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Elvis Presley’s final words to his cousin Billy Smith, and his wife Jo show just how close he was to the couple, providing a heartbreaking glimpse into the last hours of the life of the King of Rock and Roll. In a YouTube interview for the channel EFM: Elvis Fans Matter, Billy and Jo responded to a fan question about their final exchange with Presley. They shared, in detail, the last words they said to their beloved family member. Jo began, “We played racquetball, then we went up to the house. I didn’t go upstairs with him. Billy went.” She continued, “When he started up the steps, I gave him a hug and he said, ‘I love you,’ and I said, ‘I love you too.'” Parade Daily🎬 SIGN UP for Parade’s Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 Jo concluded, “When we would leave him at night, we always gave him a hug and we always said ‘I love you.’ He said the same thing to us. That was always a thing we did.” Billy, who went upstairs to Presley’s private quarters with his cousin, added, “He had taken a shower, and I was drying his hair. We talked about different things, and he said, ‘I think this is going to be my greatest tour ever.’ That was one of the last things he said.” Billy told Elvis, “You got your hair done, are you going to go to bed now?” He said, ‘Yeah,’ so I said ‘I’m going to go,’ and he said, ‘I love you, see you tomorrow.'” Presley was scheduled to head out on tour on August 17 for a series of 12 dates. His last live performance was on June 26, 1977. When did Elvis Presley die? Elvis Presley’s body was found by his girlfriend, Ginger Alden, on the floor of his bathroom, around eight hours after he last spoke to Jo and Billy Smith. Express shared a minute-by-minute account of the King’s final hours. Reportedly, when the couple played racquetball with Presley, it was around 4 a.m. After a short game, which included Alden, the music icon sat down at the piano in the racquetball building and sang the song “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain” and two gospel tunes. Presley and Alden retired to his bedroom around 5 a.m.. Alden later documented in her book Elvis & Ginger that the entertainer had taken medications before retiring. She claimed, per TODAY, that he took two “sleep packets” to deal with insomnia. She added, “Sometimes (the doctors) had given Elvis placebos, because he had a dependency on sleep medication.” Presley reportedly retired to the bedroom’s adjacent bathroom to read. At around 1:30 p.m., Alden found Presley’s body. According to PBS, paramedics were dispatched to Graceland and Presley was rushed to Baptist Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead two hours later. Elvis Presley died on August 16, 1977. He was 42.
