Elvis Presley vs Louis Armstrong
Two music prodigies, compared on what is actually documented: field, era, country and record. No invented numbers.
The record, side by side
| Elvis Presley | Louis Armstrong | |
| Field | Music | Music |
| Sub-field | Composer | Jazz |
| Born | 1935 | 1901 |
| Died | 1977 | 1971 |
| Country of birth | United States | United States |
| Star sign | Capricorn | Leo |
Who they are
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley entered the world on January 8, 1935, in a two-room shotgun house in Tupelo, Mississippi, born minutes after his identical twin brother, Jesse Garon, who was stillborn. That early brush with loss seemed to imbue the surviving twin with an extra measure of life — a presence so magnetic, so physical, so inexplicably charged that it would eventually stop a nation in its tracks. Elvis Presley did not simply become a pop star. He became the moment when American music changed forever.
Full biography of Elvis Presley →
Louis Armstrong
Louis Daniel Armstrong was born on August 4, 1901, in the Third Ward of New Orleans, in an impoverished neighborhood his neighbors called "the Battlefield." His father abandoned the family when Louis was an infant, and his mother, Mary Ann Armstrong, often worked as a domestic servant, leaving young Louis and his sister largely to fend for themselves. He grew up in the streets, singing for coins in a vocal quartet, delivering coal, and selling newspapers. He received his first formal musical instruction not in a school or conservatory but in the New Orleans Colored…
Full biography of Louis Armstrong →
What they share
- Both are held here under Music.
- Both born in United States.
- Their lifetimes overlap.
Where they part
- 34 years separate their births (1935 and 1901).
Questions people ask
- Who came first, Elvis Presley or Louis Armstrong?
- Louis Armstrong. Elvis Presley was born in 1935, Louis Armstrong in 1901.
- What field is each of them in?
- Elvis Presley is filed under Music (Composer). Louis Armstrong is filed under Music (Jazz).
- Were they contemporaries?
- Yes - their lifetimes overlap.