Big Mama Thornton performing "Hound Dog". She released the song first in 1953 before Elvis Presley (1956), his biggest worldwide rock and roll hit record.
Thornton was a blues singer who helped shape the sound of Rock&Roll. She released the song “Hound Dog” in 1953 and it sold two million records and went #1 on the R&B charts.
Unfortunately Thornton only received about $500 from those profits.