Gene Simmons Apologizes for Saying Prince's Death Was 'Pathetic'
Simmons, 66, called Prince's death "pathetic" earlier this week.
— -- Gene Simmons is clarifying his previous remarks about Prince's death.
Simmons apologized on Tuesday for multiple remarks he made about the late singer, who died last month at the age of 57.
The Kiss frontman received backlash from friends, family and fans after calling Prince's death "pathetic" and insinuating that the singer died from a drug overdose in an interview with Newsweek. Kiss co-lead singer Paul Stanley denounced the statement on Twitter, saying that he was "embarrassed" by Simmons' comments.
A cause of death has not yet been announced for Prince, though an autopsy was completed shortly after his death. Toxicology results are expected in the coming weeks.
Prince's longtime attorney L. Londell McMillan has disputed suggestions that the performer had a drug addiction.
"Everybody who knows Prince knows he wasn't walking around drugged up," McMillan said. "That's foolish. No one ever saw Prince and said, 'He looks high.' It wasn't what he was about."
Simmons, 66, took to Twitter to clarify his remarks as well as apologize to his fans.
“I apologize — I have a long history of getting very angry at what drugs do to the families/friends of the addicts," Simmons wrote. "I get angry at drug users because of my experience being around them coming up in the rock scene.”
Simmons further explained that his remarks about Prince stemmed from his personal experience with drug users, and acknowledged that he was not right to make assumptions about Prince's death without any factual evidence.
“In my experience they’ve made my life, and the lives of their loved ones, difficult. I was raised in a culture/crowd where drug addicts were written off as losers, and since that’s the narrative I grew up with, it’s been hard to change with the times.
"Needless to say, I didn’t express myself properly here," he continued. "I don’t shy away from controversy, and angry critics really don’t bother me at all. If I think I’m right, I’ll throw up a finger and dig my heels in and laugh. But this time, I was not. So, my apologies.”