It’s one of the great oddities of the world of music, and to this day we still aren’t sure why so many great musicians have passed away at the age of 27. However, KISS’ Gene Simmons might be attempting to shine some light on the matter, announcing today he’s writing a book about the infamous ’27 Club’.
As Blabbermouth reports, Simmons’ book, 27: The Legend And Mythology Of The 27 Club, is due for release in August and is “about all the sadness with these people who killed themselves.”
“Frances Bean, Kurt Cobain’s daughter, is friends with my son, they hang out,” he said. “You should read the quotes she does in the media. ‘Hey, it’s real cool your father dies while you’re still a baby from drugs.’ No, it ain’t. It sucks.”
“You’d be shocked at how deep this runs mysteriously. But, again, it’s not about the idea that it’s 27, although we ask that question: ‘Why then? Why not 28? Why not 30?’ and all that,” he continues. “But it’s really about when you become rich and famous and everybody admires you, what is that thing that makes people destroy themselves, even to die? What is that?”
“The rest of the world adores you and your fans love you and they give you money and fame and all that, and then you kill yourself. I don’t get it.”
As you would more than likely be aware, the “27 Club” is the collective name given to the group of famous artists who passed away at the age of 27. Notable members of this club include Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain, The Rolling Stones’ Brian Jones, Amy Winehouse, The Doors’ Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, the Minutemen’s D. Boon, and Big Star’s Chris Bell.
Oddly, Gene Simmons‘ claim that he’s writing the book about “these people who killed themselves” might see him come across a stumbling block, namely the fact that out of all of the names mentioned above, only Kurt Cobain’s death was officially ruled a suicide. Even then, if he was to referring to drug use in his statement, only Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin would officially be included.
Gene Simmons also revealed that he has “literally never been high or drunk” in his life, explaining “if you drink enough, your equipment won’t work. If you get high, trust me, you’re not gonna be witty or look cool. No, there’s nothing about that. We’ve gotta tear down this stupid fascination with it; it’s self-destructive.”
“What’s happening with opioids is killing everybody,” he continued. “No, there’s nothing cool about that. I’ll tell you what’s cool — somebody who arches their back, stands up straight and says, ‘Every day above ground is a good day. Now watch me burn rubber.’ That’s cool.”
While we definitely have to wonder about what makes a 68-year-old Gene Simmons the authority on famous musicians dying at 27, we do have to even show a little bit of curiosity as to what this book will be like.
Check Out Gene Simmons’ ‘Radioactive’:
