Three acclaimed performers will recreate different periods in the life of a musical legend during the Elvis Tribute Artist Spectacular on Jan. 6, 2023, at the Hard Rock Live in Gary, and Jan. 7 at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie.
Shawn Klush’s many Elvis honors include being named winner of BBC 1 TV’s “World’s Greatest Elvis” in 2007.
By the time he was 12 or 13, Klush was imitating Elvis, he reported, motivated by his early background.
“I was the only child. My dad was a DJ. They got the opportunity to see him twice before I was old enough to understand what that meant,” Klush related. Because of his parents’ interest in Elvis, he grew up listening to the performer’s music.
“The guy grabbed me when I was little. He had that charisma,” Klush said. “The look alone is great but when you hear him sing!”
Klush has captured the look and sound of Elvis, which has led to many honors, including the title bestowed on him by the BBC. “I’m still pinching myself over that,” he said.
Klush is also thrilled to have had the opportunity to perform with such notables as the Stamps Quartet and the Blackwood Quartet, which is part of the Elvis Tribute Artist Spectacular, during his 25-plus years as an Elvis tribute artist.
“I’m the luckiest cat alive when it comes to Elvis,” Klush declared.
The Elvis tribute artist also pursues an acting career. He currently appears on the hit Hulu show “What We Do in the Shadows” as Vampire Elvis. “Oddly enough, it’s a vampire comedy,” he said.
Klush covers Elvis’ performing life from 1969-1973 in the Elvis Tribute Artistic Spectacular. His song selection includes “Burning Love,” “Suspicious Minds,” “My Way,” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” among other numbers.
The native of Pittston, Pennsylvania, admitted that he never dreamed he would have a lifelong career as an Elvis tribute artist. “Pittston is little itty-bitty ink spot on the map,” he said.
Ryan Pelton first became an Elvis tribute artist in 1998 on a dare. “I entered a contest in Columbus, Ohio. My mom said, ‘I dare you to do this,'” Pelton said. He had a week to prepare for his first performance. To prepare, he picked up a video of Elvis at Blockbuster and purchased a white jacket at the Salvation Army.
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“I borrowed a guitar from a college buddy,” Pelton said. “It had no strings on it but I saw Elvis had a guitar and I needed something to write the lyrics on top of because I didn’t even know the songs.”
At the time, Pelton earned his living building websites and had never sung karaoke. To his surprise, he won the competition. “Immediately, my career took off,” he said.
Honors followed, including his winning the 2000 Images of the King World Championship in Memphis. He has performed with Legends in Concert, the world’s largest impersonator production, for over 20 years. He is currently working with Legends in Concert in Branson, Missouri, for seven shows each week.
In addition to his busy career as an Elvis tribute artist, Pelton writes and records original music, and was cast in the movie “The Identical” as twins in 2014. In addition he does video editing in his own studio, and makes custom wood furniture.
For the Elvis Tribute Artist Spectacular Pelton covers the 1960s. His selections include, “Let Yourself Go,” “If I Can Dream,” and “Memories.”
“It’s awesome to be out there hot and sweaty in that black leather singing those songs,” Pelton concluded.
“I started my tribute act five or six years ago,” said Moses Snow. That’s pretty amazing considering the fact that Snow is only 19 years old.
“It all started by one song I heard of Elvis called ‘Blue Christmas,'” Snow explained. After hearing that, Snow began looking for other songs by Elvis and was surprised by how many there were.
“I went to see another Elvis tribute artist James L. Wages at my local hometown,” the Texas native said. “He called me up and I started performing for the first time in front of an audience and I got a rush out of it.”
That rush continues as Snow has toured with his Elvis tribute show across the country and to such locations as Canada and Germany.
Snow covers the 1950s rock ‘n’ roll Elvis in the Elvis Tribute Artist Spectacular. His song list includes “Hound Dog,” “Blue Suede Shoes,” and “Jailhouse Rock.”
“Me being only 19 years old, I want to continue and show the younger generation especially who Elvis really was,” Moses said. “He was really the king of rock ‘n’ roll.”
Elvis Tribute Artist Spectacular
When: 7 p.m. Jan. 6, 2023
Where: Hard Rock Live, 5400 W. 29th Ave., Gary
Tickets: $35-$55
Information: 219-228-2383; hardrockcasinonorthernindiana.com/
When: 8 p.m. Jan. 7
Where: North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, 9501 Skokie Blvd., Skokie
Tickets: $29.60-$62.50
Information: 847-673-6300; northshorecenter.org/event/elvis
Myrna Petlicki is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.