Dierks Bentley Shares Personal Importance of Elvis Presley Tribute Special

The Elvis All-Star Tribute special airs on NBC on Sunday, Feb. 17, and a number of stars will be featured during the event, which commemorates Presley’s 1968 television special. One of those stars is Dierks Bentley, who sang his version of Presley’s “Little Sister” for the special, which was filmed in October 2018.

“The Elvis special was really cool, it was a wild night for me,” Bentley said backstage at the C’Ya On The Flipside benefit concert in Nashville. The “Burning Man” singer shared that he’s been a fan of Presley for years, ever since he was a kid riding the bus to school.

“I listen to a lot of Elvis on the bus,” he recalled. “My bus driver, Ken Lyons, is — was, he’s not with us anymore — but he’s the biggest Elvis fan. So Channel 13 on SiriusXM radio, many, many nights listening to Elvis Presley and him educating me on Elvis.”

Bentley also reflected on Presley himself, sharing that he especially admires the legendary singer’s instantly recognizable voice.

“He’s great, he’s one of a kind,” Bentley said. “You can label him however you want to, but his country career was unbelievable. He had a voice that even if you didn’t see all the moves and how good looking he was and all that stuff, you just listen to his voice when he’s on the Louisiana Hayride with Faron Young and it’s like, ‘Wow, his voice is really unbelievable.’ Great singer. And lot to learn, a lot to learn not to do as well.”

The 43-year-old added that while he was excited to be included in the special, his mom might be looking forward to watching it even more than he is.

“I’m honored to be a part of that taping, as is my mom, who will be recording it on her VCR/TV combo and playing it for me to watch when I go visit her next,” he said.

The special will be hosted by Blake Shelton and will also see performances from Yolanda Adams, Kelsea Ballerini, Alessia Cara, Mac Davis, John Fogarty, Josh Groban, Adam Lambert, John Legend, Little Big Town, Jennifer Lopez, Post Malone, Shawn Mendes, Pistol Annies, Darius Rucker, Ed Sheeran, Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban.

Along with solo performances, there will also be multiple collaborations, including one from Urban and Post Malone. Adams and Underwood will also team up for a gospel medley, while Davis, Malone, Little Big Town, Rucker and Shelton will join together for a medley of some of Presley’s hits.

As a complement to the show, RCA/Legacy Recordings released The Best of the ’68 Comeback Special, a collection of Presley’s performances from the original comeback special along with an updated version of “If I Can Dream,” on Feb. 15.

Photo Credit: Getty Images / Erika Goldring