‘Elvis’ Star Shonka Dukureh’s Cause of Death Revealed

Shonka Dukureh was found dead in her Nashville apartment in July, and now the 44-year-old’s cause of death has been revealed.

In a coroner’s report obtained by Us Weekly, it states the “Elvis” star’s official cause of death as “hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.” Her manner of death was listed as “natural.”

Hypertensive typically pertains to high blood pressure, while WebMD says atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is the “hardening or narrowing of your arteries caused by cholesterol plaques lining the artery over time. It can put blood flow at risk as your arteries become blocked… It’s the usual cause of heart attack, stroke, and peripheral vascular disease.”

In July, one of Dukureh’s children reportedly found her unresponsive and ran to find a neighbor, who called 911.

Dukureh plays Big Mama Thornton in “Elvis” and Doja Cat’s latest music video for “Vegas,” which is featured on the movie soundtrack.

Just days before she died, Dukureh posted an interview that she did to promote “Elvis.”

She captioned the video, “Gratefulness is where I live cuz my granny, gmama, momma, family modeled and instilled it in me. It isn’t a posture of less than or crumbs scraping, but one that acknowledges good things aren’t a guarantee and when we encounter them thankfulness, gratefulness is the least we can express.”

Dukureh’s co-star Olivia DeJonge, who plays Priscilla Presley in the movie, recently raved about her, telling Entertainment Weekly that “a star was essentially born” when she appeared on-screen.

DeJonge noted that when Dukureh performed, “Something in her sort of breaks free. It was just, it was insane to watch.”

Dukureh reacted to DeJonge’s comment, writing on Instagram, “Grateful to not only hear her words, but the beautiful sentiments of all the cast present as well as Baz.”

She added, “If [you’re] sitting somewhere wondering when, if, folks will get you, just keep on keeping on, the right folks will.”