Gene Simmons
Legendary co-founder of KISS & marketing wizard
Fueled by an explosive mix of makeup, costumes, and attitude, KISS burst onto the music scene in 1973 and has become a rock institution. There would have been no KISS without Gene Simmons. An immigrant from Israel arriving in the U.S. as a child, he brought with him a strong image of the American dream. His own vision of that dream soon began to take shape?Disney without the overhead. Simmons? product is not a rock and roll band but a rock and roll brand. The award-winning KISS merchandising effort has garnered more revenue in retail and concert merchandise than any other music act of all time, reports The Licensing Book.
Simmons also capitalized on his business savvy to create an enviable track record as the founder and president of Simmons Records, a label that was manufactured and distributed by RCA/BMG. He has become an accomplished producer of motion pictures and television projects, including New Line Cinema?s Detroit Rock City. Simmons has hit The New York Times best seller list with his first book, his irreverent autobiography, KISS and Make-Up.
Simmons talks about reality and illusion. He explains how to profit from illusion by using it to create value?and how important it is to first understand reality. Beginning with a video presentation, he shows how he has successfully applied these principles in the entertainment industry and how they can apply to any business.
Simmons was born in Israel, relocating to New York City as a child. He soon discovered comic books and rock and roll. In 1964 he was inspired when he watched the Beatles make their first U.S. television appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. As a teenager, he played bass in a number of New York area bands, and while in his early 20?s even tried his hand at teaching grade school. His teaching career was short lived, as he met another young rock and roll hopeful around this time, Stanley Eisen. Simmons and Eisen came up with the idea of putting on a real show for the audience?make-up, costumes, and a grand stage show. KISS became one of the top hard rock acts of the 70?s and beyond.
The band has sold more than 80 million records, has broken every concert attendance record set by Elvis Presley and the Beatles, stands behind the Beatles in number of gold records by any group in history, and has spawned more than 2,500 licenses.
Interested in booking Gene Simmons to speak at your next event?
Simmons also capitalized on his business savvy to create an enviable track record as the founder and president of Simmons Records, a label that was manufactured and distributed by RCA/BMG. He has become an accomplished producer of motion pictures and television projects, including New Line Cinema?s Detroit Rock City. Simmons has hit The New York Times best seller list with his first book, his irreverent autobiography, KISS and Make-Up.
Simmons talks about reality and illusion. He explains how to profit from illusion by using it to create value?and how important it is to first understand reality. Beginning with a video presentation, he shows how he has successfully applied these principles in the entertainment industry and how they can apply to any business.
Simmons was born in Israel, relocating to New York City as a child. He soon discovered comic books and rock and roll. In 1964 he was inspired when he watched the Beatles make their first U.S. television appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. As a teenager, he played bass in a number of New York area bands, and while in his early 20?s even tried his hand at teaching grade school. His teaching career was short lived, as he met another young rock and roll hopeful around this time, Stanley Eisen. Simmons and Eisen came up with the idea of putting on a real show for the audience?make-up, costumes, and a grand stage show. KISS became one of the top hard rock acts of the 70?s and beyond.
The band has sold more than 80 million records, has broken every concert attendance record set by Elvis Presley and the Beatles, stands behind the Beatles in number of gold records by any group in history, and has spawned more than 2,500 licenses.
Interested in booking Gene Simmons to speak at your next event?
Contact Greater Talent Network,
America's Leading Celebrity Speakers Bureau.
212.645.4200
info@greatertalent.com
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