Gene Simmons Reacts To Being Called A**h*le

KISS bassist and vocalist Gene Simmons talked about his decision to call his 2004 sophomore solo album, “A**hole”.

During an appearance on Mike Rowe’s podcast “The Way I Heard It With Mike Rowe”, he said:

“It’s supposed to be an insult and all that. I don’t have a problem with it. I don’t have a problem with anybody calling me anything. I really don’t. I know that I do good. I know that my mom’s okay with me, and that’s all the validation I need.

“There was a song on [the album] called ‘A**hole’,” he explained.

“It goes, ‘You’re an a**hole. You’re an a**hole. Maybe I’m an a**hole too,’ is the punchline of the chorus. And I thought, ‘Yeah!'”

Gene elaborated on what inspired him to call the LP “A**hole”, “When I walked into Interscope Records… I was co-managing a band with Paul [Stanley] called Crown of Thorns. I came up with that name and created the band. So we got them a deal. And [Interscope co-founder] Jimmy Iovine walks in and says, ‘I want you to listen to a thing. It’s by a new artist I just signed. His name is Tupac.’ And I’m saying, ‘Is he African or something?’ ‘No, no. He is from L.A. or New York.’ ‘Oh, great.’ And it’s just a black cover and it says, ‘4 My’ N-word. [‘Strictly 4 My N****Z’] And I thought it was a joke. ‘Oh, what are you gonna call the album?’ He goes, ‘No, it’s gonna be called that.’ I’m saying, ‘You’re using the N-word?’ He goes, ‘Yeah.’ And I’m going, ‘Why are you doing that?’ He says, ‘Well, ’cause he’s comfortable with that.’ So the most vile thing you could call an African American is the N-word. They take possession of it and use it themselves. So what’s one of the worst things you can say I am? A**hole. Great. Let’s call the album ‘A**hole’.”

When asked how his “A**hole” album sold at the time of its release, Gene said: “It didn’t do great, but it was a time when the entire record industry was changing.”

Like Gene’s 1978 self-titled solo album, “A**hole” featured a number of outside songwriting contributions and guest appearances. Bob Dylan and Gene co-wrote the album’s “Waiting For The Morning Light”.

Frank Zappa and Gene Simmons shared co-writing credit for the song “Black Tongue.” The Zappa family, including Dweezil, Ahmet, Moon, Gail, and Frank Zappa himself, contributed by singing and playing guitar on the track. The album also featured guest appearances from Dave Navarro of Jane’s Addiction, KISS members Bruce Kulick and Eric Singer, the band BAG (signed to Simmons Records/Sanctuary Music Group), as well as Gene’s now-wife Shannon Tweed and their two children, Sophie and Nicholas.

Since their inception, KISS has garnered millions of fans worldwide, collectively known as the KISS Army. With over 100 million CDs and DVDs sold globally, KISS has filled stadiums and arenas for five decades, breaking box office records previously set by Elvis Presley and The Beatles.