There was a time when the cheesy Vegas strip was ripe with rhinestone jumpsuits. Men in poofy wigs hip shaking snarling as tribute (or is it mocking!?) The King himself.
But Vegas has changed. Long gone is the image of senior citizen tour buses with all you can eat buffets and shows with lots of ballad and glitter. When bands like Motley Crue do residency’s its pretty damn clear that the demographic is changed. ‘What happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas’ inst a new thought- but those pesky millinias are taking it to a new level. And these 20-30 somethings are fucking up the Elvis impersonator business.
Masters.com, a site that helps people book party and event entertainment lists 198 Elvis impersonators. About 800 bookings have been made for them in the past year.
That number is down about 21 percent from 2011, but 2013 is tracking similar to 2012. Wasnt that long ago that the call for Elvis was higher, GigMaster’s requests for Elvis impersonators in the Las Vegas Valley doubled between 2008 and 2011.
“The people who get booked get booked very often,” GigMasters marketing manager Nicole Steeger told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Impersonators get paid anywhere from $100 to $1,000 per event, depending on experience. But newer acts seem to be having trouble finding work, she said.
“Clients often look at the positive reviews and number of bookings an entertainer has on GigMasters, in addition to the information and media provided on a performer’s profile, as a starting point for whether or not they wish to contact that vendor,” Steeger said.
Some think the decline has to do with aging baby boomers and a growing population of millennials who just aren’t interested in the King.
“The whole Elvisy Vegas red carpet thing is, in my opinion, going out the door,” said Carrie Gaudioso, wedding coordinator for the Mon Bel Ami chapel. “That whole era is getting older. Almost all of our older renewals want an Elvis wedding. Our younger brides do not want cheesy, flashy, Elvis Vegas. They want something nice in their budget.”
Let’s hope they keep this bit alive. We would be losing a hunka hunka burning Americana if the impersonator show disappeared.