KISS has been one of rock music’s most iconic bands for over 50 years. See photos of Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, and more over the years.

“You wanted the best? You got the best!” That electrifying intro is instantly recognizable to fans of Kiss, one of the most iconic rock bands in history. Formed in New York City in 1973, the group quickly made a name for themselves with their larger-than-life personas, explosive live shows, and unforgettable anthems. Founding members Gene Simmons (bass/vocals) and Paul Stanley (vocals/guitar) joined forces with guitarist Ace Frehley and drummer Peter Criss to create a band that blended hard rock with theatrical spectacle — complete with over-the-top pyrotechnics, wild stage acrobatics, and Simmons’ signature blood-spitting act.

Beyond their music, Kiss became pioneers in band branding and merchandising, putting their name and logo on everything from action figures to comic books. Their bold, distinctive makeup became a cultural phenomenon, with each member creating their own unique persona. Over the years, the band has gone through multiple lineup changes, including a brief makeup-free era in the 1980s, but Simmons and Stanley have remained the group’s core.

The band announced their End of the Road farewell tour in 2019, culminating with their final performance on December 2, 2023, at Madison Square Garden in New York City. In August 2025, Kiss was named one of the recipients of the Kennedy Center Honors in 2025—an accolade celebrating lifetime contributions to the performing arts. They’ll join legends like George Strait, Gloria Gaynor, and Sylvester Stallone at the December ceremony, now hosted by President Donald Trump.

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Despite the fact that Kiss have always embraced the character element of their band, they are still humans under the make-up, and like all humans, they were prone to a fight.

Kiss may well have tapped into a minor cheat code when they first put on the face paint, and it’s something that some bands might want to consider. While Kiss originally decided to wear the make-up in a bid to look like a unified band, they ended up making the audience obsessed with characters rather than them as individuals.

The benefit that came with this side of the band is the fact that when members left, people didn’t criticise the new lineup quite as much. While they might have known people in the band were changing, so long as the characters that they knew and loved were still taking to the stage every night, the audience was happy to keep going along with it.

As a result, there have been a range of different line-ups in Kiss, but the band have never struggled to sell out every arena that they travel to. That being said, while fans are aware there have been plenty of different line-ups, they tend to prefer the original group. This consisted of the two constants in the band, Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, as well as guitarist Ace Frehley and drummer Peter Criss.

Frehley and Criss both had good runs with the band and enjoyed the spoils of being in one of the greatest rock outfits of all time, but their stint with Kiss came to ugly ends, particularly with Criss, who decided to sabotage one of Kiss’s sets in a bid to be kicked out. Despite the fact there was already rising tension between members, very few could believe what Criss was actually doing when he played out of time on purpose.

During a show in December 1979, shortly after the band had released Dynasty, an album which is no doubt a fan favourite but also a haphazard record which reflects the growing divides within the band, Criss had had enough. He was ready to leave the band and resented everyone he was sharing a stage with. Given his feelings were so strong, having Paul Stanley on stage and telling him to play slower in front of the crowd didn’t just get under his face paint, but his skin.

“What that says to everybody in the arena is that I’m the one fucking up the band,” recalled Criss when talking about his resentment towards Stanley’s actions. In response, he did as Stanley asked and slowed the playing right down, too far down, so far down that the song was basically operating at a crawl, and Paul Stanley had to ask him to speed back up again.

“I’m like ‘Make up your motherfucking mind!’” Recalled Criss, “People in the audience could hear me screaming that at him. I just stopped playing; I didn’t care anymore.”

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