Residents of San Antonio, Texas know him as “Hispanic Elvis” or “Mexican Elvis”–The Latino man who dresses like the King of Rock-n-Roll and has walked the streets of the city for decades. He is as much a part of the city as The Riverwalk, and may even rival The Alamo. Now, the rest of the world is coming to know one of the city’s long-time, local legends thanks to a video that went viral on TikTok.
Thanks to an upload by user @2wunzero in which the famed fella is dancing to “Jailhouse Rock,” everyone is beginning to find out about Hispanic Elvis. At the time of publishing, the video has racked up over 88,000 views and has almost 5oo comments. In the comments, you’ll see people who were one time residents of San Antonio sharing a memory of Hispanic Elvis. Even one time visitors are chiming in to tell of their encounters with the neighborhood King of Rock-n-Roll.
A quick search on Instagram of the #MexicanElvis and #HispanicElvis hashtag and you will see dozens of posts shared of the local legend. Everything from him riding a bike, to grocery shopping, to him posing with tourists.
There isn’t a lot that is known about “Hispanic Elvis.” In an interview dating back to 2014, San Antonio residents learned a little more about the man who had been impersonating Elvis in their city. For instance, when his friends don’t call him “The King,” they call him J.J. He was born and raised in San Antonio. He is quick to correct people who call him “Mexican Elvis” or “Latino Elvis.” He says, “I am Hispanic Elvis.” The five-foot, two-inch man had at the time over 25 Elvis costumes and once worked at a body shop in San Antonio.
And while the number of his costumes are likely to have increased, so too are the number of views the viral video is likely to get. Hispanic Elvis may have San Antonio “all shook up,” but the rest of the world is about to be too. If you are looking to know more about him, well, you might as well take up residence at “The Heartbreak Hotel.”