Gene Simmons has reignited the long-running debate over genre boundaries, saying hip hop should not be included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The KISS co-founder made the comments on the LegendsNLeaders podcast, more than a decade after his own induction into the Hall in 2014.
Simmons, who was inducted as a member of KISS, said his objection is rooted in how the Hall of Fame defines itself and what he believes rock and roll represents.
“It’s Called The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame”
Speaking on the podcast, Simmons reiterated a position he has shared publicly for years.
“It’s not my music. 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 and Roll Hall of Fame, nor does opera or symphony orchestras. How come the New York Philharmonic doesn’t get into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Because it’s called the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.”
His comments arrive amid continued discussion around the Hall’s broad definition of rock and roll, which in recent years has included hip hop, pop, R&B and electronic artists.
Simmons On Hip Hop As “Spoken-Word”
Simmons also recalled past conversations with Ice Cube, who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016 as a member of N.W.A., one year after KISS.
“Ice Cube and I had a back and forth. He’s a bright guy, and I respect what he’s done. He shot back that it’s the ‘spirit’ of rock and roll.”
Simmons challenged that argument directly.
“So Ice Cube and Grandmaster Flash and all these guys are in the Rock Roll Hall of Fame. I just want to know when Led Zeppelin’s going to be in the Hip-Hop Hall of Fame?”
He went on to describe hip hop as fundamentally different from rock as a musical form.
“Music has labels because it describes an approach. By and large, rap, hip-hop is a spoken-word art. Then you put beats in back of it and somebody comes up with a musical phrase, but it’s verbal.
There are some melodies, but by and large, it’s a verbal thing.”
Ice Cube’s Response To The Debate
Ice Cube has previously addressed the criticism surrounding hip hop’s inclusion in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Speaking to Rolling Stone around the time of his induction, he defended rap’s place within the institution.
“Rap is a piece of rock and roll, but there’s also a piece of soul, a piece of R+B, a piece of blues — all of that music that comes before it.
I think rap captures the spirit of rock and roll just like rappers and guys who do rock and roll capture the same spirit, but they might go in different directions with it. But it’s the same spirit.”
The debate highlights an ongoing tension around genre definitions, legacy and who gets to shape the cultural history of popular music.
