Lisa Marie Presley Became Addicted to Opioids After Recovering From the Birth of Her Twins, Late Star's New Memoir Reveals
Lisa Marie Presley’s memoir reveals that the late star struggled with opioid addiction.
In the upcoming tome, which was written by the musician’s daughter Riley Keough, the singer — who passed from cardiac arrest at age 54 — detailed her struggle with drugs.
“You may read this and wonder how, after losing people close to me, I also fell prey to opioids,” an excerpt from the book reads. “I was recovering after the birth of my daughters, Vivienne and Finley, when a doctor prescribed me opioids for pain.”
The famous daughter of Elvis Presley had her 15-year-old twins with ex-husband Michael Lockwood in 2008. Lisa Marie also shares Riley and her late son, Benjamin Keough, with former spouse Danny Keough.
In From Here to the Great Unknown, Lisa Marie explained that after her birth, “a short-term prescription of opioids” led to her addiction.
“For a couple of years, it was recreational, and then it wasn’t,” she wrote. “It was an absolute matter of addiction, withdrawal in the big leagues.”
As OK! previously reported, Keough recently told People how hard it was for her to put together her mother’s memoir following her January 2023 death.
The Daisy Jones and the Six star, 35, began the introduction of the book by explaining how she came to tell the matriarch’s story.
“In the years before she died, my mother, Lisa Marie Presley, began writing her memoir. Though she tried various approaches, and sat for many book interviews, she couldn’t figure out how to write about herself,” the actress shared.
“And yet, she felt a burning desire to tell it,” Riley continued. “After she’d grown exceedingly frustrated, she said to me, ‘Pookie, I don’t know how to write my book anymore. Can you write it with me?’”
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The eldest daughter of the star recalled replying, “'Of course I can.’”
Upon the “Dirty Laundry” singer’s death, Riley vowed to keep that promise to her mother.
“I got the tapes of the memoir interviews she’d done. I was in my house, sitting on the couch. My daughter was sleeping. I was so afraid to hear my mother’s voice — the physical connection we have to the voices of our loved ones is profound. I decided to lie in my bed because I know how heavy grief makes my body feel,” Riley said of the writing process.
“I began listening to her speak. It was incredibly painful, but I couldn’t stop. It was like she was in the room, talking to me. I instantly felt like a child again and I burst into tears. My mommy. The tone of her voice,” the mother-of-one, who shares daughter Tupelo with husband Ben Smith-Petersen, added.
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As for what Lisa Marie hoped readers would learn from the tome, Riley noted, “[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.”
People reported on an advance copy of the memoir.