After a video of him sitting during the concert went viral online, many KISS fans are asking: what happened to Gene Simmons?
The veteran rock group was at their show in Brazil on April 12, 2023, at the Arena da Amazônia when frontman Gene Simmons sat while he was performing. Suddenly, they stopped for five minutes.“We’re gonna have to stop,” guitarist Paul Stanley said. “You know how much we love Gene, and he’s obviously sick. And we’re gonna have to stop to take care of him, ’cause we love him, right?” He then asked the crowd to chant “Gene.” Simmons played some of the bass parts to “Say Yeah” sitting down.
So what happened to Gene Simmons and is he alright? Read more below to find out.
What happened to Gene Simmons?
Image: Francesco Prandoni/Getty Images)
What happened to Gene Simmons? The 73-year-old KISS frontman experienced dehydration at their Brazil concert, and he assured fans that everything was well with him afterward.
On April 13, 2023, he tweeted, “Hey everybody, thanks for the good wishes. I’m fine. Yesterday at Manaus Stadium in Brazil, experienced weakness because of dehydration. We stopped for about five minutes, I drank some water, and then all was well. Nothing serious. Tomorrow, Bogota Stadium. See you there!”
In response to a Rolling Stone article that was published about his health condition, he also tweeted, “Ok, kids. Not a big deal. Thanks for your kind wishes. Last night we played Amazon jungle Stadium/Brazil. Humidity and temperature were sky high. I was dehydrated and was forced to sit for a song. We got back on stage in 5 minutes & finished the show. 🤟😎” Brazil’s tropical weather added to the humidity and heat for the day as the stadium was also outside.
Many fans became concerned after the video went viral on the social media website. One fan tweeted, “Dehydration and heat exhaustion will take you out if you aren’t careful. Your blood pressure will bottom out because if it. That’s why he was dizzy. Give the man a break. He’s older and you are lucky to have him around and doing a tour! Feel better Gene!”
KISS are currently on the final year of the End of the Road tour. They announced the last days of their last-ever tour. The last dates of the band’s performance were announced on The Howard Stern Show on March 1, 2023. The original date of the band’s last performance was July 17, 2021, but the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the plans. “KISS was born in New York City. On 23rd Street. Half a century ago. It will be a privilege and honor to finish touring at Madison Square Garden, 10 blocks and 50 years from where we first started,” the band said in a statement. The tour started in 2018 and the band has performed in the UK, Europe, Australia, South America and Mexico. The last leg of the tour will begin in Austin, Texas on October 19, 2023, and concludes in Madison Square Garden on December 2, 2023.
“We’re finishing up where we started,” Stanley said on The Howard Stern Show last month. “This is the end. When you come to see the show, it’s awesome. It’s the most high-tech show out there and yet it’s clearly a kick-ass rock & roll show… It’s everything Kiss, just amped up and ramped up.”
Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley founded the glam-rock band in the early 1970s in New York City. Their first industry performance was at the Brooklyn Academy of Music where lead singer Gene Simmons accidentally set his hair on fire after practicing a fire-spitting act. Known for their outrageous acts on stage and donning their iconic makeup, Kiss released 20 studio albums and many unreleased bootleg performances and recordings. Their seventh album Dynasty was certified Platinum and launched the band into a global success.
Though the band had several lineup changes, the band announced their farewell shows in 2000 with original members Ace Frehley and Peter Criss. With the latter two leaving, the band eventually reunited again and performed for another 20-plus years. “The Reunion tour made us the number one band again. We played to about two million people in one year. Then we did the Psycho Circus tour and after that, we thought, “been there, done it,” Paul Stanley said. “We’re the champs again, let’s retire on top and we felt there is nothing worse than having someone go away and you don’t get to say goodbye so this tour really is for the fans and to celebrate the whole history of the band.”
When the first dates of the End of The Road Tour, Stanley told Rolling Stone, “We can’t be running around for that much longer in 40 pounds of gear,” he said. “There’s nothing maudlin about it. It’s a celebration with our fans around the world.”
“We wanted to raise the bar again as to what a band can do live,” he added. “That’s really what we’ve always done: we’ve always wanted to be the band we never saw. There are a lot of shows out there that have Kiss DNA in them because they really weren’t shows of any magnitude before us.”
In an interview with Page Six, Stanley also commented on the band’s legacy after they’re done touring.“I see Kiss continuing — in what form that manifests itself is really something that will develop over time. I don’t know exactly what that means. But quite honestly, we couldn’t kill Kiss if we wanted to. It’s a part of Americana,” he said.
He added, “It’s part of world consciousness, and even if we stop, the band continues, in essence. But should it diversify and spread in terms of what Kiss is? Sure, the idea, the limitations of other bands, that’s their problem. We’re not those bands.”
KISS Tickets to their The End of The Road tour are now on sale. Here’s how to get them discounted.
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Lea Veloso
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