I'm responding  to the question posed by E Online, can Kanye West become "bigger than" Elvis. I doubt that Kanye or anyone can. It's really hard to compare because the entertainment business, and the culture itself is so different.



Elvis is often called the "King of Rock and Roll" but that label is misleading. He is hard to label, a man of contradictions. At a time of sharp racial divisions Elvis was able to sing rhythm and blues music and country and western, making each genre his own. He cultivated a rebellious "look" that excited teenagers in the 1950s and alarmed their parents. And then eased their anxieties with his good manners and charm. He  loved show business and sang Southern gospel music on television, and later on the Las Vegas stage. He lived extravagantly and yet kept his primary home in Memphis, close to his Southern roots.



I don't know Kanye West that well. But I have noticed he says whatever is on his mind, in front of any audience. He is like a lot of entertainers of his generation, including Elvis' own daughter, Lisa Marie. Profanity has also become a part of their entertainment content, their public speech.  I'm in favor of free speech. But saying what you want, when you want,  has its downside. Kanye West has offended  people with his comments. He has run the risk of driving away potential fans, or at least customers of his work.

 

Here is where the culture today is so obviously different. Elvis came of age when entertainers rarely offered their private opinions on stage, and certainly didn't use profanity in front of the public. In a 1972 press conference Elvis refused to be drawn into a discussion of the issues of the day. He didn't mind if other entertainers used their fame to endorse, or oppose,  a cause. But he chose to keep his own opinions to himself. He believed his role was to entertain all the people. Though he didn't articulate this, the implication seems to be clear. He would not risk alienating somebody by offering a comment in public.   He would keep that focus and discipline until near the end of his life.



It's not that Elvis was perfect. He had a hot temper. During the last few years he sometimes vented his frutrations, his dark moods on stage  to his audience, a sign that his stamina and resolve was breaking down.  Since his death we know a lot more about him through the countless publications. Or do we? Everything written about him since 1977, or for that matter during his life,  was created by third parties, who had  varying degrees of access to Elvis, and their own agendas. It is hard to know what he thought for he did not tell us himself.



I think his reticence to reveal partly explains his world wide popularity. In his lifetime,  his fans were from all walks of life, and even from countries around the world where English is not the primary language. They may have had little in common except a shared love for Elvis. Someone once wrote that Elvis was like a prism, where each one can "see" him the way they wish. That is true today. His fans are still from all parts of the world,  different from each other except for their shared love for him.



It would be very hard for an artist like Kanye West to reach that level of popularity.