Gene Simmons, the famous KISS bassist, has started up his long-running fight with the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame over letting hip-hop artists in. He said on a recent podcast that rap is spoken-word art, not rock music, and asked why rock bands like Iron Maiden are still being ignored.
Simmons stuck to his guns on the LegendsNLeaders podcast, saying that hip-hop “does not belong” in the Rock & Roll Hall with opera or symphonies. He joked, “I just want to know when Led Zeppelin is going to be in the Hip-Hop Hall of Fame,” pointing out what he sees as wrong choices. The 75-year-old rocker said, “I don’t come from the ghetto,” but he respects artists like Ice Cube. It doesn’t speak to me; I like rock music with a lot of guitar work.
Simmons first complained that non-guitar players shouldn’t be able to join KISS in 2014, two years before N.W.A. New members like Eminem and Jay-Z have made him even angrier, and he hasn’t shown any signs of calming down. Gene Simmons is still complaining about rap in the Rock Hall. “I don’t come from the ghetto,” he said.
Simmons didn’t like the Hall’s “spirit of rock” criteria and asked why the New York Philharmonic isn’t included if the criteria are so broad. People on social media had different opinions. Some agreed with Simmons’ argument that hip-hop should stay true to its roots, while others defended the rock influences in hip-hop. Billboard and Louder, among others, pointed out that he has always been against it since 2014.
