Elvis Presley
1935 – 1977 · United States
Known for: The King of Rock and Roll
“Values are like fingerprints. Nobody's are the same, but you leave them all over everything you do.”
Biography
Born in a two-room house in Tupelo, Mississippi, Elvis Aaron Presley walked into Sun Studio in 1953 to record a song for his mother, and within three years had rewired the sound, look and pulse of popular culture. His fusion of gospel, country and rhythm & blues scandalised parents, electrified a generation, and sold over 500 million records, still among the most of any solo artist in history.
Beyond the hips and the jumpsuits stood a shy, generous man who bought Cadillacs for strangers and never stopped calling Memphis home. When he died at Graceland at just 42, tens of thousands lined the streets. Graceland remains one of the most visited private homes in the world, second only to the White House, because the King never really left the building.