Lisa Marie Presley was Elvis Presley’s only child. So, you would be forgiven for thinking that she would have led a privileged existence. Or that her passage through life would be made easier just by carrying his name.
If you do think that, you will be very surprised. We are going to take a look at the daughter of one of the rock and roll greats and discover the Lisa Marie Presley net worth number.
Contents
An Only Child
Elvis and his wife Priscilla had one child, Lisa Marie. It won’t come as a surprise that she had to go through more trials and tribulations than the average child growing up. The circus that surrounded her father must have been very confusing for a young girl.
Many things can affect the way we grow up and develop from child to adult. Our family and friends, and a stable home life will usually be a good start.
She had none of that…
Lisa Marie Presley’s parents split up when she was four, and she shared a home life with her father at Graceland in Memphis and her mother’s new home in Los Angeles.
She lost her father when she was only 9 in 1977. So, twice before she was ten, she has had to deal with personal family trauma. Perhaps that took its toll on her own life as she grew older. Grief was something she was quite used to. Furthermore, she once said, “Grief is something you will have to carry with you for the rest of your life.”
She married four times, and in some cases, there were some raised eyebrows as to her chosen partners. The fourth divorce ended with her losing custody of her daughters for a short while. It was never a case of a rich and famous father leaving a stack of money to an only child.
It was always going to be far more complicated than that…
Lisa Marie Presley’s net worth has been a bit of a roller coaster ride. So, to fully get to grips with it, we need to appreciate a little about her life.
The Sole Heir of The Elvis Estate
That does sound like the keys to Fort Knox, but it wasn’t the case. Perhaps it could have been rephrased to The Sole Heir of The Elvis Estate after “Uncle Tom” and a few others had taken their “share.”
Lisa Marie Presley’s share of the Elvis estate after he died was $5 million. In those days, it was a lot of money, but you might have expected it to be more. After Elvis’ parents, Vernon and Minnie Mae, had died, that figure rose to a significant $100 million.
Once again, a further income was realized when in 2004, she sold approximately 85% of her rights to her father’s estate. That sale gave her another $100 million. Set up for life; you might reasonably be thinking.
Unfortunately not…
She lost the lot and a bit more. In an audit in 2020, it was shown that the Lisa Marie Presley net worth figure was -$16 million. That is minus sixteen million and not a typo.
How could that possibly be? How did it happen? We are going to take a look and find out. To begin to understand, we need to take a closer look at her and the life she led. Let’s start at the beginning.
Early Life
Her first few years were spent at Graceland in Memphis. However, that didn’t last long, as her parents separated and then divorced in 1973. After her mother, Priscilla, had left, Lisa was constantly traveling between Graceland and her mother’s new home in Los Angeles.
That couldn’t have been an easy situation for any of them to deal with. But, at four years old, Lisa Marie’s understanding must have been very confused.
She would later talk about the times spent at Graceland and her happy memories. It seemed that Elvis allowed her to follow some of his lifestyle patterns. He wasn’t strict with her about what she ate; they stayed up until 4:00 am and didn’t get up until the afternoon. You can understand why she thought these days were magical times.
More Tragedy
The situation with her parents splitting up would have been hard to deal with. But, the death of her father in 1977, when she was just nine years old, was devastating. His girlfriend at the time, Ginger Alden, had found his body in the bathroom.
Two personal tragedies in a few years must have had some psychological effect on her. Especially when you consider an interview where she was asked about memories she had of her parents and her altogether. She couldn’t offer a single occasion and said she only remembered them as individuals.
Trying To Build Her Own Career
You might think that it would be easy for her to get her foot in the door, given her father’s status. There isn’t much information regarding any offers to record, but we do know that Lisa Marie Presley’s recording career started in 2003.
She released an album on the Capitol label, To Whom It May Concern. The album reached #5 in America and #52 in the UK. She also released a single from the album “Lights Out”. That reached #16 in the UK.
Lisa followed that album with another two years later, Now What. That reached #9 in America. Her last album release was seven years later, Storm & Grace, which reached #45 on the American album chart.
Some creative work was done to put her voice on a couple of her father’s recordings in duet form. In 2007, “In The Ghetto”, and in 2012, “I Love You Because”. Both failed to chart, and it was by now clear that there would be no spectacular music career for her.
Her Private Life
One can imagine from what we have seen so far that Lisa Marie Presley’s private life could be affected in some way by the problems she encountered. Let’s start with her four marriages.
First Marriage
Lisa Marie Presley’s first marriage was to musician Danny Keogh in 1988. The ceremony at the Church of Scientology in West Hollywood was attended by only nine people. Her mother and grandparents came. Lisa Marie was already pregnant with Riley, her first child. The marriage ended in divorce in 1994.
Second Marriage
The marriage between Lisa Marie Presley and Michael Jackson raised a few eyebrows at the time. They had known each other for a long time and tied the knot 20 days after her divorce from Keogh in 1994.
Subsequently, Lisa announced she would be working under the name “Mrs. Lisa Marie Presley-Jackson.” She filed for divorce just 18 months after the wedding. She claimed she left because she could do nothing to help him and didn’t want to be around to witness his self-destruction.
Third Marriage
In 2002, Lisa Marie Presley married actor Nicolas Cage. They had been introduced at a party two years before. And both agreed to divorce just three months later. Although, the divorce wasn’t completed until 2004. Cage stated that their personalities were just not compatible.
Fourth Marriage
Her final marriage was to musician Michael Lockwood, a guitarist in a band she formed. In 2008, Lisa Marie gave birth to twin daughters from this relationship. This marriage lasted a bit longer than the previous two, but she filed for divorce in 2016.
There was an unpleasant custody battle that saw the girls placed with California’s Department of Family Services. After the divorce was finalized, she obtained legal custody.
More Personal Trauma
Lisa began to open up to the media about her struggles with addictions in her 40s. Somehow, a mirror image of her father’s problems. By the time she spoke freely about it, she had received help and was free of the problem.
The Loss Of Benjamin
As if what she had suffered in her private life hadn’t been enough, her much-loved son Benjamin killed himself at just 27. He was found in his California home. News reports at the time talked of her devastation at the loss of her son.
Lisa Marie Presley Net Worth
Let’s look at how much Lisa Marie Presley inherited from Elvis’ death in 1977. As I said earlier, Elvis’ estate was worth about $5 million. In today’s money, that would be about $25 million. Still not what you might think it would be.
Because of her age at his death, Lisa inherited the estate when she turned 25 years old in 1993. There had been some ups and downs, but it was thought to be worth about $120 million by then.
Some of the amount came from her mother, Priscilla’s decision to open Graceland as a tourist attraction. Since Graceland opened in 1982, it has brought in about $15 million a year.
But the story doesn’t end there…
As I said, Lisa Marie Presley’s inheritance was close to $120 million, in addition to an annual income from Graceland of about $15 million. Add on those amounts what she could earn herself, and things weren’t all that bad. Or so it seemed.
In 2018, Lisa discovered she was $16 million in debt, with liquid assets of just $20,000 and credit card bills of over $500,000. How could that happen?
It would appear that we had “Uncle” Tom Parker all over again. Lisa Marie Presley’s finances and business were being managed by Provident Financial Management. It appears they were rather less than good at what they did.
Lawsuits
The lawsuits started to fly around. She sued business manager Barry Siegel claiming that he was taking over $700,000 annually in salary, leaving her with nothing. He repeatedly told her that her finances were in good shape, knowing the debts were mounting up.
It was Siegel who suggested she invest in “American Idol.” It went bankrupt and incurred a large loss. He counter-sued, claiming she had squandered the money on luxuries and she was aware of the situation.
How Much Income Was She Earning?
At the time of her death, Lisa Marie was still receiving part of the profits from the Graceland tours. Although this had been affected by the COVID restrictions, it is recorded that her earrings from Graceland were about $4000 per month. She was considered an employee.
Other Income
Her earnings from Elvis Presley Enterprises in 2022 were just over $100,000 per month. If that is added to the Graceland money, Lisa Marie Presley’s annual income would be about $1.3 million. She still owned a 15% share of Elvis Presley Enterprises.
The Royalties to her Father’s Music?
Although it is not widely known, Elvis Presley Enterprises or his estate do not own the royalties to Elvis’ music. In 1973, Elvis’ then-manager, Colonel Tom Parker, arranged for the entire catalog of his music to be sold.
The reason was to pay off a gambling debt. His manager is then selling off his entire catalog to cover bad management. I am not sure whether that was a Parker debt or a Presley debt. I could hazard a guess. The amount of money earned from royalties, therefore, is minuscule.
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Final Thoughts
Her mother, Priscilla, announced Lisa Marie’s death at the age of 54. She had been a troubled soul in many ways. Some of her personal decisions are hard to understand. But, since her childhood was just so full of tragedy and turmoil, that must have affected her.
What we can see, though, is very clear. Another member of the Presley family seems to have been badly advised and managed by an “outside” influence.
But, it could never have been easy to have been the only child of a man revered and idolized around the world. At times a blessing; at other times, a burden. It isn’t a situation that most of us would have liked to have been placed in.
Until next time, may your road to success be a smooth one.
FAQs
1 Who is Lisa Marie Presley?
Lisa Marie Presley is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is the daughter of the legendary musician Elvis Presley and Priscilla Presley.
2 How did Lisa Marie Presley get famous?
Lisa Marie Presley gained fame as the daughter of Elvis Presley, but she also had a successful music career, releasing several albums and performing on tour.
3 How much is Lisa Marie Presley worth?
Lisa Marie Presley’s net worth is estimated to be $16 million as of 2021.
4 Did Lisa Marie Presley inherit money from Elvis?
Yes, Lisa inherited a considerable sum of money from her father’s estate, which includes Graceland and various other assets.
5 What are Lisa Marie Presley’s most famous songs?
Some of Lisa Marie Presley’s most famous songs include “Lights Out,” “S.O.B.,” and “You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet.”
6 Who has Lisa Marie Presley been married to?
Lisa Marie Presley has been married four times, with her first marriage being to musician Danny Keough in 1988. She later married Michael Jackson in 1994, Nicholas Cage in 2002, and music producer Michael Lockwood in 2006.
7 Does Lisa Marie Presley have children?
Yes, Lisa Marie Presley has four children. She had two children with her first husband, Danny Keough, and later had twin girls with her fourth husband, Michael Lockwood.
8 What is Lisa Marie Presley’s involvement in charity work?
Lisa Marie Presley has been involved in various philanthropic efforts throughout her career, including the fight against AIDS and the humanitarian efforts in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.