HIP-HOP VS. ROCK Gene Simmons Says Hip Hop Doesn't Belong In The Rock Hall Of Fame Because "It's Not My Music. I Don't Come From The Ghetto"

Rock legend Gene Simmons of the band Kiss may seem salty. But his words resound with truth. Hip hop doesn’t belong in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame like “opera” or “the symphony” doesn’t he claims. And he’s right. One great point came up when he mentioned that Led Zeppelin should belong in the Hip Hop Hall of Fame. Especially since they lent their instrumental to now incarcerated Diddy for his song “Come with Me.”

There is some disagreement, though. He says “it’s not my music. I’m not from the ghetto.” This is almost racist and untrue. Millions of people who listen to hip hop aren’t from “the ‘hood.” Rather, they come from all socioeconomic backgrounds and represent the core audience of rap performers.

While it seems like he was hating, the reality is that he spoke what most people dare not mention. But he’s also false as well. Rock and Roll sprang from the rhythms and melodies of jazz and the overbearing power of the blues. In fact, all popular music is either blues influenced or flat out, twelve bar structure blues music.

For Mr. Simmons to speak so candidly is refreshing. He goes on to celebrate his fellow Hall of Famers Lennon, McCartney, and Harrison of Beatles fame. He described the perfect song as getting right to the point. He points them out as perfect songs. In tunes like “Yesterday,” “Hey Jude,” and “Help!” the master craftsmen of sound state the name of the song with the first line.

He mentioned that hip hop is verbal but lacks the arrangement abilities of rock. He focused on how there should only be rock and rollers in the HOF. If he appeared to be bitter, it didn’t really show. It appeared as if he had respect for the artform of rap and hip hop but not an affinity towards it.

Thus the bewildering idea of Grandmaster Flash being in the HOF and not Iron Maiden. He contends that because they sell out “stadiums” that warrants their induction. This is false, too. While sales of tickets and streams nowadays account for a fraction of why a talent gets picked for their placement in the Hall, R&B singers like Mariah Carey get passed over not because she can’t sing or sell merch. No. It’s because she hasn’t shown her capacity to push boundaries like hip hop and rock acts, apparently. And isn’t that something to consider…should R&B and pop acts be in the R&R HOF, too?

Mr. Simmons stayed with his main point of disallowing hip hop performers from being included. His gripe with rap is that while it is at times melodic, it has spoken word elements and is ironically too “verbal.”

While screaming guitars and wondrous chords don’t crop up in hip hop that much, it is true that the HOF should include a Blues HOF since these genres sprang from that genre’s womb. Instead of a House of Blues, it should be the Blues Hall of Fame. That would encompass virtually all acts and allow for representation rather than inclusion. Whatever song is playing on streaming services as top billed should be considered blues because of its roots. It stems from the philosophical viewpoints of blues music and reaches crowds trying to, as August Wilson wrote, find a way of “understanding life.”

Gene Simmons told his truth without sugar coating and even had a tone akin to President Trump. His mannerisms and the rhythm of his voice came very close to the commander in chief. But for him to describe hip hop as almost second rate is to discredit the minds that have fashioned an art that resonates through all generations.