"There'll never be another like that soul brother."įour decades after his death, how can we reconcile these two apparently contradictory black responses to Elvis? The conventional wisdom casts Elvis as one in a long line of craven white exploiters of black musical culture for whom African Americans had nothing but contempt. "Elvis and I are the only true American originals," Brown insisted. Had Berry been white, he could have rightly taken throne and worn his crown well.'"īy contrast, James Brown, the "Godfather of Soul," declared: "I wasn't just a fan, I was his brother." Brown-born dirt-poor in Barnwell, South Carolina, on the other side of the segregated south's racial divide from Presley, who was born dirt-poor in Tupelo, Mississippi-was reputedly the only entertainer granted private time with Elvis's body. Presley was merely a Prince who profited from the royal talent of a sovereign ruler vested with tremendous creativity. This article first appeared on The Conversation.Īfter Elvis Presley died on August 16, 1977, the African-American newspaper the Chicago Defender explained that: "When Elvis Presley breathed his last breath and the press hailed him as the 'King of Rock,' Ol' Man River cried out, 'Naw he ain't! My friend Chuck Berry is the King of Rock.
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