KISS’s Paul Stanley reveals what he hopes future musicians will “depend on less” in their careers.
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“Music, to me, isn’t about perfection,” the KISS frontman told PEOPLE.
Paul Stanley has big aspirations for the next wave of rock musicians.
At Clive Davis’ pre-Grammys party on Jan. 31, the 74-year-old KISS guitarist and lead singer, attending with his wife of 20 years, Erin Sutton Stanley, shared his hopes for future artists.
“I’d like to see people actually playing instruments,” Stanley told PEOPLE. “I hope they rely less on computers and technology and lean more on passion.” He added, “Perfection isn’t what I consider music — music is about passion.”
Although KISS is celebrated for its theatrical shows and elaborate costumes, Stanley has admitted that some of the band’s older songs no longer feel “age-appropriate.” During the November KISS Kruise in Las Vegas, he reflected on tracks like 1976’s “Take Me,” joking about its suggestive lyrics: “Put your hand in my pocket / Grab onto my rocket. Nice place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there.”
If he could revisit his career, Stanley says he wouldn’t change the music but would focus more on nurturing relationships with his bandmates. “If I have regrets, it’s that sometimes we weren’t smart or thoughtful enough in helping Ace [Frehley] and Peter [Criss] live better lives,” he said.
Gene Simmons echoed this sentiment, noting that the band often avoided difficult conversations to prevent conflict. “Let’s just continue the tour for selfish reasons — the money, the fans — while someone who might be like a brother is making bad choices,” Simmons said.
Stanley also reflected on the band’s 2000–2001 tour, intended as their farewell. He described that period as “really miserable,” with erratic performances and a lack of camaraderie. “Some nights were awful,” he recalled on The Magnificent Others with Bill Corgan. “It felt like we should just end it, but the band was always bigger than us.”