‘File sharing stealing’: Gene Simmons (KISS)
p2pnet news view | P2P | Music:- We want stars, not talent, says Gene Simmons.
That’s the headline to a Canadian Press headline. And it refers to the fact not-so-golden-oldie Gene Simmons wants Canadian bands for his new record label.
“But the Kiss frontman says he values star power over talent,” says the story.
He gave the keynote address at Canadian Music Week yesterday, saying he’s “looking for artists who are bigger than their songs”.
In other words, as long as you have a big tongue, look really wierd on or off stage, like putting on make-up, and stuff like that, you could be a SIMMONS STAR!!!!
Simmons was, “alternately funny and sleazy during a wide-ranging speech on the industry that rarely touched on actual music,” says another Canadian Press story, which goes on:
“In front of a packed audience at a downtown Toronto hotel, Simmons was never too specific on why he was interested only in Canadian talent, but did say he was concerned that Canuck acts rarely stay in the country.”
According to Simmons, “There is as much musical talent here as in the States, don’t kid yourself. And unless you provide them with the industry and the pop culture, they will move across the border. It’s not far.
“Americans can seduce the devil.”
CP wasn’t alone at the Simmons gabfest.
Bob Lefsetz of Lefsetz Letter fame was there too, saying, “Imagine you’re stranded on a desert island and you stumble upon a member of the opposite sex. You’re thrilled! You’re gonna have someone to talk to, you’re gonna make love until the Coast Guard finally figures out your ship sank and rescues you.
He goes on »»»
And this person may not be a beauty queen, but hey, he or she is all right. At least that`s what you think at first. Maybe you even have sex and forget your plight for a moment or two. But then, even though you`re exhausted, your partner just won`t give up. Insists on having sex every hour, being coddled, all the while telling you how fucking hot they are. It would almost be enough to get you to jump back into the water and swim to your death.
That`s what listening to Gene Simmons is like.
Bob’s post reached MR KISS who, in a letter to umusic functionary ‘Telma’ at Universal Music Canada [aka SimmonsRecords.com?] instructs her »»
I’m cc-ing whoever this Lefsetz guy is.
Post on cover of SIMMONS RECORDS.COM.
And, if you can find a foto of this bozo, put it up there as well.
No worries, Gene. Here’s a Bob pic.
And below is a blow-by-blow account of Simmons as he tries to take Lefsetz on, saying at one point, “and I still consider free downloads and file sharing stealing.”
Universal is presumably paying Simmons big bucks and if this is typical of Big 4 efforts to stay relevant in the 21st digital century, it’s no surprise they’re going under, and fast.
‘If this guy was in a band and wanted to sign with us, he’d have to change his name’
“Before we start this review of my Keynote Speech at CMS from a guy who’s blog was forwarded to me, I’m going to take the liberty of telling everyone I’m going to comment as we go along,” says Simmons (he’s the one doing all the shouting In capital letters], going on »»»
First, the name LEFSETZ. I would tell him to his face. That name’s gotta go. It blows. If this guy was in a band and wanted to sign with us, he’d have to change his name. Or, sign with someone else.
Otherwise, have no clue who this fellow is or what he does.
Let’s see…..
“Imagine you’re stranded on a desert island and you stumble upon a member of the opposite sex. You’re thrilled! You’re gonna have someone to talk to, you’re gonna make love until the Coast Guard finally figures out your ship sank and rescues you.
And this person may not be a beauty queen, but hey, he or she is all right. At least that’s what you think at first. Maybe you even have sex and forget your plight for a moment or two. But then, even though you’re exhausted, your partner just won’t give up. Insists on having sex every hour, being coddled, all the while telling you how fucking hot they are. It would almost be enough to get you to jump back into the water and swim to your death.
That’s what listening to Gene Simmons is like.”
THANK YOU.
“He’s not a dumb dude.”
THANK YOU.
“But it’s a full time commercial.”
CORRECT.
“And why? Doesn’t he have enough money?”
WELL, RESPECTFULLY, IT’S NOT UP TO THIS AMATEUR TO DETERMINE IF I HAVE ENOUGH MONEY. I’LL LET HIM KNOW IF AND WHEN I DO. UNTIL THAT TIME, IT’S BEST TO PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR OWN MONEY.
“Isn’t this like an ex-President buying time on television to give us his opinion on the budget? Running for an office he can’t be elected to? Hey Gene, you were a star once, can you let it go? Can you stop trying to convince us that not only is your music great, but that KISS is the biggest act in the world?”
NO.
“I mean if we really want to get down to it, don’t we have to give credit to Bob Ezrin?”
YES. ALWAYS.
“The producer of “Destroyer”, containing the KISS klassics “Detroit Rock City”, “Shout It Out Loud” and the band’s biggest hit, “Beth”? Not only did Ezrin produce those tracks, HE CO-WROTE THEM! I’m thinking without Ezrin, KISS is a footnote.”
PERHAPS. OH, I FORGOT TO MENTION, KISS STARTS THE SOUTH AMERICAN LEG OF THE 35TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR AT BUENOS AIRES STADIUM – 90,000 PEOPLE. LET ME KNOW IF YOU WANT A TICKET.
“Ezrin went on to further greatness, producing one of the biggest albums of all time, Pink Floyd’s “The Wall”, as well as the critically lauded debut of Peter Gabriel. KISS? They took the makeup off and put it back on, reunited with the original members, kicked them out again and kept dunning us with endless product promotions.”
ALL OF THIS IS TRUE. AND YOUR POINT IS…?
“And that’s what this “keynote” address at CMW was. A product promotion, for the latest iteration of Simmons Records.”
CORRECT. I HAVE A FIDUCIARY DUTY TO UNIVERSAL MUSIC CANADA AND I HAVE A VESTED INTEREST IN SIMMONS RECORDS. TO DO OTHERWISE AT CMW, WOULD BE STUPID. I KNOW HE’S NOT INFERRING I’M STUPID. QUITE THE CONTRARY.
“Just because you’re a big musical act, that doesn’t mean you’re a decent executive, that you can run a record company.”
SAYS WHO. YOU? AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MAKE THESE ASSESSMENTS. WHAT’S YOUR QUALIFICATION, IN FACT, FOR SAYING ANYTHING…
“That’s like saying a great football coach has to have been a star quarterback. They’re different skills. One that Mr. Simmons has yet to master. Sure, he made that demo tape with Van Halen, but the band ended up on WARNER BROTHERS!”
THIS MORON DOESN’T KNOW DETAILS AND BEHAVES AS IF HE DOES. FACT ONE: AFTER SEEING THE BAND AT THE STARWOOD CLUB IN LA IN 1977, I SIGNED VAN HALEN TO MY PRODUCTION COMPANY, “MAN OF 1,000 FACES” AND PRODUCED THEIR 24 TRACK DEMO, 15 SONG DEMO AT ELECTRIC LADY STUDIOS. KISS WAS GOING OUT ON TOUR, AND I DIDN’T WANT TO KEEP VAN HALEN TIED UP, SO I LET THEM SHOP THEIR OWN DEAL, WITHOUT INSISTING I KEEP A SLICE.
WHAT HIS POINT ABOUT ALL THIS, IS BEYOND ME.
“Truly, it was relentless. Gene with that bizarre hairdo sponsored by Brillo”
NOW, NOW…NO NEED TO BE JEALOUS, BABY. JUST BECAUSE I REMEMBER YOUR MOMMY BACKSTAGE AND THEN AT THE HOTEL IS NO REASON TO BE ENVIOUS OF MY GOOD LOOKS.
“maintaining that 360 deals are good for artists and that Canada can be the new Ireland.”
CORRECT. I “DO” BELIEVE CANADA POSSESSES ALL THAT.
“U2 came from Ireland, what does that country possess that Canada does not? Isn’t that like saying Mutt Lange came from Rhodesia, therefore Lithuania should be able to produce the best record producer on the planet?”
NO. NOT REALLY. AND, I’M NOT SURE ANYONE READING THIS HAS A CLUE WHAT THE RHODESIA/LITHUANIA THING MEANS.
“Really, it didn’t have to be 2009, it could have been 1009. With a huckster up on stage, trying to convince us to buy from him”.
NOPE. NEVER SAID YOU SHOULD BUY FROM ME. DON’T LIE, HONEY.
“Sure, there’s salesmanship involved in becoming a successful musical act, but that’s not ninety percent of the equation.”
SAYS WHO, BITCH. YOU? AND, WHAT’S THE NAME OF YOUR BAND. AND WHAT’S YOUR QUALIFICATION FOR SAYING OR DOING ANYTHING?
“But with KISS, it is! The music is just the vehicle to make money. I don’t excoriate this, I just don’t REVERE IT!”
NO PROBLEM. GO FIND ANOTHER BAND.
“Gene showed a five minute promotional film that was such an assault, the guy in front of me put his hands over his ears.”
I THINK YOU MISUNDERSTOOD. THAT WAS YOUR GIRLFRIEND. AND YOU WERE TALKING TOO LOUD. SHE WANTED TO SEE AND HEAR GENE SIMMONS. NOT YOU.
“Didn’t Pete Townshend sing “A Little Is Enough”? Obviously, Gene’s never heard that track, otherwise he would stop telling us how great he is and let us come to our own conclusion.”
NO. I WON’T STOP TELLING YOU HOW GREAT I AM. FIND SOMEONE ELSE FOR THAT.
“It was sad.”
NO, IT WASN’T. EVERYONE HAD A GREAT TIME AND EVERYONE ENJOYED THEMSELVES.
“Although Gene paid lip service to the Internet, it was like he wanted to jet back to the seventies, when the label was king, when record companies were flush with cash that they’d blow on a bunch of new acts.”
THAT’S TRUE. I WANT RECORD COMPANIES TO BECOME POWERFUL AND FLUSH WITH MONEY AGAIN. I WANT BANDS TO REALIZE THAT ANY ENTITY THAT GIVES THEM MONEY (ADVANCES) AND NEVER FORCES THEM TO PAY THE RECORD COMPANY BACK, WHEN AND IF THEIR RECORD BOMBS (AND THEY ALMOST ALWAYS DO), IS THEIR BEST FRIEND. I KNOW OF NO OTHER BUSINESS THAT GIVES YOU MONEY AND NEVER ASKS FOR IT BACK. EVEN YOUR MOM WILL WANT YOU TO PAY BACK HER LOAN.
“Those days are through. Shit, imagine trying to get money from Simmons’ company. That’d be like sucking quarters from a parking meter. Gene’s notorious for not parting with his own money. Shit, I’m stunned he doesn’t require new acts to pay HIM to be signed!”
THIS IS A SMALL PERSON, WHO’S NEVER DONE ANYTHING, NEVER BEEN IN A BAND AND DOESN’T KNOW HOW THE RECORD INDUSTRY WORKS. HE DOESN’T KNOW ME AND I DON’T KNOW HIM. AND HE WOULDN’T KNOW, IN EITHER CASE IF I “DO” OR “DON’T” PART WITH MY MONEY. AND IN ANY CASE, IT WOULDN’T BE HIS BUSINESS, OR MY GARBAGE COLLECTOR’S.
“I only went because the last couple of times Gene’s spoken he has said some truly heinous things, blasting the audience, that he told us today to respect, for stealing his music. I figured he’d come out with a few clunkers that would crack you up.
But all I got was a damn advertisement.”
THAT’S CORRECT.
I AM ADVERTISING SIMMONS RECORDS. THAT’S WHY I’M UP HERE TALKING ABOUT IT. THIS GUY IS A GENIUS.
AND I STILL CONSIDER FREE DOWNLOADS AND FILE SHARING STEALING. AND I WANT YOU TO PAY FOR MUSIC…AND FOR ANYTHING. IF A BAND WANTS TO GIVE AWAY THEIR STUFF FOR FREE…I HAVE NO PROBLEM. MY ONLY QUESTION IS, HOW DOES THE RECORD COMPANY, WHICH PAID GOOD MONEY UP FRONT, GET ITS MONEY BACK, IF THE MUSIC IS FREE”?
“I know Gene loves that I’m writing this.”
SURE. I LOVE ANYONE WHO TALKS ABOUT ME.
“Almost to the point where I considered not writing about his speech at all. But I’ve got to. Because in order for music to ascend to its rightful position at the top of popular culture’s leader board,”
(I CAN’T WAIT FOR THIS LEADER OF POPULAR CULTURE TO TELL ME HOW TO POSITION THINGS).
“it’s got to be more about its intrinsic value than the sell.”
YES, AND NO. IT “SHOULD” BE ABOUT MUSIC, BUT IT’S ALSO GOT TO BE ABOUT BUSINESS. IN CASE YOU HAVEN’T NOTICED, IT WAS NEVER JUST CALLED “MUSIC.” IT WAS, AND STILL IS CALLED THE “MUSIC BUSINESS.”
“It’s got to be more about music than showmanship. It’s got to be more about creativity than expediency.”
NO. HES GOT IT ALMOST RIGHT. IT’S GOT TO BE ABOUT BOTH.
“KISS had a gimmick. It’s served the band well. A gimmick can get you noticed, but soon thereafter it becomes about the music. KISS took off its makeup and few cared.”
HE’S RIGHT. ABOUT 10 MILLION.
“The Beatles gave up their suits, messed with their hair, even gave up playing live and the band got bigger and bigger.”
I LOVE THE ANALOGY. KISS AND THE BEATLES. THANKS.
“The problem is, Gene Simmons thinks there’s a handbook.”
YES. MY HANDBOOK.
“Listening to him is like watching a bad version of “Glengarry Glen Ross”.”
NO. NOT REALLY. I DIDN’T LIKE THAT FILM MUCH. I’M MUCH MORE FASCINATED BY ME.
“It’s like going to a training session for Kirby vacuum salesmen. It’s always interesting to hear how another person made it, but if you want to be successful in the future, you’re better off ignoring everything Gene Simmons has to say.”
THIS STATEMENT MADE BY A GUY WHO’S STILL LIVING IN HIS MOTHER’S BASEMENT.
“Unless, of course, you love money more than music.”
ACTUALLY, I LOVE BOTH MONEY AND MUSIC.
“But since you’re reading this, I doubt that…”
GOOD LUCK TO THIS GUY.
WE LOVE HEARING THE GOOD AND THE BAD.
AND WE HOPE YOU GET OUT OF MOM’S BASEMENT SOON.
Stay tuned.
Canadian Press – We want stars, not talent, says Gene Simmons, March 12, 2009
Canadian Press – Kiss frontman Gene Simmons specifies what he wants in Cdn bands: ’star power’, March 12, 2009
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March 13th, 2009 at 2:09 pm
Gene can see money through a wall made of lead.
March 13th, 2009 at 2:14 pm
Simon is a typical RIAA parasite!
Just sell, sell anything!
BS the stupid crowd of human cattle with crap as long as they pay for it!
Who care about the music or the lyric! Just be an expert in BS!
Simon is one of the major architect of the artistic desert of the 20th century.
Sorry Simon! you are an old fart and you will not get the 21st century.
This one is our an it will be at least as good as the 19th if not better but without crap like you!
Bye Bye Bye parasite!
March 13th, 2009 at 2:39 pm
‘AND DOESNâT KNOW HOW THE RECORD INDUSTRY WORKS.’
I know how the record industry works: POOOORLY! Like the clown simon.
March 13th, 2009 at 2:50 pm
FFS stop blasting poor Gene, he is just saying what he believes in.
I think we should all respect that and leave the poor guy alone, after all he played in one of the best and biggest bands out there.
Most of us will never reach the pinnacle of fame and fortune that …… hehe ok, i cant write crap anymore, if I do i will probably puke.
Lets all be peaceful like now and go searching for some KISS torrents so we can seed the F*** out of.
I never cared for the music produced by this bozo (his lead guitarist was/is good tho) but apparently others do, so lets help them save money and get it the right way.. via bit torrent.
Don’t get mad, get even.
March 13th, 2009 at 3:10 pm
Every year Gene Simmons’ ego gets as fat as his wallet’s. And this is coming from a life-long Kiss Army member!
March 13th, 2009 at 3:58 pm
i dunno, reading that was actually pretty great. both gene simmons and bob lefsetz came off as pretty reasonable, and if it weren’t for the caps it would have been a bitch to separate the letter from the responses (otherwise fuck caps). i don’t care if gene simmons thinks piracy is piracy, in a lot of ways he’s right but only in the current context of the law. when the law gets updated for ze future (not if, when) he’ll be wrong, but for the time being, he’s completely correct.
either way i thought it was a great representation of both viewpoints, and pretty civil (including simmons’ jomama jokes).
March 13th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
“…both gene simmons and bob lefsetz came off as pretty reasonable,…”
Gene’s pretty much been a lummox throughout on this issue.
He’s been invited to properly debate the topic on several occasions, but has always refused.
Naturally, we should expect that, since he’s already accepted the job of “paid corporate shill”.
Gene doesn’t take such jobs if they don’t PAY.
(One thing he’s never tried to hide was his 24/7 quest for the almight buck.)
“…gene simmons thinks piracy is piracy, in a lot of ways heâs right but only in the current context of the law…”
That statement is untrue.
1) Gene thinks piracy is THEFT.
2) There is no law about it, therefore there is no “current context” of such a law.
“…if it werenât for the caps…”
For me “ALL CAPS” has always proved to be a demonstration of ignorance.
I’ve yet to see that observation debunked.
March 13th, 2009 at 5:15 pm
Gene Simmons sounds much better than Chaim Witz but Simmons or Witz, he is still a greedy loudmouth.
March 13th, 2009 at 6:12 pm
sorry i didnt even read that , when i saw show time and he comes on yapping how al that is gonna kill the music industry.
Well
nice mansion mister how did you afford that labour intensive work , using brain power like a scientist?
hes the biggest money grubbing example of WY the industry as it is SHOULD FAIL.
kiss coffins? OMG thats just retarded.
kiss this kiss htat all meant to suck your wallet dry while he sites in his mansion with his play boy bunny wifey
AND LAUGHS AT YOU ALL
March 13th, 2009 at 6:13 pm
copyright was meant to give SOME to the artist.
Ya htink after you ahve so much you could like i dunno do it free for the LOVE of music ,
HA get that into ya mister fancy pants
March 13th, 2009 at 6:25 pm
or, mebbe perform something good/new ?
March 13th, 2009 at 6:58 pm
Not much you can do about Gene, anyway.
He’s getting it the way he wants, saying what he gets paid to, and living in Reality TV Eden.
The interesting thing about all this is his kids don’t share his views, and have their own minds that they act upon.
Nick has apparently already voiced a completely different “take” on the music scene, the labels, and file sharing.
(Now that he’s old enough, Daddy can’t control him.)
March 13th, 2009 at 9:23 pm
“KISS and the Phantom of the Park.”
Does ANYTHING else need to be said? I’m surprised Gene doesn’t sell jock straps with his face on the cup.
March 13th, 2009 at 10:12 pm
What a douche!
Thanks Jon for presenting us these douchebags, at least we know that U2 is not the only douchebag.
March 13th, 2009 at 10:44 pm
I only read bits and pieces of this:
1. Gene Simmons? The guy with the really long tongue? Suitable for licking Bainwol’s prostate.
2. I wonder if Gene Simmons thinks the expiration of copyright terms is also “stealing”. To my way of thinking, where you stand on the PD is the deal-breaker, and knowing that, you can pretty much figure out how they’re going to react to other stuff like downloading, copyright term extension, sucking RIAA cock, etc.
I mean, Sonny Bono explicitly dissed the public domain when he claimed that copyrigh was “forever minus a day”. That’s why he could be an RIAA poster-boy, and not flinch. Bottom line is: most people simply don’t understand why things like the public domain are important, and the current copyright laws don’t help much.
For instance, they don’t even require explicit registration. The other two major monopolies mis-named as “Intellectual Property” (patent and trademark) require explicit registration with the appropriate government office, which requires people to keep at least SOME perspective about what patents and trademarks really are — privileges granted by the State for a specific purpose, and intended to expire.
But not requiring registration helps people lie to themselves about what copyright really is, and probably stops people from thiking about the public domain at all in most cases.
But hey, what should we expect from the RIAA’s stable of pampered has-beens?
March 14th, 2009 at 7:47 am
To be fair, Gene posting in call caps is appropriate enough, in order to set his comments apart from those of Mr. Lefsetz, but beyond that….
Name calling?
“Your mom” sex jokes?
Mom’s basement jokes?
It’s simply juvenile and pathetic.
If he wants record companies to become big and powerful again maybe he should encourage record companies to increase the number of artists they sign and produce records for so that the buying public will actually have some variety to chose from that meets their interests, rather than being forced to listen to record companies telling us what we should like and buy?
Maybe record companies should go back to begging radio stations to play whatever tracks they want to from albums, royalty free, in order to foster the unrestrained growth of new popular artists (it’s called free advertising) that will in turn feed the growth of album and concert sales?
It no longer matters how many radio stations a town has, because other than a difference in genre the playlists are the same. Listen to a six-hour stretch of any radio station and you’ve heard 95% of their entire playlist. It’s no wonder at all that music fans have turned to the internet and file-sharing to see if there’s more than one good track on an album to make it worth the purchase or in an attempt to find something even remotely new or different out there.
March 14th, 2009 at 10:13 am
I was a fan of kiss and gene simmons, up until i heard him in an interview done by henry rollins on his show, i think even henry was sickened by the words coming out of simmons mouth in that episode. That day i peeled off my kiss makeup in tears of shame, and burned my kiss lunchbox and platform boots, and swore never again
March 14th, 2009 at 1:57 pm
If you really look at this from a complete neutral perspective, the whole thing is just a war between two principles:
1) those that view music as simply a business, to be commercialized and exploited as many ways as possible
2) those that view music as an art form, as culture, as a vehicle of fun and community, where commercialization mostly results in spoiling the enjoyment.
Gene is just the epitome of the first, having absolutely no regard for the second.
March 14th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
” Gene is just the epitome of the first, having absolutely no regard for the second. ”
He is, now.
At the beginning, he wasn’t.
It’s odd how that happens.
The generation that railed against ‘The Man’ has become ‘The Man’, and
is even more greedy and grasping than ‘The Man’ they spoke out so
vehemently against.
Money seems to do that a lot.
March 14th, 2009 at 4:42 pm
@Dredd,
I genuinely think Gene’s one of the few that really was in it for a business, right from the beginning.
He’s certainly never been one to hide that.
All during his career, he made statements to that effect.
I’ll give him credit for being “true to himself”. : )
The whole “glitter rock” genre (in which I’ve always placed KISS) was probably a direct result of Simmons-style thinking – “if you can dazzle ‘em with brilliance… baffle ‘em with bullshit!” That’s when special effects and other forms of “flash” became a key sales tool. Not that some of the stuff wasn’t genuinely good, I just think most of it relied on “shock and awe” to generate a following.
March 16th, 2009 at 11:40 am
TYPO
Just to set the record straight, the saying is, “If you can’t dazzle ‘em with brilliance, then baffle ‘em with bullshit!”
————————————————————^^^
: )
March 16th, 2009 at 11:40 am
(Crap! The carets were supposed to point to “can’t”)