KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons recently had pointed words for those critical of the United States just ahead of the country’s 250th anniversary yesterday, July 04th. During a solo performance at the ‘Summerfest‘ at Henry W. Maier Festival Park in Milwaukee, WI, the 76-year-old Rock & Roll Hall Of Famer spoke about his patriotism onstage, ahead of narrating a ceremony honoring World War II veterans in Washington, DC yesterday at the behest of the White House.
Simmons told the audience [transcribed by Blabbermouth.net]:
“In case you don’t know it, you are blessed. You are living in the greatest fucking country on the planet. And that’s called USA. Okay, I wanna tell you why I took a minute to talk about America, because if you’ve been asleep the last 250 years, tomorrow is America’s 250th birthday.
This is the greatest country, That’s why we’ve had anywhere from 20 million to 30 million illegal immigrants. Why? ‘Cause they are willing to break the law and come into the greatest country on the face of the planet, right here. We have more illegal immigrants than most countries have populations on the face of the planet. That’s a fact.
I myself am an immigrant, but a legal one. I came through the lawful way. You wait in line, you respect the country, you respect its laws, and then you become a citizen of the United States of America. And in return, you get police who risk their lives to protect you.
And you get first responders who are here for you. And if your house is on fire, you get fire departments that risk their lives to come put that fire out for you. You get a school system that’s yours, and everything is free. Cops, fire department, school — free. All you gotta do is follow the law and do it legally, okay?
I’m honored to say I’ve gotta get up at 3:30 this morning to catch a 5:00 a.m. flight because I’ve been asked by the White House to narrate the World War II Veterans honors in America’s 250th birthday tomorrow in Washington, D.C. And unless you guys think Fourth of July is just fireworks and all that, without our veterans, there would be nothing. There would be no America. There would be nothing.
Politicians talk the talk but veterans put their lives out there. All gave some, some gave all. Don’t forget. So the next time you’re going to a Starbucks and you see somebody in uniform, step aside and make way for a real hero. That’s the least you can do.
And if you don’t like America, please go back to where you fucking came from.”
While Simmons was personally honored by U.S. President Donald J. Trump late last year, he communicated this past March that he is not a fan of celebrities voicing their opinions on politics, even though he has done so himself in the past. This past spring, Simmons told TMZ:
“Everybody in the world should listen to what actors and comedians say, because they’re so qualified. Basically shut the fuck up. Do your art and shut up. Nobody’s interested in your opinions, that includes me. Who I vote for, who I like. Who the fuck do you think you are?
People in America work hard for their living and they don’t wanna be lectured to by people who live in mansions and drive Rolls-Royces. It’s time for everybody in the entertainment industry to shut their piehole and just do you art. Nobody cares what you think. I don’t…”
