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KISS spent the majority of its five-decade career disguising their faces in makeup. Now, as the band plans the next phase for its music and iconic characters, KISS is still leaving its fans with mystery and intrigue.
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After the culmination of The End of the Road Tour in December, KISS began the year with the sale of its name and likeness and plans to live eternally in the digital world. Details are scarce, but the band has said the virtual performance should launch in Las Vegas in 2027. In a conversation with Billboard’s Behind the Setlist podcast, frontman Paul Stanley won’t say exactly how the group will carry its legacy into the future. But in typical KISS fashion, Stanley has ambitious goals.
“It’s a must-see, go-to experience,” Stanley boasts. “It’s beyond anything that anyone else has contemplated.”
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Virtual artists are nothing new: a Tupac Shakur hologram appeared at Coachella in 2012, and avatars have resurrected deceased musicians such as Ronnie James Duo and Whitney Houston for live performances. Those earlier examples of digital likenesses pale in comparison to Abba Voyage, a high-budget, mixed virtual reality-live music concert in London that has won rave reviews.
In April, KISS sold its name and likeness rights to Pophouse, the Swedish company that helped build Abba Voyage around virtual versions of Abba’s four members made to look decades younger. Although those early generations of avatars wowed audiences, KISS isn’t content to replicate the previous models, says Stanley.
“We’re creating something that’s not a concert,” he explains. “The idea of a hologram — and it’s not a hologram, but that term seems to get thrown around a lot — but the idea a simulated concert is not what we want to do. Frankly, I would find that boring.”
Like Abba Voyage, which takes place in the purpose-built, 3,000-capacity ABBA Arena in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London, the KISS experience will require a dedicated venue built around the technology, says Stanley. Las Vegas is filled with venues, from Sphere to T-Mobile Arena to numerous theaters that host long-term residencies (Bruno Mars at Park MGM, for example). Stanley is mum on the venue but tells Billboard the final product will be more advanced than Abba Voyage.
“Now, mind you, the Abba show is an older technology, because technology moves ahead at an exponential rate,” says Stanley. “So, by the time that show started to be presented, there was new technology.” To that end, he adds, KISS will work with Industrial Light & Magic, the visual effects company founded by filmmaker George Lucas that produced special effects for the Star Wars, Terminator and Jurassic Park franchises.
KISS fans got a preview of its plans in December when then band revealed digital depictions showed at the final End of the Road concert and released a two-minute sizzle reel, KISS: A New Era Begins, that shows the band donning motion-capture technology to create their digital likenesses. Stanley insists that the final product will be far more advanced.
“That was just an early — I don’t want to say rendering — but an early version of what is to come and is still being worked on,” says Stanley. “But it bears little resemblance to what was there. What we were showing was just the inception of the idea that we can continue on outside of flesh and blood.”
As for Stanley, he expects to stay busy outside of prepping the Las Vegas show. Stanley leads a retro-soul band, Paul Stanley’s Soul Station, that plays original and classic soul songs and released an album, Now and Then, in 2021. He has forged a successful career as a painter. Asked if he’ll release another solo album—following his 1978 eponymous album and Live to Win from 2006 — Stanley keeps his fans guessing.
“We’ll see,” he says. “I’m not done with music, that’s for sure. I’ve become more judicious in what I do, picking and choosing, because as you get older, you see more and more that anything you do takes you away from something else. And at some point, it really comes down to picking and choosing what you do as it relates to what you don’t get to do. So yeah, I mean, I’ll certainly do more music. Music is a big part of who I am.”
Listen to the entire interview with Paul Stanley at the embedded Spotify player below, or go to Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, iHeart or Everand.
Kendrick Lamar went viral once again, but this time it wasn’t because of a surprise diss track. UFC 306 happened over the weekend in Las Vegas for “Noche UFC” at the Sphere to celebrate Mexican Independence Day, and a bunch of celebs were in attendance to catch the main event between Sean O’Malley and Merab Dvalishvili.
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One of those celebrities was boxer Terence “Bud” Crawford, who was taking in the action as he was seated next to Turki Al-Alshaikh, the chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority.
However, while the producers of the telecast got Al-Alshaikh’s name correct, they confused Crawford for rapper Kendrick Lamar when the camera panned to one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world. Of course, fans took notice and posted videos of the gaffe all over social media, with one user telling UFC they will be, in fact, “going to hell.”
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Both Crawford and UFC boss Dana White had a laugh about the situation. Bud felt like it was done on purpose by some young, intrepid producer who’s been tapped in with the rap battle that defined the summer.
“To be honest, I think it was intentionally done just for laughter because how can you get us mixed up?” Crawford told TMZ. “All in all, it was funny to me.”
He also told the outlet that a bunch of people hit him up referencing when Kendrick name-dropped him in his Drake diss song “Euphoria,” where the Compton rapper told his rival, “I don’t like you poppin’ s–t at Pharrell, for him, I inherit the beef/Yeah, f–k all that pushin’ P, let me see you Push-a T/ You better off spinnin’ again on him, you think about pushin’ me/ He’s Terrence Thornton, I’m Terence Crawford, yeah, I’m whoopin’ feet.”
During the post-fight press conference, White also had some fun with the mixup and said he had already spoken to the boxer about the mistake. “I was talkin’ to Terence Crawford,” he said while laughing. “I don’t wanna call him … I don’t know who the hell did that and thought it was … Yeah, that was pretty bad. He did kind of look like Kendrick Lamar, though, let’s not f—k around … So, when I said we had a flawless production tonight, I take that back.”
Dana White says UFC mistaking Terence Crawford for Kendrick Lamar was the lone error of the #UFC306 broadcast from Sphere.”That was pretty bad. He did kinda look like Kendrick Lamar, though.” pic.twitter.com/zUVl79xO8W— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) September 15, 2024
In other K. Dot news, he dropped an untitled track with cryptic lyrics that seemed to be aimed at Drake and the rap industry at large where he proclaims that “it’s time to watch the party die.” This new song comes just days after he announced that he would be headlining Super Bowl 59 in February.
Lil Pump is and lambasting Taylor Swift for her endorsement of Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. The “Gucci Gang” rapper took to X on Monday (Sept. 16), where he put the pop titan on blast for supporting Harris and questioned her intelligence.
“Taylor Swift, you have no clue why ur even voting for Kamala,” he began. “Maybe cuz ur a billionaire and voting for her has 0 impact on ur life. You said do ur research, clearly you didn’t do ur research. Right after the debate u endorsed her lol Right after she lied many many times!”
Billboard has reached out to Swift’s rep for comment about Lil Pump’s tweets.
As part of his X rant, he also shared a fake comment from Taylor Swift that seemingly called Pump out and unleashing Swifties on him. Numerous users on X pointed out to the rapper that the tweet he purported to be from the superstar was not real.
“Stop acting like ur so innocent YOU ARE PUSHING PPL TO VOTE FOR KAMALA! Inflation through the roof and ppl are struggling to pay bills They def won’t be able to afford tix to ur shows,” he continued. “She said she will make changes right away, WHY DIDNT SHE THE PAST 3.5 years?”
In one particularly vulgar tweet, the Florida rapper questionably guaranteed he’ll be hitting the Super Bowl Halftime Show stage before T-Swift, and again pledged his allegiance to Donald Trump. “… vote 4 trump and never look back fam also i bet i perform at the superbowl before her cringe a–,” he spewed in part.
While his music hasn’t been able to cut through on the Billboard charts, Pump has pivoted to put his energy into advocating for Trump in his journey for a return to the Oval Office. The 24-year-old even declared that he’s leaving the United States if Harris wins the 2024 election.
“I swear on my dad’s grave, if this stupid-a– bi— Kamala Harris wins the f—ing election, I’m moving out of America, boy,” he said on Instagram Stories in early August. “I swear on everything.”
Even though Swift hasn’t name-dropped Donald Trump, the twice-impeached former president lashed out at the pop star. “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!” the business mogul — who in May was convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records — wrote in all caps on Truth Social on Sunday (Sept. 15).
Following Sept. 10’s presidential debate, Swift made a political splash when endorsing Kamala Harris.She hailed the candidate as a “warrior” and a “steady-handed, gifted leader.”
“Like many of you, I watched the debate tonight. If you haven’t already, now is a great time to do your research on the issues at hand and the stances these candidates take on the topics that matter to you the most,” she wrote. “As a voter, I make sure to watch and read everything I can about their proposed policies and plans for this country.”
Taylor Swift is being showered with love despite Donald Trump‘s hate. The former president lashed out at the pop superstar on his Truth Social over the weekend following her recent endorsement of Kamala Harris in the 2024 U.S. presidential election. “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!” Trump wrote in all caps. Trump’s post comes just days after Swift took […]
Flavor Flav is seemingly everywhere these days. The Public Enemy hype man who became Team USA’s number one athletic supporter this summer when he opened his heart, and wallet, to help Team U.S.A.’s water polo squad — and other athletes — has made a number of new industry friends during this year of the Flavaissance.
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But few have had as much of an impact was rapper-turned-country superstar Jelly Roll. In an interview with People magazine, Flav, 65, describes what it is about Jelly, 39, that he finds so endearing and inspiring. “I’m proud to say it… that’s my guy,” said Flav, who the magazine said put on a Jelly Roll T-shirt during the interview.
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“Let me tell you something: Jelly Roll is one of the most positive people right now, man. And his music is so positive, so dope and it ways so much,” Flav added of the singer who gearing up to release Beautifully Broken (Oct. 11), the follow-up to his 2023 breakthrough album Whitsitt Chapel. “And not only that, but Jelly Roll’s music helped out a lot of people that have been down, you know what I’m saying? And the whole nine.”
And while they don’t seem to have a lot in common on the surface, Flav said he thinks he and Jelly essentially serve the same purpose in their music. “That’s another role that I play. I play the role like a Jelly Roll, you know what I’m saying? Because there’ll be a lot of people that be down in life and when they see me, I brighten up their day and it takes away that negativity that’s going on inside of them,” said Flav, whose indefatigable energy and positive vibes are always on full display in much the same way Jelly uses his music to speak to others who are struggling in an effort to lift them up. “Jelly Roll has the same effect. So me and Jelly Roll have something in common, man.”
The two men’s bourgeoning relationship has been chronicled on social media over the past year, including their meet cute in Sept. 2023 backstage, in which Jelly told Flav how much he loved him as the PE rapper casually dropped a bunch of Jelly’s song titles to prove his superfandom. “I’m just the son of a sinner man… I’m just one drink away from the devil,” Flav joked. In December, Jelly posted an Instagram video in which Flav brought him a birthday cake before his slot at last year’s Jingle Ball.
They also hung on the red carpet at the iHeartRadio Music Awards in Los Angeles in April and Flav spoke out in support of Jelly later that month when some online trolls were bullying the singer over his weight.
“On a personal note, Jelly Roll is one of the nicest, one of the absolute nicest men on the planet,” Flav said at the time. “A lot of people would love to be like Jelly Roll. All y’all trying to judge my boy Jelly Roll, I think y’all need to take a step back and judge yourself.”
Flav also introduced Jelly Roll at his The Night Before show in Detroit in April and was spotted shouting along to “Somebody Save Me” at one of Jelly’s shows in August.
Jane’s Addiction singer Perry Farrell has apologized to his bandmates for the ugly scene on Friday in Boston when the vocalist attacked guitarist Dave Navarro during a show.
“This weekend has been incredibly difficult and after having the time and space to reflect, it is only right that I apologize to my bandmates, especially Dave Navarro, fans, family and friends for my actions during Friday’s show,” Farrell said in a statement shared with Billboard.
“Unfortunately, my breaking point resulted in inexcusable behavior, and I take full accountability for how I chose to handle the situation,” Farrell, 65, added in the mea culpa that came several days after the shocking scene at Boston’s Leader Bank Pavilion when the singer attacked Navarro during a performance of “Ocean Size.”
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In fan videos of the moment, an agitated Farrell lunges at Navarro and throws a shoulder into his bandmate before punching the shocked-looking guitarist as the two men are separated and Farrell is dragged backstage.
Navarro, 57, issued a statement on Instagram on Monday morning apologizing to fans for the disturbing scene and for the cancellation of the rest of the reunited band’s U.S. tour. “Due to a continuing pattern of behavior and the mental health difficulties of our singer Perry Farrell, we have come to the conclusion that we have no choice but to discontinue the current US tour,” Navarro wrote.
“Our concern for his personal health and safety as well as our own has left us no alternative. We hope that he will find the help he needs,” he continued. “We deeply regret that we are not able to come through for all our fans who have already bought tickets. We can see no solution that would either ensure a safe environment on stage or reliably allow us to deliver a great performance on a nightly basis.” The note was signed “our hearts are broken.”
In addition, a source tells Billboard that Farrell is “heartbroken” by his actions. “He realizes that he waited too long to prioritize his well-being. His exhaustion and the toll it has taken on both his physical and mental health has gone too far. He had the best of intentions heading out on tour with the band and feels like he’s let his fans and family down.”
On Saturday, the band issued a statement in an Instagram Story announcing that Sunday night’s planned show in in Bridgeport at the Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater had been canceled before announcing that the entire tour was scotched.
Shortly after the on-stage blow-up, Farrell’s wife, Etty Lau Farrell, issued a statement about the incident that featured some background on what she said contributed to the meltdown. “Clearly there had been a lot of tension and animosity between the members.. the magic that made the band so dynamic. Well, the dynamite was lit,” she wrote on Instagram alongside a video of the onstage fight. “Perry’s frustration had been mounting, night after night, he felt that the stage volume had been extremely loud and his voice was being drowned out by the band. Perry had been suffering from tinnitus and a sore throat every night. But when the audience in the first row, started complaining up to Perry cussing at him that the band was planning too loud and that they couldn’t hear him, Perry lost it.”
She also noted that backstage Jane’s bassist Eric Avery “put Perry in a headlock and punched him in the stomach three times … Perry was a crazed beast for the next half an hour — he finally did not calm down, but did breakdown and cried and cried. Eric, well he either didn’t understand what descalation meant or took advantage of the situation and got in a few cheap shots on Perry.”
The beloved alt rock group was formed in Los Angeles in 1985 by Farrell, Navarro, Avery and drummer Stephen Perkins and released two highly influential studio albums — 1988’s Nothing’s Shocking and 1990’s Ritual de lo Habitual — before embarking on their farewell tour as part of 1991’s first Lollapalooza festival. Avery had long been a hold-out in subsequent reunions, replaced by the Red Hot Chili Pepper’s Flea on a 1997 tour and then by Martyn LeNoble and Chris Chaney on subsequent tours. The original four gave it another shot in 2008 for a world tour, though Avery took leave again in 2010 before the release of the band’s fourth studio album, The Great Escape Artist.
Avery was back in the fold again in 2022 and, after Navarro’s absence for two years due to the effects of long COVID, the guitarist was back on stage this year for the North American tour, the first by all four original members in 14 years. The outing launched in early August and was slated to run through mid-October. At press time the future status of the band was unknown.
See Navarro’s statement below.
Taylor Swift and Scooter Braun are on opposite ends of one of the music industry’s biggest feuds — but when it comes to the 2024 presidential election, both of them are on the same side.
The SB Projects founder made that much clear when he responded to Donald Trump’s viral “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT” post — which the politician declared on Truth Social Sunday (Sept. 15) — via Instagram Stories. Resharing Trump’s post about the pop star, Braun wrote, “Shake it off Donald,” referencing Swift’s Billboard Hot 100-topping 1989 lead single.
“Kamala 2024,” the music entrepreneur added.
Billboard has reached out to Swift’s rep for comment.
Braun’s post comes five days after Swift shared her endorsement of Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, which was the catalyst behind Trump touting his dislike for the 14-time Grammy winner over the weekend. In a lengthy message on Instagram Sept. 10 that was posted right as the presidential debate ended, Swift wrote that she believes Harris is a “steady-handed, gifted leader” and called out the twice-impeached ex-POTUS for sharing AI-generated images falsely portraying the “Karma” artist as a MAGA supporter.
Between then and now, Trump has said that he “was not a Taylor Swift fan” and suggested that she would “pay a price … in the marketplace” for endorsing Harris. He’s also started selling T-shirts directly imitating Swift’s Eras Tour merch on his campaign website.
Trump’s VP pick, JD Vance, has also weighed in. “I don’t think most Americans — whether they like her music, are fans of hers or not — are going to be influenced by a billionaire celebrity, who I think is fundamentally disconnected from the interests and problems of most Americans,” he said of the pop star on Fox News’ The Story Sept. 11, after which Harris’ campaign pointed out the irony of Trump also being a billionaire celebrity before crossing over into politics in 2016.
Braun’s post also marks the third time in recent weeks that he’s spotlighted Swift on his Story, turning the heads of many fans who haven’t forgotten his bitter conflict with the superstar over the sale of her masters in 2019. In August, he not only reshared a TMZ article about the “Anti-Hero” singer’s beachside getaway with Travis Kelce and Blake Lively — “How was I not invited to this?!? #laughalittle,” he wrote at the time — but the mogul also told followers that he had “finally watched” Max’s Taylor Swift vs Scooter Braun: Bad Blood.
“You’d think after his previous posts about her he’d learn by now,” an industry source told Billboard at the time. “It’s like he’s obsessed.”
Much has been made about Kendrick Lamar’s selection as the headlining performer at the Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show, but 50 Cent thinks it’s K. Dot’s time to shine. 50 stopped by The Talk on Friday (Sept. 13), where he defended K. Dot being the right pick to take the Super Bowl LIX stage in […]
Taylor Swift was feeling the sparks fly when Travis Kelce first came on the field at the Kansas City Chiefs vs. Cincinnati Bengals game Sunday (Sept. 15). Once again in attendance at Arrowhead Stadium to cheer on her favorite NFL team, the 34-year-old pop star attracted lots of eyes as she viewed the match from […]
Cardi B is sharing her home movies. After announcing that she and estranged husband Offset welcomed their third baby together on Sept. 7, Cardi pulled the curtain back on her bundle of joy in a one-minute TikTok video on Sunday (Sept. 15). The clip from Cardi’s hospital room entitled “Babygirl” [followed by three pink flower […]
