‘Elvis’ actor and singer Shonka Dukureh found dead in her Nashville apartment – National
American actor Shonka Dukureh, greatest identified for her efficiency as Huge Mama Thornton in Elvis, was discovered lifeless in her Nashville house on Thursday, police mentioned.
Dukureh was 44 years previous.
One among Dukureh’s two younger youngsters found her unresponsive within the bed room of the house the household shared and ran to alert a neighbour, the Metro Nashville Police Division wrote in an announcement.
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The neighbour referred to as police at 9:27 a.m., in line with authorities.
Foul play just isn’t suspected.
At present, the reason for Dukureh’s demise is “unclassified.” Police are awaiting post-mortem outcomes from the Medical Examiner’s Workplace.
Elvis, the biopic about Elvis Presley’s profession and subsequent stardom, was Dukureh’s first main movement image. She was additionally included on the film’s soundtrack, along with her blues-style vocals featured on Doja Cat’s Vegas.
Elvis director Mark Anthony “Baz” Luhrmann shared three images of Dukureh to Instagram.
“A particular gentle went out at present and all the Elvis film household are heartbroken by the lack of Shonka Dukureh,” Luhrmann wrote within the caption.
“From the second she got here into our world, Shonka introduced pleasure, spirit and naturally her voice and her music,” he continued. “At any time when she was on set, on stage and even simply within the room, everybody all the time felt uplifted.”
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The mayor of Nashville, John Cooper, additionally shared his condolences on Twitter.
“Her highly effective voice and artistry will dwell on by her music, and we honor her reminiscence on this unhappy day,” Cooper wrote.
