JJ : Well I used to be really shy in school , but when my voice was heard , a classmate of mine and fellow Elvis fan named Tammy Curry encouraged me to enter the school ’ s talent show . I got third place , and so from there I decided I really wanted to pursue a singing career ! The practice definitely helped my singing , but I think it was mostly my interests in Elvis that made me an Elvis singer . I tried country but got nowhere so I decided to just stick with Elvis .
CW : Ever since my infatuation with Elvis , my singing improved just through practicing on my own . I didn ’ t start singing live for people until later in my career . I was lucky to have a musical family who supported me in my career choice , and I had the
Cody Wise privilege of getting voice lessons , which also helped .
TL : It ’ s so interesting , Jerome said his family wasn ’ t musical at all , but yours was !
CW : Yeah , I guess we really do come from different places ! That ’ s what convergent evolution is all about , right ?
TL : Right on ! You guys come from such different backgrounds , yet there are many qualities that both of you share . Let ’ s talk about your costumes - in performance , at least , you wear a similar styles - you know , the greased hair with the long sideburns , and the rhinestone-studded suit . I find the evolution behind the analogous structures to be so intriguing .
JJ : Oh yes ! I mean if you go to one of these Elvis impersonators contests , you see them everywhere . I love my rhinestones !
CW : You know , you gotta do what you gotta do ! As an Elvis impersonator , these are musthaves ! Because we ’ re from similar niches or environments - that is , we ’ re all Elvis impersonators and we ’ re accustomed to all the Elvis influences around us - we ’ ve evolved these similar characteristics and styles despite coming from all over the country .
TL : Well , you certainly do a good job , Mr . “ Best Look-A-Like !” Congrats ! We love your costumes ! So from my understanding , while I get that you ’ re obviously not from the same lineage , both of you are of two different “ species ?”
CW : Right , so while I do spend a lot of my career performing and practicing my voice to match Elvis ’ s as best I can , I was originally a Lookalike impersonator , meaning I concentrated on matching more of the visual elements of Elvis . There are so many species and subspecies of Elvis impersonators , it ’ s pretty crazy !
JJ : It is pretty crazy ! The three main species are E . look-alikes , E . sound-alikes , and E . combinations . I ’ m a Combination impersonator , meaning I concentrate on both the physical and aural aspects of Elvis .
TL : Is there anything else you ’ d like to say before our short time today here ends ?
JJ : Thanks ! And just a shout-out to my lovely wife Pam for being so supportive- I couldn ’ t have done it without her !
TL : Alright , well thank you guys so much for coming ! It was great having you !
19 VOGUE JUNE 2013