Are We Done Talking About Elvis Yet?

Jackie Wilson. Otis Blackwell. Arthur Crudup.

Elvis Presley.

I watched Baz Leurmann’s Elvis when it hit theaters last summer, and it turned into a huge joke among me and my friends. This is of course coming from a person who is very openly anti-Elvis, but even objectively, the things happening on screen were a complete mess.

Sure, Austin Butler is a heartthrob and did a great job in the role, but why on earth was the film edited like it was some kind of psychedelic concert? What was the deal with Tom Hanks completely phoning in his performance with horrific prosthesis and an unplaceable accent? And why did they leave out so many crucial details of who Elvis Presley actually was and where his music actually came from?

All this, and it still got nominated for eight Oscars.

I’m sorry, what?

My biggest problem with the movie was the fact that they treated Elvis like he was this innocent guy who brought rock ‘n’ roll into the world but was taken advantage of by the evil figures that ran the music industry from the shadows.They acted like this was a simple underdog coming of age story and completely ignored the people Elvis Presley took advantage ofin order to get where he ended up.

Yes, I know every person in the public eye probably does some less than ethical things to achieve or maintain their fame. But not everyone groomed a fourteen year old girl and spent their entire relationship openly cheating on her. Not everyone got famous by stealing their entire persona from black artists who didn’t have a platform, legal representation, or even the right to advocate for themselves.

Not everyone did that, but Elvis did. And for some reason unbeknownst to me, people will worship “the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll” and make a million movies about him, all while turning a blind eye to the very awful and unfair way he achieved and maintained the title.

So when I heard that A24 was making a Priscilla centric movie, I was both excited and extremely annoyed. Excited, because I knew that a part of the story that usually gets glossed over or blatantly ignored was going to be brought into the limelight by a highly accredited production company. I was excited that Priscilla Presley’s experience was finally being shown to the general audience (I won’t spoil it for you, but I would recommend seeing the film and finding out for yourself). I was excited that her story was being told with intention and care not just from the actors, but the director, the cinematographer, and all the other hands that worked on it.

I was annoyed, because I knew that still, there would be no voice for the musicians whose voices were stolen and appropriated by Elvis Presley.

Have you ever heard of Jackie Wilson? Otis Blackwell? Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup? These, and so many others, are the people to whom Elvis owes his fame. They’re the original writers and performers of his all first hits and iconic moves. They were doing what Elvis did decades before he ever did it, but no one cared until they saw a white boy hitting the stage with black traditions.

The originality that people praise Elvis for isn’t original at all, but stolen. And no one, still to this day, gives credit, recognition, or even a listen to the original creators of these songs they love so much. So fine, maybe you love Elvis. Maybe you were raised on rock ‘n’ roll and he represents something nostalgic to you. But to me, Elvis’s fame is yet another reminder of the many ways that racism, segregation, and the world of the pre-Civil Rights movement has completely shaped the ways in which music—and everything else—is treated today.

So you’ll have to excuse me if I seem “overly vocal” about my distaste for the man. But he really does represent an awful habit of making excuses for people who have all the power taking things from people who have none.

We have gotten so many biopics in the past few years, but the number given to Elvis “the groomer” Presley is honestly insane. So I’m hoping that the release of Priscilla marks the end of aggrandizing Elvis and people like him who have spent much too long in the spotlight. I hope that this begins a tradition of telling the stories that have never gotten the chance to be told.

I would also definitely recommend that you look up the names mentioned above on Spotify or wherever you stream music. You may be surprised by what you find.

Strike Out.

Writer: Knia Robinson

Blog Editor: Sarah Singleton