It was a fun night for all recently as Elvis, Joseph Hall, rocked Alliance, kicking off a new season for the Alliance Arts Council.
Hall explained that he was inspired to perform as Elvis by his dad, who is a huge Elvis fan.
“Growing up, my sister and I, we moved around a lot as kids, so we were always listening to Elvis a lot—always in the minivan, always in the Uhaul,” said Hall. “When I was 21, my dad took me to Vegas and I saw my first real Elvis show there, and the guy who was doing Elvis that night, his name is Grant Patrick, he was so awesome that I thought, that looks like so much fun, I want to do that. He really sparked my interest more in Elvis. I love Elvis.”
He performed his first show shortly thereafter. Hall remembers that there was a woman in attendance who is a huge Elvis fan.
“She was just like come to my bar, and I’ll pay you,” Hall said. “So I did that about a year. I did a lot of birthday parties and a lot of corporate parties. About a year after that, I went on America’s Got Talent and finished in the top ten. After that point, man, the phone just kept ringing, and that’s when everything turned into a full-blown family business.”
Hall explained that it is special to him to be able to do this full time as a career, noting the best part is being able to see people relive their own memories of The King.
“A lot of the times I look back on it, and it’s just very surreal, like this is what I do,” said Hall. “A lot of people ask me how long I’m going to do this, and there’s no right answer to that. Just whenever the time is right. I’m going to keep doing it as long as I can do it; as long as the hips don’t give out, as long as I can still swivel my hips and gyrate on stage and still have fun. That’s what it comes down to.
“One of the coolest parts when I started this business, was the Elvis fan base that came out and was very supportive of it,” Hall said. “Especially the older generation that would say, ‘You brought back so many memories.’ That’s just such a huge compliment. Recently, within the last several years, we’ve seen more young fans come to the shows, so that’s inspiring, too.”
Hall said they do between 90 and 100 shows a year, with breaks for Christmas and Thanksgiving. Hall offered advice to those who are interested in pursuing a career in the arts.
“Stay true to yourself,” said Hall. “I know that’s so cliché, but it’s true.”
