John 'Elvis' Collins has been "The King" of impersonations for 26 years

The 51-year-old is vying to represent his country at the Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist world titles in Tennessee, but first he needs to compete in the Asia Pacific titles on the Gold Coast next week.

Hopefully it will be fifth time lucky at the Viva Surfers Paradise festival, as Collins has only ever been a finalist previously.

“I’m probably the oldest in the competition,” he said. “There a lot of young blokes coming through who have got a lot more energy, but I can still hold my own.”

Collins thinks doing his “own take” on Elvis and having fun with his character may have let him down in the past.

Those who have won have always been “deadest serious” and never divert from the original’s dialogue.

“Every move that Elvis ever made on stage or every comment … they know all the ins and outs,” he said.

Collins has been playing ‘The King’ for 26 years, is a regular feature artist at the annual Parkes Elvis Festival and the local Wollongong entertainment scene, and even works as an Elvis marriage celebrant.

He thinks Wollongong “needs” to host a similar event to Viva Surfers, a 10-day music festival celebrating rock legends, and is in talks with tourism chiefs to get it off the ground.