Gene Simmons: Rock Isn’t Exciting Anymore Except For Taylor Swift

According to Gene Simmons, Taylor Swift has taken over the music scene.

The KISS bassist recently sat down with Page Six for an interview and talked about whether there is any artist or band he finds exciting for rock music right now:

“No. Can you think of anybody? When we were growing up in the ’60s, you had Led Zeppelin, The Stones, The Beatles, Elvis and Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, and on and on. You had Madonna, you had had Motown and all that.”

Simmons went on to list other famous names of the era:

“You had Prince, David Bowie. All that happening at the same time. What’s happening now? There’s no question Taylor Swift has taken over and she’s great. I’m a fan and I know her. She’s really a solid person. Other than that, I’m not sure what’s cool other than this [showing a KISS group photo].”

Paul Stanley And Other Rockers Also Like Swift

KISS and Swift have crossed paths before. Last August, KISS frontman Paul Stanley attended one of Swift’s Eras Tour shows in Los Angeles with his family. He even posted a picture of himself wearing tour merchandise on social media. Stanley wrote on X:

“Took Erin, Sarah and Emily to see Taylor Swift Last Night! 6 shows at SoFi Stadium for a total of A HALF MILLION PEOPLE and I know why… PHENOMENAL SHOW BY A PHENOMENAL ARTIST. Thanks to her staff for rolling out the red carpet for us.”

Simmons and Stanley are not the only rockers who praised Swift. Billie Joe Armstrong also recently went to a Swift concert in France and posted on Instagram, writing:

“Just saw Taylor Swift eras tour in Lyon France 🇫🇷!! Great production. Great voice. Great entertainer. Great songwriting. Crazy crowd. People even shared with me some friendship bracelets. Thanks a million, Taylor Swift. My bracelets say.”

Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder also likes Taylor. In an interview with Bill Simmons, he praised Swift’s music, especially her Eras Tour. Vedder talked about Swift’s talent for using secret codes in her songs and praised how much music she puts out.

You can watch Gene’s entire chat below.