Elvis Presley’s wealth is the result of his exceptional talent and tireless effort. According to the official website of Elvis Presley’s home, Graceland, he was born in a two-room house in Tupelo, Mississippi, in 1935. He grew up in a close-knit, working-class family consisting of his parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, who all lived nearby in Tupelo. Vernon and Gladys Presley do their utmost to provide for their son, who is the centre of their lives, despite having limited resources.
But his legacy lives on through things like tours of Graceland, reissues of his music, licensing deals, and high-profile pop culture items like Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis, a new movie about his life. In fact, Presley brings in a good amount of money each year. Here is a look at how much Elvis Presley was worth while he was alive and how much he is worth now.
Early Life of Elvis Presley
Elvis was born in Mississippi in 1935. He was part of a very close-knit family. His parents weren’t rich, and his father built him a two-room house as his first home. He was close to both of his parents, and they did their best to give him a good life. Gladys took care of the family while his father, Vernon, worked odd jobs to make money. When Elvis was three years old, his father went to jail because he changed a check from his boss.
Elvis heard music for the first time in church and on the streets, where jazz was played. Elvis was just average as a student, but his teachers noticed that he was good at music. Even though he got a guitar for his birthday and practiced with it, Elvis was shy about performing in front of other people when he was a young boy.
After his family moved to Tennessee in 1948, Elvis Presley, then 13 years old, kept studying music, even though he had failed music class at school. Even though he learned from several skilled guitarists, many of whom would go on to be the first people to play Rockabilly, Elvis couldn’t read music. He played everything by ear.
Net Worth of Elvis Presley
During his life, Elvis sold 600 million records and singles all over the world. At his best, he could charge up to $1 million per show. Twenty-one of his albums made it to number one, and 35 of his singles made it to number one. He brought in a lot of money for RCA for almost 20 years.
Elvis’ net worth at the time of his death was $5 million. While $5 million is obviously not a pittance, it is significantly, significantly less than what he earned over the previous three decades.
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Elvis spent a substantial amount of money acquiring and maintaining Graceland. He spent additional millions on parties and his crew. Please read this page for a breakdown of Elvis’ money and fortune. Elvis’ estate earned hundreds of millions of dollars in licensing royalties in the decades following his death.
Beginning of Career in Music
After completing high school, Elvis Presley decided to pursue a career in music. He recorded two singles at Sun Records and made an impression on the label’s boss, Sam Phillips. Phillips summoned Elvis back into the studio after he worked as a truck driver because he was looking for a means to promote African-American music to a white audience. He saw in Presley a way to accomplish this goal.
“That’s All Right,” Elvis Presley’s first major hit, was recorded at the conclusion of a lengthy and hard recording session. Sam Phillips discovered “that sound” he had been searching for after an exhaustive search.
When those same fans first saw Elvis perform live, they were amazed by how he moved on stage. Girls would scream and shout when Elvis started shaking his legs, which he did because he was nervous on stage.
Elvis started the style that would become known as Rockabilly after he had been on a few TV shows. In a strange way, this completely new sound made it hard for Elvis to reach a wider audience since radio DJs often didn’t know what to make of it. Country stations didn’t want to play him because he sounded “too black,” and blues stations didn’t want to play him because he sounded “like a hillbilly.”
His Record Deal With RCA
Elvis signed a contract with RCA Records for $40,000 in 1955. Elvis’s first album came out in 1956, and it had hits like “Blue Suede Shoes” on it. Even though this hit was a cover of a Carl Perkins song, Elvis changed the Rockabilly single into something new, something more like what would later be called Rock n’ Roll.
At this point in his career, Elvis’s on-stage antics were getting him a lot of attention and criticism. Many people thought that the musician’s suggestive hip movements were “a new low” for mainstream music, and important people in the television industry said that he wasn’t “fit for family viewing.”
On the other hand, young people all over America fell in love with Elvis, and his concerts were so wild that the National Guard had to be there to keep order. By the end of 1956, Presley had made $22 million just from selling merchandise (not counting record sales). In this same year, he was also in his first movie. In 1957, Elvis kept putting out singles that all went to the top of the charts in America.
Elvis Presley Services in the Military
Elvis could have joined the Special Services when he was drafted, but he chose to be a regular G.I. instead. He did this to show that he stood with the average American. His fellow soldiers say he never tried to get special treatment and always tried to be a trustworthy, honest soldier.
While he was serving in the military, his mother became ill. He was granted permission to visit her on her deathbed, and he was devastated by her death from heart failure a few days later.
Presley’s managers methodically planned for the two-year sabbatical, releasing a steady stream of unreleased singles while the performer was enlisted, despite fears that his military service might damage his career.
Elvis Presley in Hollywood and Decline
Elvis’ decision to become fully involved in films after completing his military service was detrimental to his career. Elvis, who appeared in a series of formulaic comic musicals, prioritized the distribution of soundtracks to these films over his musical career. Music aficionados gradually stopped taking him seriously.
The Comeback of Elvis Presley
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Elvis Presley’s career reemerged with a series of successful TV appearances and tours. During this period, newspapers began referring to Elvis as “The King.”
Elvis Presley Death
After years of abusing different prescription drugs, his addiction did a lot of damage to his health. Elvis was found unresponsive on a bathroom floor in 1977. His death marked the end of an important figure in American culture.
Final Words
Elvis Presley was born in Tupelo, Mississippi, in 1935. He grew up in a working-class family. His father, Vernon, worked odd jobs to support the family. Elvis heard music for the first time in church and on the streets of Tupelo. Elvis Presley’s net worth at the time of his death was $5 million.
