N.W.A was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this weekend, despite the protestations of Gene Simmons, who has long been adamant that rappers do not belong in Ohio’s most prestigious music institution. (The KISS bassist also recently stated that “rap will die.”) This was enough to prompt disagreement from Ice Cube, who told the New York Times that “N.W.A is probably more rock ’n’ roll than a lot of the people that he thinks belong there,” and to also get a rise from MC Ren, who dedicated part of his thank-you speech at the induction ceremony to Simmons. “I want to say to Mr. Gene Simmons that hip-hop is here forever,” he said at the podium. “We’re supposed to be here.” Not one to let a good feud die, Simmons fired back — respectfully, of course — on Twitter. Mrow! And here we thought Peter Criss was the catty one in KISS.
Update: Cube further addressed the beef during a Howard Stern Show appearance, later on Tuesday. “Gene, like I say, he’s an O.G.,” he explained. “I got a lot of respect for him, I just think he’s wrong on this. But I understand the attitude. I hate it when hip-hoppers go to the band, I’m a turntable guy, like old-school, Run-D.M.C. dudes … But ultimately, we in [the Rock Hall of Fame], baby!” Listen below for the full interview clip, in which the rapper also talks about N.W.A’s dropped performance:
