Kiss To Team Up With Hello Kitty?

According to Blabbermouth.net, KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons revealed this past weekend via Twitter that he was scheduled to meet with executives to discuss, in his words, "a KISS-Hello Kitty worldwide deal. Wow."

As Japanese company Sanrio's most recognizable character, Hello Kitty has already joined forces with the rock band X Japan to create Visual-Kei Kitty (pictured here).

Although mainly aimed at the pre-adolescent female market, the Hello Kitty product range goes all the way from purses, stickers and pen sets to toasters, televisions, clothing, massagers, and computer equipment.

It has a cult-like following among adults as well, especially in Asia, where Hello Kitty adorns cars, purses, jewelry and many other high-end consumer products.

Also, Simmons himself played Jack ill Dark, the "Emperor" of rock, in the live-action film adaptation of Kiminori Wakasugi's "Detroit Metal City" comedy manga.

Comments

[N-D]

Simmons=money, NOT music...

[Salvo416]

Next thing you know... KISS will be joining forces with Pokemon... oh god!

[Charley2715]

I love kiss, but lets be honest...0% of their merchandising ever warrants front page news.

[institutions]

Running out of money there, Gene?
Nah, how could you when a new Kiss item comes out every week?

[chris_rod1406]

sell out!

[hazydavy]

While I'm just a greatest hits KISS fan, I think Gene is a genius. The name/brand long ago left any notion of musical relevance behind. You can't fault or begrudge the man that. He is far more intelligent than 99.99% of the musicians out there.
You can't act like this is anything new. They were doing this 35 years ago. The net just hits it with you faster.

[shwilly]

Hello Kitty is a Miffy ripoff, KISS made a career from ripping off Alice Cooper and the New York Dolls

I say this is a great match

[$hithappen$16]

hello kitty made to look like catman : match made in heaven?

[Jimmypageclone]

at least they're not bringing back the Kiss Coffin.

[simonguitardeus]

please stop

[hames jetfield]

Gene will team up with my mom if I pay him...suddenly hello kitty sounds good?

[stndrdprcdre]

Nothing I can say about this guy that hasn't already been said.

[awifal]

Jimmypageclone wrote:

at least they're not bringing back the Kiss Coffin.

lol that was terrible

[GimmeRock]

lol this very unlikely for me and sort of strange

[Ranmanbassist18]

w.e he lost shannon tweed hes got nothing now .

[shredibanez24]

Gene $immon$

[DanielN]

This makes sense... in Bizarro World

[nirvanarules888]

this is why I dont like them there must is great but how much can 1 guy sell out come on how much fing money do you need wile the rest of the world is poor?

[Mathedes]

Hello Kissy?

[Estranged_1]

The only thing more annoying than Kiss.....

..... Is Kiss fans!!

[headbang123]

Mathedes wrote:

Hello Kissy?

best comment

[yoman297]

inb4 how many times can one sell out?

[False_God]

They would sell their bodies if their heads werent attached to it, thats a fact.

[sickassfoo]

really? this is just weird

[nimrod_hahahaha]

great business. great music (a long time ago). can't fault this really, why shouldn't he ***** himself out for more money? to be honest i'd prefer bands to be doing this rather than 're uniting' in old age and putting out shit album after shit album like a lot of the old rockers seem to be doing. stick to what you're good at gene

[BuckinFuffalo]

i remember when i made tons of money... and still didn't have enough...

[K Reyn]

haha Gene Simmons is so awesome.

[Phoenix V]

Kiss has *always* been a business first and a band second with a large focus on marketing and image.

They haven't been about their music for a very long time. You all just need to accept that.

[RaySolava]

Phoenix V wrote:

Kiss has *always* been a business first and a band second with a large focus on marketing and image.

They haven't been about their music for a very long time. You all just need to accept that.

This.

[jacobdubya]

You can't really "sell out" if you had no artistic integrity to begin with.

[kai-sam]

money :/
whats next? kiss/barney

[gedlee]

Gene continues to make this band look like a F***** joke. What else is new. I lost about all my respect for Gene a long time ago because of crap like this..

[guitargodwannab]

ok so this might work. and to all those Simmons haters cause of his TV show....rly? your hating his buisness news cause of his PERSONAL LIFE. grow up

oh btw, Gene $immons is in the top 5 buisnessmen in THE WORLD. why else is the band worth about 500 MILLION dollars? besides being a great band with amazing records

[Randomrings]

jacobdubya wrote:

You can't really "sell out" if you had no artistic integrity to begin with.

you just blew my mind

Positive note on this: This makes Metallica Monolopy look a lot less fruity

[andras67]

at this point I don't get suprised by anything kiss does, but c'mon, Japan x??, what the hell where you thinking??

[andras67]

sorry I want to write X Japan, I'm a little drunk.

[manutd4lyf]

hames jetfield wrote:

Gene will team up with my mom if I pay him...suddenly hello kitty sounds good?

That's already been done

[MP94]

they just put it wrong.. it must be "HELL-O KITTY"

[aig91]

Checked

[VioletFox]

imonguitardeus :
please stop

Hahahaha

[Slap-happy]

I'd only consider buying this if they did what they did with the KISS comic in the 70s. Use their own blood in the dyes.

This time it had best be all of it.
Every
Single
Last
Drop.

[queenslander47]

/facepalm

[FourTwoZero]

God forbid if Gene Simmons teams up with the CEO of Activision...

[WalrusNutFart]

FourTwoZero wrote:

God forbid if Gene Simmons teams up with the CEO of Activision...

He actually already did that in one of the tony hawk video games.....

[stndrdprcdre]

Ranmanbassist18 wrote:

w.e he lost shannon tweed hes got nothing now .

Don't worry! They'll get back together in next week's episode.

[CrawlingHorror]

This just in: Gene Simmons to change his name to Justin Bieber!

"Hey, Bieber is hot right now and I want more money," the Israel-born Simmons revealed to the press.

He also disclosed that he had originally intended to change his name to Miley Cyrus, but her star began to fade, causing him to rethink his plans.

[CrawlingHorror]

"oh btw, Gene $immons is in the top 5 buisnessmen in THE WORLD. why else is the band worth about 500 MILLION dollars? besides being a great band with amazing records"

Yeah, Simmons is a better businessman than at least one of the following: Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, the Google guys, Warren Buffet and Bill Gates.

And you also believe in the tooth fairy.

Get therapy fanboy.

[Torico]

I love da Hello Kitty ^_^

[peachesenregali]

hazydavy wrote:

While I'm just a greatest hits KISS fan, I think Gene is a genius. The name/brand long ago left any notion of musical relevance behind. You can't fault or begrudge the man that. He is far more intelligent than 99.99% of the musicians out there.You can't act like this is anything new. They were doing this 35 years ago. The net just hits it with you faster.

far more evil...

[theotherguy7145]

Oh god. They'll be making soft toy kittys and stuff with the KISS facepaints on.

On the bright side I hope that it actually gets some kids and buyers of Hello Kitty into rock music at an early age?

[MonsterOfRock]

Salvo416 wrote:

Next thing you know... KISS will be joining forces with Pokemon... oh god!

May be then I might just listen to or buy Kiss/merchandise.

[aahlstrom93]

Salvo416 wrote:

Next thing you know... KISS will be joining forces with Pokemon... oh god!

What's wrong with Pokemon?

[dannydesktop]

not surprising. in b4 some idiot says there selling out cause of this lol.

[Binnigulaza]

DMC anime rocks, DMC Movie Sucks

[coco-axeman]

Not surprised at all...

[Saky077]

Am i the only one who finds this funny?

[jamesgdwin]

KISS=Awesome, this isnt selling out. selling out would be if they were changing their style of music for cash. this is pretty much just getting another sponser. Still awesome rockers