Lisa Marie Presley wanted daughter Riley, not Priscilla, to take over legacy: Graceland exec

Lisa Marie Presley, the only child of icon Elvis Presley and Priscilla Presley, trusted her daughter Riley to carry on the family legacy instead of her mother.

On February 1, which would have been Lisa Marie’s 55th birthday, a managing partner of Elvis Presley Enterprises, Joel Weinshanker, revealed the late singer’s last wishes.

Prior to his death, Joel claimed that Lisa Marie was “very, very certain and quite direct about who she wanted to have the inheritance. [left] to.”

“It was always Riley and Ben. There was never a question in her mind that they would be the stewards, that they would see it exactly as she did. Obviously when Ben died, it was really with Riley,” he said. during an appearance on SiriusXM’s “Elvis Radio”.

PRISCILLA PRESLEY TALKS ABOUT WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN LISA MARIE’S 55TH BIRTHDAY

Lisa Marie Presley, the only child of icon Elvis Presley and Priscilla Presley, trusted her daughter Riley to carry on the family legacy instead of her mother. (Instagram)

“Although Riley is a movie star, she is an award-winning director, she always had an interest and always knew that one day she would be in charge of [things].”

After her recent death on Jan. 12, Lisa Marie’s daughters Riley, Harper and Finley will receive Graceland, which is in trust, a Graceland rep confirmed to Fox News Digital.

Lisa Marie previously removed Priscilla and a former business executive as trustees and replaced them with her two eldest children, Riley Keough and Benjamin Keough, should she die or become incapacitated. (Getty Images)

“Lisa Marie’s daughters inherit everything,” the rep continued.

Joel spoke candidly about the Presley family and noted that Elvis wanted his only daughter, Lisa Marie, to keep his legacy alive.

“When Elvis passed away, he left everything to his little girl. He did it knowing that she would be the one to carry on his legacy,” he remarked.

REMEMBERING LISA MARIE PRESLEY: ELVIS AND PRISCILLA’S ONLY CHILD, SURVIVING BY MOTHER, 3 DAUGHTERS

“I can tell you that she has, without hesitation, no matter what else is going on in her life, in her career, always been the one looking out for what was best for Elvis…no matter what anyone someone else was trying to do, regardless of what another family member [was trying to] make.”

Meanwhile, Priscilla Presley spoke out on her daughter’s birthday and said she plans to ‘keep our family together’ as she continues to mourn Lisa Marie.

“Today would have been Lisa’s 55th birthday. My wish is to protect my three grandchildren and keep our family together,” she told Fox News Digital in part.

LISA MARIE PRESLEY, ONLY CHILD OF ELVIS AND PRISCILLA, DEAD AT 54

A managing partner at Elvis Presley Enterprises, Joel Weinshanker, spoke candidly about the Presley family and noted that Elvis wanted his only daughter, Lisa Marie, to keep his legacy alive. (Getty Images)

Priscilla Presley’s comments come as she filed paperwork challenging who oversees her late daughter’s estate.

The papers were filed in January in Los Angeles Superior Court challenging the validity of a 2016 amendment to Lisa Marie’s living trust.

Lisa Marie previously removed Priscilla and a former business executive as trustees and replaced them with her two eldest children, Riley Keough and Benjamin Keough, should she die or become incapacitated.

Lisa Marie’s son Benjamin Keough died in 2020.

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Joel added that his reason for talking about the Presley family is “sometimes you just have to take a stand.”

“It’s Riley. It’s what Lisa would have wanted. It’s what makes sense. It always comes down to what’s best for Elvis and that’s what it is,” said he suggested.

“…I think what we need to do on his birthday is honor his words. They’re his words, not mine, and it’s something we all want to think about in the future… What we have to do is we have to honor those who honor Elvis, and that was always, always his daughter, Lisa.”

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Fox News Digital has reached out to reps for Priscilla Presley and Riley Keough for comment.

Stephanie Giang-Paunon is an entertainment writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to [email protected] and on Twitter: @SGiangPaunon.