In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, 66-year-old KISS bassist Gene Simmons said rap music is on its way out, and his controversial statements have rattled a few cages.
In years past, Simmons let it be known that he did not care for hip-hop/rap, and he has gone on record saying that rock-n-roll is dead. During a 2014 interview with Radio.com, he was asked about the legendary hip-hop group Run-DMC and Grandmaster Flash entering the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He said:
“You’re killing me,” he told Radio.com. “That doesn’t mean those aren’t good artists. But they don’t play guitar. They sample and they talk. Not even sing.”
In his Rolling Stone interview, he said rappers just talk and that there isn’t enough singing.
“I am looking forward to the death of rap. I’m looking forward to music coming back to lyrics and melody, instead of just talking,” he said. “A song, as far as I’m concerned, is by definition lyric and melody … or just melody.”
Simmons continued to put his foot in his mouth by reemphasizing his point:
“Rap will die,” he added. “Next year, 10 years from now, at some point, and then something else will come along. And all that is good and healthy.”
The rock legend seems to be out of touch. And his comments offended rapper Talib Kweli.
Kweli has been active in the Black Lives Matter movement since the 2014 shooting of Ferguson, Missouri teen Michael brown by former officer Darren Wilson. He has hosted benefit concerts for Ferguson, Chicago and other cities. The rapper went toe-to-toe with Twitter users in a heated debate over the cultural impact of rap because he knows the value of the music.
This is how he responded to Simmons:
https://twitter.com/TalibKweli/status/711250557982248961?ref_src=twsrc^tfw
https://twitter.com/TalibKweli/status/711264857748705280?ref_src=twsrc^tfw
https://twitter.com/TalibKweli/status/711264222026465280?ref_src=twsrc^tfw
https://twitter.com/TalibKweli/status/711260798157369346?ref_src=twsrc^tfw
