News Archive December 2010
From: iVilliage.com
by Donna Kaufman
Posted: December 12, 2010
Gene Simmons of the band KISS is known for his extra-long tongue -- and for better or worse, he has a big mouth to go with it. The 61-year-old rocker went off on OK! Magazine about how Jennifer Lopez didn't deserve to be an American Idol judge.
"I don't think Jennifer Lopez is going to mean a thing," the musician told the magazine. "Because you can dance and stuff, you don't write songs, your own records... I don't take her seriously as being able to spot new talent. So, you can sing, you can dance, that's nice."
So who does Simmons think would be a better judge? Well -- himself, obviously.
"In terms of qualifications I'm the governor," Simmons brags. "I've written songs, been in a band for 37 years, toured the world, blah blah, discovered Van Halen, and managed Liza Minnelli, Simmons Records. Done it, been there, 3,000 licensed products. Who else has that qualification?"
Okay, well, probably no one -- but since when has selling "3,000 licensed products" (is he referring to KISS bobbleheads?) been a qualification for judging American Idol? At the end of the day, Idol is a TV show, and the judges need to be charismatic, knowledgeable, and sympathetic to what the kids onstage are going through. J-Lo is a major inspiration for the new generation of performers, and she's got a great combination of toughness and likeability. Even if she didn't discover Van Halen, we think she seems like a perfect fit. (Plus she's more industry-savvy than the beloved Paula Abdul -- who, let's face it, was never exactly a rocket scientist.)
Honestly, it sounds like Gene Simmons is a little jealous. The guy is a rock legend, but he's never had Idol-level television success, despite creating and starring in three different reality shows. The most successful of these, Gene Simmons Family Jewels, is currently in its fifth season on A&E.
To be fair, there is one new judge whom Simmons fully supports: Aerosmith's Steven Tyler.
"Steven is going to be great," says Simmons. "He is going to be the only interesting one there because obviously he's going to be qualified to know what he is talking about."
