The life of The King following his untimely death has been almost as interesting as the 42 years he spent tootling around on this earth – and, nearly half a century later, there’s no sign that Elvis’ fame or ability to make bank in the record stores is going anywhere.
Elvis Presley revolutionized the music and pop culture of the 1950s and posted 149 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Chart.
During his lifetime, Elvis Presly sold 1.8 billion discs – more than any of the artists in the world and earned 4.5 billion. Drug abuse led to increased depression and poor health, which led to Presley’s death in 1977.
Immortality
The value of Elvis’ estate rocketed from an estimated $400-600 million in 2020 to more than one billion just two years later.
By means of comparison, among living solo artists, Madonna, Mariah Carey, Dolly Parton, and Gloria Estefan are all worth between $500-600 million. Ex-Beatles member Paul McCartney tops many charts at $1.2 billion, making him one of the richest artists in the world.
What’s keeping Elvis relevant, though? Part of the reason for The King’s immortality is just how marketable – and imitable – he was.
Elvis’ various quirks, including his distinctive vocal style, which he may or may not have “borrowed” from Nashville singer Jimmy Sweeney, made him into almost a caricature of a rock ‘n’ roll star.
Recently, some of that legendary appeal has been reintroduced to the world.
For instance, the video game series Just Dance made Elvis familiar to a brand-new generation, with songs featured in three different entries in the franchise. These include Viva Las Vegas and Jailhouse Rock.
Similarly, the Clubhouse Casino has several slot games dedicated to The King, such as Elvis Frog in Vegas. This green croaker features Elvis’ Neostyle-branded sunglasses and his sleek pompadour.
Also, in 2022, film director Baz Luhrmann made a 2022 biographical movie about the artist starring Austin Butler in the lead role, alongside Tom Hanks. The film is currently rated 7.4 on the IMDb website.
The Guardian described it as “audacious” in a typically adjective-laden review.
“A Halloween Costume”
Oddly enough, since his 1956 debut, Elvis hasn’t stopped releasing music (or, more accurately, his record company hasn’t).
There’s usually at least one new Elvis Presley album released every year, despite the fact that The King has long since checked out. By now, these are all remix albums, greatest hits, live compilations, and just about every other form that doesn’t contain original material.
This means that, even in recent times, Graceland sells around a million records a year, many of which are in traditional formats, like vinyl.