After making headlines for going back and forth with Ice Cube, over saying he cannot wait until the death of rap, the legendary Kiss frontman takes back what he originally said and explains what he truely meant, going into the deaths of many musical genres.

Frankie Zing

After The List caught up with Gene, he had this to say on his initial comments:

“I didn’t mean that mean-spirited. I’ve got to watch my words. Of course I don’t want it to die. But it will. Rock dies, rap dies – doo-wop died. That Chuck Berry stuff is gone. Folk rock went. All things will pass. This idea that music will last forever is delusional.”

“I’ve been criticized for saying rock is dead but I stand by my words. From 1958 to 1988 we had Elvis Presley, The Beatles, The Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Queen. From 1988 until today, give me the new Beatles? It doesn’t work, does it? Pretty fucking pathetic. The boy band is alive and well. One Direction is a very big band. The pop stuff is good. You’ve got Bieber and Beyoncé. But I don’t know how to tell anybody this, but it ain’t the Beatles. It doesn’t have the gravitas.”

He then went on to clarify his public opinion about hip-hop artists being inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame:

“You’ve got Grandmaster Flash in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Run-D.M.C. in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? You’re killing me. That doesn’t mean those aren’t good artists. But they don’t play guitar. They sample and they talk. Not even sing.”

What do you think of Gene Simmons thoughts on rap? Just an old school mentality or does he have a point about all music dies?

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