And then one day, I can't remember who, said, hey, let's go downstairs to Woolworth and bought makeup and black lipstick and red lipstick and decided to put on makeup.

If you ask people on the street, just a close-up of Teddy Roosevelt on Mount Rushmore and say, who's that?

I have no idea. But as soon as you show those faces, they go, Mount Rushmore and say, who's that? I have no idea.

But as soon as you show those faces, they go, oh, yeah, kiss.

Even if you hate the band.

And I'm talking Africa, Southeast Asia, anywhere you go.

It doesn't mean it's the best band.

It just means that the imagery connected in ways no other band connected.

Gene Simmons is a rock and roll legend, best known as the charismatic bassist and frontman

of Kiss.

With the larger-than-life persona theatrical concert style and signature face paint, Simmons and

Kiss revolutionized rock in the 1970s and 80s with hits like, I Was Made for Loving You and

and Rock and Roll All Night.

Born in Haifa, Israel, Simmons immigrated to New York City with his mother as a young boy, and was inspired to become a performer after seeing The Beatles appear on the Ed Sullivan Show. With an act for marketing and a love of music, Simmons created his demon persona to make Kiss a massive success. 44 albums later and had 100 million records sold, the band just finished their farewell tour in 2023.

Beyond his musical career, Gene Simmons has leveraged his stage personality into a career as an entrepreneur appearing on reality television and launching a successful merchandising empire.

In today's episode, Gene tells the story of his family's persecution and immigration to the United States,

how his upbringing shaped his personal philosophy, and his journey to becoming an iconic rock star. He also shares the reason for his deep American patriotism as well as a few

hard-learned lessons about love. Simmons' impact on American music and culture is undeniable.

Don't miss the legendary Gene Simmons on this episode much for stopping by. I appreciate it.

It's my pleasure. You're actually better looking than I thought you were.

Wow. I didn't think that was even possible since, as everyone knows,

I'm just like a godlike specimen. Well, as we both know, these are semantics, but I'm not

...