MUMBAI: When you have been in the music business for as long as Gene Simmons has, you are bound to ruffle a few feathers over the years. This is probably why the Kiss frontman ran into a little trouble while he was attending Huffington Post’s live Q&A session with fans recently.
The iconic rocker was in the middle of his session, when Simmons was interrupted by garage rock band Black Lips, who accused the bassist of having ‘misogynistic’ music. Lead singer Jack Hines, who along with his comrades had their faces painted black and white- a typical Kiss trademark, directed a question to Simmons saying, “Mr Simmons! We’re here to tell you that the day of misogynistic, sexist rock’n’roll is over. We call for the complete and utter surrender of the Kiss army. Lay down your guitars! Do you accept our terms of surrender?”
It was likely that the veteran rocker did not know who he was answering when he replied, “Yes. I surrender entirely. And I wanted to compliment your mom for the wonderful way that she designed the decorations in the basement that she lets you live in. I think it’s very attractive. I hope you get to leave your mom’s basement soon. Remember: Learn to speak English. Good education, that will help. I did it, you can too.”
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However, once informed that those were the members of Black Lips, Simmons made a rather controversial comment stating, “But they’re not black, what are they… racist? Why are they calling themselves ‘black’?”
Simmons’ advice to the Black Lips to learn English stems from an earlier topic of conversation regarding immigration. The musician, who is Israeli born but moved to America when he was eight, offered advice to other immigrants. At the time, the 64 year old said, “As an immigrant, I’m telling you: learn to speak goddamn English. It is the key that will unlock the keys to the kingdom.”
