Robert Washington (singer)

Robert Washington is an Elvis impersonator who has won many Elvis competitions in the United States. Like another Elvis impersonator, Clearance Giddens, who hails from Virginia, Washington is African American.^[1][2] He has appeared in the documentary The Man who would be King^[3] and was the first African American to win the World Champion Elvis Impersonator title.^[4] Sam Thompson, a former bodyguard of Elvis Presley, once commented on the close resemblance of Washington's sound to Presley's.^[5]

Personal

Washington grew up in Louis, Missouri.^[6] He is a former Marine who ended his service in 1981.^[7] In 1974, he attended an Elvis Presley concert. The day that Presley died, Washington was at Marine boot camp, and it also happened to be his 19th birthday.^[8]

Career

Washington's early performances were singing for family and friends.^[9]

Washington's act has concentrated on the 1968 era of Presley, around the time of Elvis's comeback television special.^[10] His career began when he appeared on stage for the first time in 2003.^[11]

Contests

By August 2001, he had appeared at ten "Images of the King" impersonation contests in Memphis;^[12] he won the event in 2003.^[13] In December 2013, he was voted number one in the Online Viewer's Choice Award on the Elvis World Championships website.^[14]

Shows

In January 2013, he appeared at the Capitol Theater in Olympia, Washington.^[15] In July 2012, he was booked to do two shows in Aroostook County. His show at the time consisted of two sets: one from Presley's earlier days, and a second from his 1970s Las Vegas period.^[16]

Films

• Almost Elvis – 2001^[17][18]
• The Faithful
• Baby Let's Play House – 2008^[19]

References