The songs of the rock and roll King have led Che Orton from his home town of Paeroa to performing at Graceland. DAVIDDA HIKATANGATA reports.
When Che Orton put his hand up “just as a joke” to perform as Elvis Presley, he never anticipated it would lead him all the way to Elvis’ home at Graceland.
Elvis Tribute artist and former Paeroa man Che Orton made his mark at the semi finals of The Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist contest in Memphis, Tennessee, last month.
The 42-year-old sang his heart out and landed a spot in the top 10. Che told The Profile it was an amazing feeling to be there on the grounds where Elvis performed at Graceland.
“I just loved being there,” he said.
The contest requires Elvis tribute artists to showcase their abilities in emulating Elvis’ voice, style, and stage presence.
A prerequisite for competing in the semi final round was to win one of the preliminary rounds held at different festivals around the world.
Che won the Parkes Elvis Festival contest in Australia which secured his spot at Memphis, he said.
It was his third time making it to the semifinals, alongside tribute artists he knew from previous events and a few new faces.
“They’re all nice guys and all supportive backstage,” he said.
The father-of-three was accompanied on the trip by his wife, Lucy Orton, and their youngest daughter, Mila. While Lucy had been to the contests before with Che, it was Mila’s first time overseas, and she “absolutely loved it”, Che said.
“She went through the Graceland Mansion three times.”
In addition to Che’s top ranking, he was also invited to perform at the Elvis & Co Music Festival Contest in Canada in November.
“Out of [the] countless talented Elvis tribute artists from around the world, only 12 are invited to participate, and I’m proud to be one of them.”
The contest was a pre-qualifier for next year’s Ultimate Elvis Tribute Contest, so he hoped to secure a win, Che said.
When tributes get their placings for the semi final, they have to submit a list of songs they’d like to sing, and the contest organisers would pick out two songs for each artist.
“So you never know what you’re going to sing until the week before you get there.”
Most points are allocated based on the voice and the way each person recreates the whole experience of Elvis on stage, he said.
Che was able to embody the Elvis experience through his accessories.
“So all my Elvis jewellery is replicas of what Elvis had,” Che said, but there was also a special link.
Lowell Hays, who was Elvis’ jeweller, also made all of Che’s onstage jewellery.
Another person Che crossed paths with was Elvis’ former partner, Linda Thompson, who was also a judge at the contest.
When Che performed Lonesome Tonight for the contest, he said he was “freaking out” about the piece of dialogue in the middle of the song.
However, he said Linda was surprised to find out Che was from New Zealand because of how convincing his American accent was.
“[Elvis] used to sing that song to me,” she told Che.
But when it came to one of the most significant parts for Che, it was the supporters.
“Without them, we wouldn’t be doing [this]. All of us are lucky to have the fans,” Che said.
More people were becoming familiar with Che’s name, and he started to gain more followers from the United States, he said.
“I just never thought I would have got there doing [this].”
Che was just 15 years old when his journey with Elvis began.
He was part of the Drifters rock and roll club in Hamilton, where he danced with his sister, Sacha-Quel Drury, he said.
“I remember being at the meeting when they were talking about hiring Elvis.”
Che put his hand up and offered to do it as a joke, he said.
After that, he was asked to perform at a wedding anniversary, a birthday and it just snowballed from there, Che said.
“But now I’m also performing on [cruise] ships all around the world.”
Cruise work has taken him around New Zealand, Japan, Australia, and next year he joins a ship that goes from Texas to Honolulu.
Che’s next big focus was to get placed in the top three for next year’s Ultimate Elvis Tribute Contest, he said. “That’s my goal. And I know it’s going to be hard because I’m going up against all the American guys.”
Che’s best advice for musicians wanting to get into performing was to just keep at it. “It’s going to be hard, but you’ve just got to keep going and believe in yourself.”
And for people who wanted to get into performing as Elvis, Che said: “just study”.
“It’s really strict [at] the contests, you’ve got to really study Elvis to try and recreate that.”
Che will perform this Saturday and Sunday at Big Al’s Elvis World in Sydney, where he will share not only his Elvis tribute, but also some rock and roll tunes and some of his original music, he said.
Che was also working on bringing his new show, Che Orton The Elvis Experience, to New Zealand, with May, 2025, dates set for Tauranga and Auckland shows.
DETAILS: To stay up to date with Che Orton and his upcoming performances, follow him on Facebook at Che Orton Tribute To Elvis.
