KISS' Paul Stanley - "I Stayed Away From Drugs; I Saw People Around Me Dying"
May 2, 2010, 14 years ago
KISS frontman Paul Stanley spoke with the Latimes.com recently about "how he made it". Here are a few excerpts from the chat:
Big dreams: As a child, Stanley was shy but felt in his gut that he could be a rock ‘n' roll star. "When I first saw THE BEATLES on Ed Sullivan, I was a pudgy, little, unpopular kid. But I had this epiphany that I could do what [the musicians on TV] were doing. To think that when you could count your friends on two fingers, and you're not the kid who's taking home the trophy for best looking, is your innate voice talking."
Not overdosing on success: Stanley embraced the stereotypical rock star lifestyle - to a point. "I stayed away from drugs. I saw people around me dying. I remember the first blush of fame, thinking, ‘Gee, this and drugs is a sure recipe for my demise,' " Stanley said. "When people said ‘sex, drugs and rock ‘n' roll,' I said, ‘You keep the drugs.' "
Financial lessons: Since getting burned financially early in his career, Stanley has paid more attention to money. "Anybody who's foolish enough to say, ‘I'm only in it for the love of what I do,' is bound to get screwed, because if you're not attentive to the financial aspects of it, someone else will be," he said. "And the person who has their arm around your shoulder will have their other hand in your pocket."
Read more here.
