Shawn Klush
Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist of 2007
Pittston, PA
Preliminary Winner of Viva Las Franklin

Born and raised in the small coal-mining town of Pittston, Pennsylvania , Shawn's love for music led him to begin imitating his musical idol, Elvis. While Shawn loves performing Elvis on stage, he says he is first and foremost an Elvis fan.

 

Trent Carlini
2nd Place Winner
Henderson, Nevada
Winner of Love Me Tender in Texas

A Chicago native, Trent 's love of rock 'n' roll began at the age of five and at age ten he began playing guitar. Within a few years, music had become a major part of his life. By his late teens, he had produced a few records of his own music. Today is living his dream re-inventing the phenomenon of a man who greatly influenced his life.

Donny Edwards
3rd Place Winner
Las Vegas, Nevada
Winner of Promised Land Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest

Donny's admiration and appreciation of Elvis and his music began at a young age, and he was drawn to anything Elvis - always playing his records, watching his movies and imitating Elvis movies. When Donny won a local Elvis contest in Texas , he then decided that he wanted to show his talent to all the fans that loved and respected Elvis.

Other top 10 finalists included (listed in alphabetical order):

Brandon Bennett - Tupelo Elvis Festival
Ponchatoula, Louisiana
Winner of the Tupelo Elvis Festival

Brandon Bennett, 24, has been performing Elvis's music for 7 years. He has performed at many different kinds of venues and cities, including the Louisiana Hayride, the Las Vegas Strip, Hawaii and Tupelo - and his shows consist of the 50's, 60's and 70's. Brandon has enjoyed the opportunity to perform on stage with legendary entertainers such as The Jordanaires, DJ Fontana and the Sweet Inspirations. Brandon says he considers himself lucky to have a job that he loves.

Jeff Golden
Dothan, Alabama
Winner of the Alabama Ultimate Elvis Contest

Jeff Golden grew up and graduated high school in a small town in southeast Alabama, where he started his first band while still in high school. Jeff Golden has been a full-time entertainer since then. He's self-taught on guitar, drums and piano, but has always been lead vocalist almost since he first began. Jeff says he loves performing as much today as when he first started.

 

Joseph Hall
Lincoln, Nebraska
Winner of the Chingawassa Days Ultimate Elvis Contest

Joe started his career in 2006 at the age of 22. He took an interest in Elvis's music and soon he was studying anything he could get his hands on to learn about Elvis. Joe was asked to perform at another performer's Elvis tribute and the audience immediately began approaching him to perform at various events. His father encouraged Joe to pursue his dreams when he decided to put a tribute together himself. Joe enjoys introducing people to great songs you might not be aware that Elvis sang.

Kjell Henning Bjornestad
Lyngdal, Norway
Winner of the Last Man Standing Ultimate Elvis Contest

Kjell was born in 1968 in Vanse, Norway, and started his ETA career when he was 19 years old and in the army. Kjell spent a lot of years working and perfecting his performance, working in small clubs and venues in and across Europe. He hopes his love of Elvis shines through in every performance he does.

Ben Klein
Spokane, Washington
Winner of the Kelowna Elvis Festival

Ben has been singing, dancing and acting all his life. He has learned to play drums, bass guitar, piano and acoustic guitar. In 2002, he bought a '50s Elvis CD for his dad, who was a tribute artist before he was born. Then, he borrowed the CD, found movies and videos and decided to listen, watch, study and practice. Ben sincerely feels that if Elvis could say one thing to him, it would be to perform his music, especially gospel, with as much passion as he can.

Paul Larcombe
Crewe, England
Winner of the Walk A Golden Mile In My Shoes

Paul has had 20 years experience in entertainment. Paul joined the armed forces at an early age and was always entertaining the troops. The peak of his armed forces career has to be the times he performed solo for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth 2nd and other members of the Royal family onboard the Royal Yacht Britannia. Paul says, "I have the utmost respect for the King of Rock 'n' Roll and will always try to do him justice by celebrating his music in the best way I can."

Jay Zanier
Guelph, Canada
Winner of the Collingwood Elvis Festival

Jay has been a successful entertainer and Elvis tribute artist for over 15 years. Residing in Guelph, Ontario, Canada, he has dedicated many hours to studying Elvis's music and taped concert performances.

Also, congratulations to the other 2007 Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest Preliminary Winners:

Mark Anthony of Australia
Jeff Bodner of Chiliwack, Canada
Irv Cass of Fenton, Michigan
Bill Cherry of Collinsville, Illinois
Justin Edwards of Roland, Oklahoma
Johnny Loos of El Reno, Oklahoma
Gino Monopoli of Toronto, Canada
David Muggeridge of Mt. Airy, North Carolina
Scott Norton of Port St. Lucie, Florida
Jim Smith of Chesapeake, Virginia
Johnny Thompson of Las Vegas, Nevada
Ted Torres of Orlando, Florida
Rich Vickers of Salem, Missouri
Simon Patrick of Wellingborough, England