Jerry Lee Lewis still alive, despite reports of his death

Despite earlier today’s allegations to the contrary, rock icon Jerry Lee Lewis is still alive, according to Entertainment Weekly. A spokesman for Lewis, who is currently (still) 87 years old, released a statement today denying an earlier TMZ report that said he had passed away today. The report has prompted an apology from TMZ.

Lewis had a stroke back in 2019, but he seemed confident enough in his rehabilitation a year later to announce a gospel record that will be released soon. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall Of Fame earlier this year, but on the advice of his doctors, he allegedly chose not to attend the event. He was also the focus of the Ethan Coen documentary Trouble In Mind, which was released earlier this year. 2022: A lot more Jerry Lee Lewis content than you might expect!

Lewis had such groundbreaking singles as “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” and “Great Balls Of Fire” on the charts in the 1950s that he essentially helped create the sound of mainstream rock music. However, his career was severely set back in the later half of the decade when it came to light that he had wed Myra Gale Brown, a 13-year-old first cousin twice removed. Lewis experienced a dry spell in the 1960s, largely as a result of the surrounding scandal, but he finally made a comeback as a country artist, consistently charting with singles like “Would You Take Another Chance On Me.” Despite the aforementioned personal issues, he has since received multiple Grammy awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award, and membership into the Academy’s Hall of Fame, and is still widely regarded as one of the founding fathers of rock ‘n’ roll.

Zach Farnum, Lee’s publicist, claimed that TMZ had been misinformed today by “an anonymous source,” stating in a statement that Lee “is alive” in Memphis.