Riley Keough Breaks Her Silence On Lisa Marie Presley's Death With Heartbreaking Throwback Photo

Riley Keough has shared her first message since the untimely death of her mother, Lisa Marie Presley. 

AP News reported on January 12 that Lisa Marie died at the age of 54 after suffering cardiac arrest. Lisa Marie's mother, Priscilla Presley, released a statement confirming that Lisa Marie, who was the only child of Elvis Presley, had died. "It is with a heavy heart that I must share the devastating news that my beautiful daughter Lisa Marie has left us," Priscilla said. "She was the most passionate, strong and loving woman I have ever known."

As written by People, Lisa Marie was a mother to four kids: Riley, Benjamin Keough (who sadly died at the age of 27 in 2020), Harper Lockwood and Finley Lockwood. In December 2022, Riley spoke to the news outlet about how being raised by Lisa Marie, whom she called  "a very strong, smart woman," has been impactful to her. "My mother is certainly an inspiration to me," Keough said. She added, "I was raised by somebody who did their own thing and didn't really care what other people thought. She was definitely inspirational to me." Riley is now breaking her silence for the first time since her mother's death.

Riley Keough has shared a memory of her mother, Lisa Marie Presley, just over a week after Presley tragically died. On January 20, Keough posted a throwback photo of herself and Presley on Instagram. The black-and-white image shows a young Keough and her mother posing as Presley smiles at Keough, who is holding a bouquet of flowers for the picture. Keough simply captioned the post with a red heart emoji. Several celebrities have shown their support, such as Nicole Richie, who wrote to Keough, "I love you." Kim Kardashian commented an infinity symbol, while Rosie Huntington-Whiteley said, "Been thinking of you so much!"

On January 18, Yahoo Entertainment reported that Presley's cause of death had been deferred by the Los Angeles County Coroner. Spokeswoman Sarah Ardalani told the news outlet that "a cause of death has not been determined and the medical examiner is requesting more investigation into the death, including additional studies." Meanwhile, TMZ was told by "sources with direct knowledge" on January 20 that Presley's loved ones will be meeting at Graceland this weekend for a private memorial service. This is said to be taking place prior to a public service that will be carried out at Graceland on Sunday, January 22.

To say this mother-daughter duo was close would be an understatement. When Lisa Marie Presley chose to stop practicing scientology, her daughter, Riley Keough, was right by her side. "[Lisa Marie] suddenly said, 'Riley's here and wants to talk to you,'" Mike Rinder, a former Scientology executive, told Page Six. "Riley got on the phone and said to me: 'I want you to take those f***ers down.'" Rinder added that Presley was "upset," but Keough supported her.

And even in Presley's final days, Keough was seen hanging out with her mother. According to Marca, the actor and the singer went to a café to celebrate Elvis' birthday just four days before Presley's death. The media outlet also reported that the mother-daughter duo worked together on Baz Luhrmann's Elvis biopic.

Growing up in the Presley family, Keough was often compared to her parents and, of course, the King himself. But she mentioned that she's thankful for her upbringing. "I grew up very privileged with my mother," she told The Guardian. "But my dad didn't live like that. And I think experiencing both sides has been helpful." And family seems to be the primary focus for the Presley family.

In July 2020, it was reported that Lisa Marie Presley's son, Benjamin Keough, had died by suicide. A source told The U.S. Sun that the whole family was "devastated" over the death. "Riley [Keough] in particular is finding it difficult to cope at the moment, they were very close," the insider said, adding that the family "did their best" to honor and remember Benjamin's life during the COVID-19 pandemic.

One year after Benjamin's death, Riley detailed her thoughts and emotions at the time in a New York Times profile. "The first four or five months, I couldn't get out of bed," she said. "I was totally debilitated. I couldn't talk for two weeks." She also mentioned that she still finds it hard to cope at times. 

And in July 2022, on the two-year anniversary of Benjamin's death, Riley posted a photo to her Instagram page to remember him. "Not an hour goes by where I don't think of you and miss you," she said in the caption. "It's been two years today since you left and I still can't believe you're not here. You are so loved my Ben Ben."

If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by dialing 988 or by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255)​.