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Dee Snider

A new battle is brewing between Kiss star Gene Simmons and Twisted Sister's Dee Snider over the state of rock music in 2021.

The We're Not Gonna Take It singer has slammed Simmons for claiming "rock is dead" in recent interviews, insisting the Kiss founder needs to get out more.

"Rock is dead. And that's because new bands haven't taken the time to create glamour, excitement and epic stuff," Gene told Gulf News in January. "Foo Fighters is a terrific band, but that's a 20-year-old band. So you can go back to 1958 until 1988. That's 30 years. During that time, we had Elvis (Presley), The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Rolling Stones, on and on."

In a new podcast chat, Snider attacked his rock peer, calling his comments "selfish."

He told the Appetite For Distortion podcast, "Nothing makes me crazier than the words 'rock 'n' roll is dead'. It is so selfish, it is so self-serving, it is so self-absorbed. Self-this, self-that. It's just wrong. Get out of your f**king house, open your f**king ears and eyes, and just look around! Stop hiding.

"When Gene Simmons says, 'Let me tell you something, there's no Bob Dylans or Jimi Hendrixes...' No, you're just not looking."

Snider insists his kids keep him aware of "not only that there's new music but there's great music... The talent and passion (is out there)... because it's pure passion now.

"These young kids don't have a hope of getting rich doing it. Their best hope is that maybe we make enough money selling CDs and t-shirts after the show to get to the next f**king gig. It's so real, it's so heartfelt, it's so for the love of rock 'n' roll. It makes me crazy when people say, 'Rock is dead.'"

Alice Cooper has also dismissed Simmons' comments earlier this year, telling NME.com, "Rock 'n' roll is outside looking in right now, and that gives us that outlaw attitude."