.
- In eighth grade, his music teacher said he had no aptitude for singing, so he brought in his guitar and sang 'Keep Them Cold Icy Fingers Off Me'.
- Presley failed an audition for a local vocal quartet called the Songfellows and another for Eddie Bond's band before signing with Sun Records.
- The first record he ever cut was a two-sided acetate of 'My Happiness' and 'That's When Your Heartaches Begin' at Memphis Recording Service in 1953.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Elvis Presley?
Elvis Aaron Presley was an American singer and actor born in Tupelo, Mississippi, in 1935. He rose to become one of the most recognizable entertainers of the 20th century and earned the enduring nickname 'King of Rock and Roll.'
What made Elvis Presley famous?
His explosive stage energy and a sound that fused country, blues, and gospel into rockabilly set him apart from every other performer of the 1950s. His provocative hip movements and cross-racial musical influences made him simultaneously a massive star and a flashpoint of cultural controversy.
How did Elvis Presley die?
Elvis died on August 16, 1977, at his Graceland mansion in Memphis, Tennessee, at the age of 42. The official cause of death was cardiac arrhythmia, though years of heavy prescription-drug use had severely compromised his health.
Why is Elvis Presley important to rock & roll?
He is widely credited with helping launch the rockabilly genre and pushing Black musical traditions—rhythm and blues, gospel, blues—into the center of mainstream American pop. Nearly every rock artist who followed in the decades after his rise traces a direct line back to his influence.
What was Elvis Presley's role in breaking racial barriers in music?
By openly performing the blues, gospel, and R&B of Black musicians on national television, he exposed white audiences to sounds they had largely never encountered. That helped erode the rigid racial segregation of the 1950s music industry, even as it also drew sharp criticism from those who saw it as appropriation.
More in Pioneers Of Rock & Roll 1-23
Spotted an error? Know more?
This is a living reference — every entry is fact-audited, and reader corrections feed straight into our audit queue. Suggest an edit · See this site's audit record