ABC/Michael Desmond
While some musicians will insist they don’t do what they do for the money, KISS’ Gene Simmons isn’t necessarily one of them.
In a new interview with Forbes, Simmons was asked why, after KISS’ retirement from the road, he’s still doing shows with the Gene Simmons Band. The journalist suggests it isn’t about the money, but Simmons strongly disagrees.
“I don’t like that phrase: ‘It’s not about the money.’ Money has been vilified and I take offense to that as a human being, sharing the planet with the rest of the people,” he says. “I’ve heard that phrase, ‘Money can’t buy happiness.’ That’s one of the biggest lies of all time.”
Some KISS fans were upset that the band’s final shows in December 2023 didn’t include the original members of the band, and others were upset about their planned avatar experience, but Simmons says he’s “too rich to care” about that.
“When you’re worried about the next dollar … it’s funny what money does. You have to be kind and you can’t treat people badly,” he says. “But money gives you a really good buffer that if you’re going to be critiqued – and food for thought, not everybody likes Jesus, either – if you’re making up a new reality and well good Lord, if you’ve got a s******* of money around you, say whatever you want! I don’t know how else to say it.”
He adds, “Fame, by the way, is highly overrated because one of the things that keeps eating away at fame is age. … The more money you’ve got, the more you can bear it.”
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