Long Live the King: McCrady keeps Elvis' spirit alive and well

Jul. 26—By day, Owensboro native Brad McCrady works as an account executive at the Messenger-Inquirer and is owner/operator of McCrady Chemical Company, Inc.

But on select nights, he trades in his work attire to become the "King of Rock and Roll" — Elvis Presley.

McCrady, 37, was actually born seven years after Elvis' death in 1977. But the late singer's spirit was very much alive during McCrady's upbringing.

"I just remember being drawn to that music. It was just different," he said. "I grew up in the 80s and it was different from things that were being played on the radio. ... It just stuck out to me.

"That raw, raspiness (of his voice) — he put a lot of emotion into what he was singing. It wasn't like all the other singers going through the motions."

McCrady said his family was "full of Elvis fans" and he was already interested in the performer before ever seeing his performances.

"I always liked music, I liked to watch shows and be entertained, I always liked putting on a show for my family before I even knew who Elvis was," McCrady said. "When I could walk and talk, I would get out a ukulele ... but, to me, it was like a full sized guitar and I would just strum it and play and put on cowboy boots and a cowboy hat and dance around for my aunts, uncles and cousins.

"Any time there was a family get together, I wanted to be the center of attention."

McCrady later started to watch some of Elvis' movies and concert specials.

"... The sideburns, the dark hair — he looked different than anybody else and had a different sound," he said. "He was just this larger than life personality."

McCrady dressed up as Elvis for Halloween when he was 8 with a costume his mother made. He made his first "appearance" as the musician for his fourth-grade talent show where he performed Elvis' 1956 cover of "Hound Dog."

"That's when I was really hooked whenever I got up and actually sang and danced in costume," he said.

McCrady entered the talent competition a year later at the Daviess County Lions Club Fair and placed second. He won $10.

By the time he turned 18, McCrady began to take the show on the road at a number of different establishments, ranging from community nursing homes and occasional concerts in the area.

During his time at Kentucky Wesleyan College, he "casually" performed on the weekends and continued to make a name for himself post graduation — winning the top prize at several Elvis contests and was named by Elvis Presley Enterprises as one of the top 20 Elvis Tribute Artists in the world in 2009.

He's performed at a number of Elvis tribute shows in the commonwealth and beyond — including appearances in Cincinnati, Memphis, Nashville and Las Vegas.

McCrady approaches his shows with more emphasis on the music, as he identifies the role as a tribute artist to be focused on doing it "in the style of" versus an impersonator that is "trying to become" and "embodying" the person.

"Although I'm in costume and I'm presenting a tribute, I don't refer to myself as Elvis on stage," McCrady said. "... While I try to be authentic ... it's really all about the music for me."

Preparation is key, as McCrady listens to the original recordings of songs in order to get his voice to mimic Elvis' sound, while the band will spend "countless hours" studying the music and trying to make it sound as close as possible to the original.

"We're trying to be true to the original," he said. "We're not trying to take his music and modernize it or make it any different."

McCrady continues to perform for a simple reason — it brings him joy.

"It's never been full-time and I've never really wanted it to be full-time because I didn't want it to be a job," he said. "I didn't want to have to rely on it for income; I wanted to do it because I wanted to do it."

The shows have slowed down in recent years, but he's slowly getting back into the groove and has received a resurgence of interest after the recent release of Baz Luhrmann's film "Elvis."

"Now that the movie has (come) out, ... I've had ... several requests on the same day; it's kind of unheard of .... I had three people contact me on the same day and wanted me in different towns for different events," he said. "... I went from almost having nothing from COVID, to slowly getting requests, to like 'OK, my calendar is going to fill up real quickly.' "

McCrady thought that he might be let down by the Austin Butler and Tom Hanks-led flick, but he has now seen the movie three times.

"It is by far the best representation that has been done to date," he said.

As for his own portrayal of Elvis, McCrady focuses on what it does others and how it unites "all walks of life."

"It really is (for) the kids and the older folks," he said. "... When I am performing in a nursing home or facility or retirement home and you know or you have been told that (a) person has dementia, has Alzheimer's — doesn't know their own name (or) family — and I'm performing a song and I see them singing along; that moves me in ways that nothing else can that they are experiencing, hopefully, something that was joyful in their childhood ... (and) is triggering something good.

"And then when you see the kids' faces ... who are maybe experiencing it for the first time through me, ... much like how a guy that portrays Santa (they) would love to see, it's all about the smile on the kid's face and the joy of the season; it's kind of like that — the joy of the music ... and the whole experience."