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Posted on 02/12/2026 8:32:09 AM PST by Libloather
Gene Simmons is again sticking his tongue out at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for allowing hip-hop artists to snag a spot in rock’s most exclusive club.
The 76-year-old KISS co-founder — who was inducted into the Cleveland shrine for rock with the band in 2014 — appeared on the “LegendsNLeaders” podcast last week, where he flipped the script on host Ben Weiss and asked which band shaped him most growing up.
When the 25-year-old host revealed he gravitated toward more “hip-hop adjacent stuff” in his youth, Simmons blasted the genre and seethed that rap stars have scored spots in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
“It’s not my music,” said the rocker, whose on-stage persona is “The Demon.” “I don’t come from the ghetto. It doesn’t speak my language. And as I said in print many times, hip-hop does not belong in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, nor does opera or symphony orchestras.
“How come the New York Philharmonic doesn’t get into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame?” he snarked.
Simmons doubled down, fuming that metal giants Iron Maiden still haven’t snagged a Hall of Fame nod while hip-hop pioneer Grandmaster Flash has been.
“Iron Maiden is not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame when they can sell out stadiums,” he said.
(Excerpt) Read more at pagesix.com ...
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“It’s not music,” - fixed it
1950s= Great music
1960s= The best music decade (by far)
1970s= Gimme a break...horrible (with one or two exceptions)
1980s= Some pretty good stuff released
Might as well enshrine Bill Belichick into the R&R HoF.
Agreed.
If there was a Hip-Hop Hall of Fame, would it include rockers? < /sarc >
70s music was fine until the Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash. That’s the day the music really died.
They may be good, but do they qualify as rock and roll.
What is the origin of “rap?” It’s spoken poetry to music. It was certainly prevalent in 19th century gospel music. Certainly in the 20th century, jazz musicians and beat poets did it. One could even argue the Greeks and Romans did it.
America’s present “rap music” though is one very derivative, very worn-out, now very un-original small tributary of a much larger musical form. Personally, I believe it only stays alive because of America’s woke, neo-marxist, faux “civil rights” narrative, and political need to promote ghetto culture.
Devoting energy to American rap music as a distinct form of music is like emphasizing a distinct musical form for the bass clarinet or piccolo - you very quickly run out of new and original ways to use it.
He is correct. If it isn’t Rock & Roll, it doesn’t belong there. It’s been that stupid for years and years.
Man, that feels like...a long, long time ago...
Exactly, it's why they started winning grammys in the early 90's and why half the up front seats at the recent garbage grammys were filled with people of color.
Hip hop is a child of funk, which itself is a child of R&B, which is part of the rock spectrum. Grand Master Flash definitely belongs in the Hall. Of course so does Maiden. But Wenner hates metal, even though he insists he’s not in charge anymore his prejudices are still prevalent. Thus is life. Luckily I don’t think Steve and Co really care. They’re too busy having fun and making money.
Quite honestly, I’ve discovered “new” old music from the 60s, 70s, and 80s over the last 5 or 6 years that I like to listen to more than the crap that is coming out now. I like a few newer bands/artists, but they are few and far between.
I enjoy the 70s a bit more than you, and I certainly love my 80s. The four decades you mentioned were, and are still great music, because it was before auto tune. Either you could sing or you couldn’t. And rapping may be poetic rhymes, but it’s not a pure talent like singing. (I may sound like an old fogey here, but I also prefer my music without constant swearing and filth.)
I agree 100%! Rap BS needs its own HofF. There are lots of MLK Blvds to choose from to build such a shrine.
Whites have this need to worship blacks-it’s guilt. Just look at how they gave Obama the messiah treatment. The more they get exposed the more you’re called a racist.
Then there’s Deion Sanders. Look at what Christian Fauria thinks of him:
I can’t wait to see Bad Bunny enshrined in the HOF
What about genre splitting artist?
For example, Johnny Cash is in both the R&R, and Country Music halls of Fame. Larry Norman in both Christian Music and R&R HoF.
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