From Graceland to the Gates of Hell: Elvis & Ozzy’s Parallel Thrones

Black Leather with a Blue Suede Soul

Kevin McElroy
Editor, Tune Up Magazine

We lost Ozzy on July 22, 2025, and he once again rocked the world — just not in the way any of us wanted. For me, the news hit like a gut punch. Ozzy’s been part of my life since the day I dropped the needle on Side A of Diary of a Madman and looked up at the black-light poster version of that album cover hanging on my bedroom wall. (I’ve even written about buying that record — You can read it here.)

Elvis was a different story. I knew him through my mom and the TV. I remember watching that 1977 Elvis TV special — the whole world was tuned in at once and it wasn’t relegated to the halftime break in a football game. And I’ll never forget the day he died: I was in the backseat of our light blue station wagon, my mom driving, my aunt in the passenger seat, when the news broke on the radio. They both gasped, like someone in the family was gone. Elvis laid the blueprint — he’s the original… but even still, we can draw comparisons between these two artists.

Myth Over Fact

Every larger-than-life artist has that one story everyone knows — and in both cases, the legend became bigger than the truth. Elvis’s hips on national TV scared half of America into thinking rock ’n’ roll was the devil’s music. Ozzy, no stranger to demonic connections, had his own infamous onstage moment, and yeah, you’ve heard it a thousand times.

Winged icons became part of the brand — and here’s where it gets fun. Elvis had the BEdazzled eagle spread across his jumpsuits — pure Vegas royalty. Ozzy? The BEheaded bat. One sparkled, one startled. Both became their forever crests whether they wanted them or not.

When you’re a legend, the truth is just a supporting act.

Bigger Than the Music

You don’t even have to be a fan to know who they are. Elvis is The King. Ozzy is The Prince of Darkness. These aren’t nicknames — they’re titles. They’re shorthand for a whole vibe, a whole cultural moment.

For diehard subjects of their realms, the music is sacred scripture. But for the larger world, the iconography — the crowns, the capes, the crucifixes — is what comes to mind first. Elvis had the rhinestone jumpsuits, the kind of stage wear that caught the light from every angle, and okay, the ’80s saw Ozzy glitter too — remember the Shot in the Dark video?

“The image is one thing and the human being is another.” — Elvis

“They say the higher you fly, the harder you fall… but I’m still up there.” — Ozzy

Ruled by Their Right Hands

Neither guy climbed to the top alone, and both had someone at their side who was more than just a manager. Elvis had Colonel Tom Parker — a man as shrewd as he was cutthroat. The Colonel’s business deals could be brutal, but without him, Elvis might never have raked in the kind of money he did. He knew how to turn a Southern boy with a guitar into an empire — and he didn’t care how many people he had to squeeze along the way.

Ozzy had Sharon Osbourne — and let’s be honest, she didn’t just manage his career, she saved his life. She pulled him out of the wreckage after Sabbath, got him clean when it mattered most, and rebuilt him into a solo force that could headline anywhere in the world. Sharon had her own ruthless qualities — like father, like daughter — but in this business, that’s often a necessary evil. Maybe we’ve heard more about her because she’s a woman, unfortunately, but her business acumen is legendary. She was part nurse, part business shark, part bodyguard, and all in. Without her, there might not have been an Ozzy for us to celebrate in the first place.

Behind every crown is someone willing to polish it — or fight to keep it from rolling away.

Family at the Core

Behind all the chaos and cameras, both were family guys. Elvis kept his mother close and surrounded himself with his Memphis Mafia crew. Ozzy’s marriage to Sharon and his love for his kids has been through public highs and lows, but it’s always been real.

When the lights go out and the curtain drops, that’s what matters.

“The most important thing for a man is to be loved by his family.” — Elvis

“At the end of the day, I just want to be Dad.” — Ozzy

Architects Without the Blueprints

Here’s a truth some people don’t like: neither wrote their biggest hits. But both had that sixth sense for a great song. Elvis could take something from Leiber & Stoller, Otis Blackwell, or Mac Davis and make it his own. Ozzy could hear Randy Rhoads, Bob Daisley, Jake E. Lee, or Zakk Wylde’s riffs and know instantly it belonged in his kingdom.

They surrounded themselves with top-tier songwriters and musicians who helped shape their sound — artists who didn’t always get their share of the spotlight but were essential to the magic.

They didn’t need to hold the pen — they just knew how to deliver the goods.

The crown doesn’t write the anthem — it makes the people sing it.

Defining Their Kingdoms

Elvis didn’t invent rock ’n’ roll, but he made it mainstream. Ozzy didn’t invent metal, but he dragged it out of the underground and into arenas around the world.

Different styles, different decades — but both planted their flags and claimed their turf.

“Rock ’n’ roll is like a whole new language.” — Elvis

“I’m the Prince of Darkness, not the Prince of Dull.” — Ozzy

Entertainers of the Crown

Both guys knew how to own a stage, and both found ways to own a screen too. Elvis cranked out movies that fed his myth. Ozzy gave us The Osbournes and let the whole world into his castle. Different eras, same instinct — keep the audience hooked.

A true ruler owns the stage, no matter the size of the kingdom.

Inspiring the Next Generation

Elvis made kids pick up guitars and shake their hips. Ozzy made ’em grow their hair, crank the amps, and form bands.

If you’re a rocker of a certain age, chances are one of these guys lit the fuse.

“If I can inspire one kid to pick up a guitar, my job’s done.” — Ozzy

Two Thrones, One Kingdom

One throne’s covered in rhinestones, the other in shadow and chains. One’s at Graceland, the other somewhere between Birmingham and the gates of hell.

But in the great hall of rock ’n’ roll, Elvis and Ozzy sit side by side. The King’s gone. The Prince has left us too. But both will reign forever.