“I stand by every word,” the rocker said.
Gene Simmonswas made for loving theDancing With the Starsseason 33 couples and he’s not apologizing for it.
TheKISSfrontman raised eyebrows on Tuesday night’s “Hair Metal” episode of the dance competition.
Gene Simmons on ‘Dancing With the Stars’.Disney/Eric McCandless
But despite plenty of online backlash, Simmons is defending his remarks.
“The media is clickbait,” he told theDaily Mail.
“I stand by every word I said.
Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough, Gene Simmons and Bruno Tonioli on ‘Dancing With the Stars’.Disney/Eric McCandless
I had a great time.
The contestants were great.
The show was great.
Watch the show.”
Disney/Eric McCandless
“It was a lot of fun,” Simmons continued.
“Everybody’s got something to say.
Watch the show, it was a lot of fun.
Everybody had a great time.”
Notably, he gave out season 33’s first 10 to Brooks Nader and Gleb Savchenko.
Nader is aSports Illustratedswimsuit model, who began her routine on Tuesday night with a bit of pole dancing.
When Simmons told contestant Phaedra Parks, “Settle down.
It’s a family show,” Ribeiro rebutted, “Oh, NOW, you care.”
Entertainment Weeklyhas reached out to ABC with a request for comment.
A representative for Simmons' did not immediately respond to EW’s inquiry.
Dancing With the Starsairs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and Disney+.
