KISS Fans to March on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

(KISS Fans Website) - Plans for a protest rally at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame continue after fans of the iconic rock group KISS received a letter from Hall of Fame president Terry Stewart.

'Unacceptable!' says Joe Apple, who initiated contact with the Hall by requesting an explanation for KISS's absence on the ballot for Hall of Fame induction. Apple is not only a fan, but the chair of the rally planned for Aug. 5, 2006 at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum in Cleveland, Ohio. 'We have no intention of backing down,' he asserts.

'They really missed the point,' agrees rally co-chair Paul Carpenter. "Among other things, Stewart told us that: 'candidates are reviewed and discussed relative to their impact on this music that we broadly call rock and roll.'"

Artists become eligible for induction in the Hall of Fame 25 years after the release of their first record. According to the Hall, criteria include the "influence and significance of the artist's contribution to the development and perpetuation of rock and roll."

Carpenter said, "What the Hall establishment fails to acknowledge is not just KISS's impact on music, but on rock and roll itself. KISS not only created a musical spectacle, but a culture. For much of the world, the word 'KISS' is synonymous with the phrase 'rock and roll.' KISS reset the bar for other artists when they stormed into the '70s. Three decades later, their influence on show business is everywhere.'

Apple and Carpenter have received support for the protest rally from all over the world. 'The outreach from fans, performers and volunteers is exactly what we expected: generous and enthusiastic,' Apple says. 'We can't wait until August.'