Chuck D Claps Back At Gene Simmons: ‘Hip Hop Is Rock N’ Roll’

Chuck D had a few choice words for KISS lead singer Gene Simmons. The Public Enemy rapper clapped back at the rock legend for his comments surrounding rap music being included in the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame.

During an interview with the LegendsNLeaders podcast, Simmons claimed, “Hip-hop does not belong in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, nor does opera, symphony orchestras … it’s called the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.” However, Chuck D doesn’t see it that way. The rapper tells TMZ that Simmons is too focused on the “Rock” part and not the “Roll.”

“Everything else, other than rock—when rock and roll splintered in the ’60s — is the Roll,” he said. “So [that includes] soul music, reggae, and hip-hop…”

“KISS are rock gods, but they don’t have a lot of ‘Roll’ With Them,” Chuck D says.

“KISS are rock gods, but they don’t have a lot of ‘Roll’ With Them,” Chuck D says. The rapper noted that while disappointing, facing exclusion is nothing new to him as a Black man.

“I’m Black, born in 1960,” he says. “Being told I don’t belong doesn’t faze me.” For Chuck D, his pleasure comes from the fact that he’s able to make money doing something he loves: making music. “I really relish the opportunity that I’m even able to be in the music business at all, and thank god for hip-hop and rap music making it possible.”

Public Enemy, one of hip-hop’s most influential collectives, was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame back in 2013. “Music with a message. Whether we’re talking hip hop or politics, Public Enemy was revolutionary. Their blend of politics, philosophy, and rap changed the game for the better,” the HOF website reads.