Los Angeles  At 80, Priscilla Presley has weathered immense personal tragedy. In recent interviews and in her memoir Softly, as I Leave You: Life After Elvis, she has opened up about what she describes as the two hardest days of her life. 


The first, and she says the more painful, was the death of her daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, in January 2023. Lisa Marie died at age 54 due to a bowel obstruction following previous bariatric surgery. During Lisa Marie’s final moments, Priscilla spent hours at her side, unable to believe the reality. “It was the second saddest day of my life, other than losing Elvis,” she says. 


The second hardest day was closer to her heart but came earlier: the death of Elvis Presley, her ex-husband, who died in 1977 at age 42. That loss, Priscilla has often said, shaped much of her grief and identity in subsequent decades. 


She also spoke about other painful losses: the suicide of her grandson Benjamin Keough in 2020, and supporting her son Navarone through addiction recovery. Despite this, Priscilla emphasizes that she seeks strength in her family—her granddaughter Riley Keough in particular—and in sharing her story. 


Her memoir, releasing on September 23, 2025, offers this honesty as part of her journey toward healing — allowing fans and the public to understand not just the fame and legacy, but the deep personal wounds that she still carries.