Gene Simmons arrived on Capitol Hill this week with a message he made impossible to ignore.
According to PEOPLE, the 76-year-old KISS bassist took a seat before a Senate subcommittee on Tuesday and launched into an urgent appeal for lawmakers to finally require radio stations to pay performing artists when their recorded vocals are played on the air.
Simmons argued that the American Music Fairness Act would correct what he called a longstanding injustice — one that has left generations of iconic performers uncompensated every time their songs filled radio airwaves.
He reminded senators that legends like Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, and Elvis Presley “never got a penny for all the millions of times” their voices were broadcast.
During the hearing, Simmons said he recently raised the issue with country superstar George Strait during the Kennedy Center Honors. When Simmons asked if he realized he had never been paid for radio airplay of “Amarillo by Morning,” Strait was reportedly stunned and looked to his team for confirmation.
The disbelief, Simmons said, illustrated exactly why Congress needs to act.
“If you are against this bill, you are un-American,” Simmons told lawmakers. “You cannot let this injustice continue. It looks like a small issue … But our emissaries to the world are Elvis and Frank Sinatra.”
He pushed even further, using jarring language to describe how poorly performers have been treated.
“And when they find out we’re not treating our stars right — in other words, worse than slaves; slaves get food and water. Elvis and Sinatra and Bing Crosby got nothing for their performance. You’ve got to change this now.”
Simmons pointed out that nations around the world — including Russia and China — already pay both songwriters and performers for radio play. He said some countries have stopped sending royalties to American performers because the United States refuses to reciprocate.
“How do we dare come in second to Russia?” he asked. “An alleged country led by a despot, when they do a better job of paying our King of Rock & Roll, and we’re going to stand by and not pay today’s artists and future artists?”
Not everyone in the room supported the idea.
Henry Hinton, who owns four radio stations in North Carolina, warned the measure would devastate local broadcasters. He called the proposal “economically untenable for local radio broadcasters.”
“When new fees are imposed, free local radio’s only option is to cut elsewhere. Stations have to make the choice between covering local football games or paying new fees; between making their payroll, or sending more money to the recording industry — an industry currently making record profits, I might add,” Hinton said.
He appeared alongside Simmons and SoundExchange president Michael Huppe, who also testified.
Simmons’ appearance came just two days after he was recognized by President Donald Trump at the Kennedy Center Honors, where he was celebrated with fellow KISS bandmates and a slate of entertainment luminaries, including Sylvester Stallone, Michael Crawford, George Strait, and Gloria Gaynor.
