Gene Simmons recently made an appearance on the ‘Greatest Music of All Time’ podcast, where he shared his thoughts on the complex relationship between Black and White music. The KISS bassist addressed the longstanding discussion about White musicians stealing or borrowing from Black artists.
“Well, I was gonna tell you the Fats Domino story, where Fats Domino and Pat Boone were on the same level,” he said. “Fats is playing in a club. ‘Ain’t That A Shame’ was a big hit that he wrote and recorded, but it was covered by Pat Boone, and Pat Boone did everything, all the Black music of the day.”
“You know, he did it very whitebread with no soul, but it sold million records. So, an interviewer asked Fats Domino when Pat Boone was there. They were hugging each other and so on, and they asked Fats, ‘Don’t you feel slighted that your version wasn’t the hit?’ He said, ‘You see this diamond ring here? I’ve got Mr. Boone to thank for that.’ They didn’t care.”
The bassist continued, “So, people on the outside can say what they will, but if your music wasn’t ripped off, stolen like poor Little Richard, who I knew when he was alive. The publishers—you know, everybody stole all their money. They barely got paid at all. But musically what happened is, for the first time in history, really, that young white people, teenagers, were drawn to this music, and then, sort of made it their own in ways.”
“You can certainly sit on the sidelines and go, ‘Eh! You borrowed our culture, you borrowed our music.You stole it.’ It’s a case to be made for that,” he added.
Simmons reflected on the influence Black music had on his own life in previous interviews. As a Jewish person, he has long been a believer of solidarity between the Jewish and Black communities, especially in the music industry.
He emphasized to American Songwriter in 2021 how Jewish musicians played a crucial role in bringing Black music to White audiences, mentioning the work of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller in helping songs like ‘Hound Dog’ and ‘Fever’ reach mainstream listeners. These tracks were originally recorded by Big Mama Thornton and Little Willie John before being popularized by Elvis Presley and Peggy Lee.
The KISS founder also noted, “The original guys I heard that impacted my life basically was Black music, and then after that, Jackie Wilson and, you know, all those guys. The white guys were okay and they appealed to the chicks and everything. But the real stuff was Black music. That made your bottom, your groin shake and move in ways that white music didn’t. Even [‘Let’s Twist Again’ singer] Chubby Checker.”
Looking to the future, Simmons is gearing up to tour again with his solo band. He’ll kick off the tour in Anaheim, California, on April 3, and continue performing across the U.S. until the end of May.
