Lisa Marie Presley 'died of a broken heart', says her daughter Riley Keough

26 September 2024, 11:10

"We all knew she died of a broken heart."

Lisa Marie Presley tragically died last year aged just 54 after suffering a cardiac arrest at her California home.

An autopsy later found that the cause of death was a small bowel obstruction following weight loss surgery, but her daughter Riley Keough has now said that her mother's terrible grief over the death of her son Benjamin was also a factor.

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“My mom tried her best to find strength for me and my younger sisters after Ben died, but we knew how much pain she was in,” Riley told People.

"My mom physically died from the after-effects of her surgery, but we all knew she died of a broken heart."

Benjamin Keough, Lisa Marie's son with Danny Keough, died by suicide in 2020 at the age of 27.

Lisa Marie's life had of course already been touched by tragedy long before she became a mother.

She was the only child of Elvis and Priscilla Presley. The King of Rock and Roll died of an apparent heart attack in 1977 at the age of 42, when Lisa Marie was only 9 years old.

Lisa Marie's posthumous memoir From Here to the Great Unknown is released next month.

"I hope that in an extraordinary circumstance people relate to a very human experience of love, heartbreak, loss, addiction and family," Riley said.

"[My mom] wanted to write a book in the hopes that someone could read her story and relate to her, to know that they’re not alone in the world.

"Her hope with this book was just human connection. So that’s mine."