Saturday, July 4, 2026

KISS is On Trump’s List: Iconic Rock Band Confirmed as A Kennedy Center Honoree, with Stallone, Strait, Gloria Gaynor, “Phantom” Star

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KISS is on Trump’s list.

I’ve confirmed through several sources that the iconic New York rock band will be a Kennedy Center honoree.

Donald Trump will make his announcement today at sometime.

KISS founder Gene Simmons is a Trump, ally of course. A Republican who was born in Israel, Simmons has often supported Trump and conservative causes.

Simmons has also criticized Trump, mildly, in the past.

But to get a rock band to accept the Kennedy Center award from Trump — who may change the name to honor himself — Trump didn’t have a big group of potential nominees.

Simmons and KISS will join Sylvester Stallone, Michael Crawford, George Strait, and Gloria Gaynor.

It’s a B List for sure.

Gaynor is known for two hits, really one — “I Will Survive.” She’s Black so Trump and Richard Grenell have covered that base. Otherwise, she’s a ridiculous honoree.

Strait, Stallone, Simmons are all Trump fans. Crawford was the star of “Phantom of the Opera,” Trump’s favorite show.

Liza Minnelli? Denzel washington? Fuhgeddaboutit.

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Roger Friedman
Roger Friedman
Roger Friedman is the founder and editor-in-chief of Showbiz411. He wrote the FOX411 column on FoxNews.com from 1999 to 2009, where he covered Michael Jackson, and previously wrote the "Intelligencer" column at New York magazine in the mid-1990s, where he covered the O.J. Simpson trial. He also edited Fame magazine. His bylines have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the New York Daily News, the New York Post, Vogue, Details, and the Miami Herald. He is a voting member of the Critics Choice Awards (Film and Television branches), and his movie reviews are tracked by Rotten Tomatoes. With D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus, he co-produced the 2002 documentary "Only the Strong Survive," which screened at Directors' Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival.

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