Is Kenny Presley Elvis' Son? Listen to Find Out

KENNY PRESLEY IN CONCERT

IS "KENNY PRESLEY"
THE SON OF ELVIS PRESLEY?

Here's The Story

As you might have guessed from his last name, Kenny Presley, 52, claims he is the son of none other than the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley. Now Kenny impersonates the King at musical performances called The Elvis Experience -- complete with sideburns, jumpsuits and all.

"How many people believe this about Elvis, and how many people blow me off like I'm some kind of nut?" said Kenny in an interview with The Gleaner. "That bothers me. (Elvis) being my father causes me to have mixed emotions."

Despite never meeting his biological father, Kenny says he was raised by a man who was a father figure to him.

"I've known I was Elvis' son since I was 6 or 7 years old," said Presley. His mom "had a friend that used to come over at night and they used to sit and talk. I would hear them talk about Elvis, and her friend would say I really look like Elvis. Being that young I didn't really comprehend what she was saying. Then when I was 11, I heard her and my father arguing. My mother said she was going to take me and leave my father, and he replied, 'Take him. He belongs to Elvis. He doesn't belong to me.' "

According to Kenny, his mother, Barbara Rushing, met Elvis Presley in 1962 when she visited Graceland in Memphis. She was 17. After that meeting, Elvis gave her his personal phone number, and she and Elvis went on dates to Liberty Land and drive-in movie theaters. Raised by strict Christian parents, Rushing kept their relationship a secret. Then in 1964, Kenny was born in Gleason, Tenn.

In February of 1977, Kenny remembers a phone call with a man who knew Kenny's name and asked for his mother. Later his mother told him that Elvis had been on the other end of that phone call.

At an early age, Presley developed a love for music, especially Peter Frampton and Conway Twitty. At 11 years old, Presley performed at a Walmart opening and started a band playing Elvis songs. Then he traveled for his music and has played with almost every member of Elvis band.

The first person Kenny told about his Elvis parentage was a school friend who didn't believe him. People often bullied Kenny about his parentage while he was growing up.

"It made me mad up to high heaven and hurt my feelings by the same token," he said. "Growing up, I didn't tell nobody else. I let the story die down. The only time we talked about it was among family, and it was rarely talked about even then."

In 1992, Kenny and his mother hired a lawyer to prove that his father was Elvis with a paternity test. At one point, Presley received a threat on his life and said he had to hide in a log cabin in Missouri for a few weeks.

"Our lawyer finally said he gave up," said Kenny. "This is leading nowhere and costing a small fortune. They have more money than we can find, so that went nowhere. I never wanted any money from the estate. All I want to do is entertain and make people happy."

Kenny also knew Elvis' cook Mary Jenkins. He said she remembered when Barbara visited Graceland, and that Jenkins nicknamed her "Bobbysocks." Jenkins even made a fried peanut butter and banana sandwich for Kenny, just like Elvis used to eat. When she died in the early 2000s, Kenny sang at her funeral.

Kenny Presley will be performing at Henderson's Preston Arts Center on May 13 at 7 p.m. The first part of the show has a Broadway and Vegas theme with a jailhouse rock performance. Then the second half features Elvis hits from the 1970s in more of a concert style.

A member of Elvis' old entourage, Cricket Coulter, will be at the performance as well. She met Elvis during the early 1960s. She worked for him and became friends with Elvis. During her years spent with Elvis, he gave her different gifts that she has kept. She went as far as to collect Elvis's hair when he had his hair cut. At the performance, she will be selling locks of his hair, along with other pieces of Elvis memorabilia she received from him. She will also be available to answer questions about Elvis.

"I tell this story, and that's what it is: a story," said Kenny. "People can believe it if they want. Someone asked me if I believe 100 percent in my heart. To answer that truthfully, I couldn't say yes because I can't know 100 percent. But I can't sit here and call my mother a liar. Elvis, her and God are the only ones who can answer that truthfully."

 

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