Elvis Aaron Presley (
January 8,
1935–
August 16,
1977, middle name sometimes written Aron,) was an
American singer,
musician and
actor. He is considered a
cultural icon, recognized simply by his first name. He is also referred to as the "
The King of Rock 'n' Roll", or as "The King".
Presley began his career as one of the first performers of
rockabilly, an
uptempo fusion of
country and
rhythm and blues with a strong
back beat. His novel versions of existing songs, mixing "
black" and "
white" sounds, made him popular—and controversial—as did his uninhibited stage and television performances. He recorded songs in the
rock and roll genre, with tracks like "
Hound Dog" and "
Jailhouse Rock" later embodying the style. Presley had a versatile voice and had unusually wide success encompassing other genres, including
gospel,
blues,
ballads and
pop. To date, he has been inducted into four music
halls of fame.
In the 1960s, Presley made the majority of his thirty-one movies—mainly poorly reviewed, but financially successful, musicals. In 1968, he returned with acclaim to live music in a
television special, and thereafter performed across the U.S., notably in
Las Vegas. Throughout his career, he set records for concert attendance, television ratings and recordings sales. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in the history of popular music. Health problems,
drug dependency and other factors led to his premature
death at age 42.