Editing Elvis Presley (section)

=== Early Life ===

Elvis Presley was born on January 8, 1935, in a two-room house in Tupelo, Mississippi, built by his father Vernon Presley. His twin brother, Jesse Garon Presley, was stillborn. Raised by Vernon and his mother Gladys, Elvis developed deep bonds with his family and with the Pentecostal church, where he first encountered gospel music.

The family moved to Memphis in 1948 when Elvis was thirteen. Growing up in a poor white family in close proximity to African American neighborhoods, he absorbed a broad range of musical influences: gospel from the Assembly of God church, country music from the Grand Ole Opry radio broadcasts, and rhythm and blues from Beale Street. He attended Humes High School, where he was shy and largely unremarkable academically, but showed an early passion for music and performance.