KISS Frontman PAUL STANLEY: COVID-19 'Kicked My Ass'

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Paul Stanley says that his battle with COVID-19 is over. The KISS frontman tested positive for the disease caused by the novel coronavirus last week, forcing the postponement of at least three KISS shows. Yesterday evening (Monday, August 30), Paul took to his Twitter to write: "My COVID symptoms were MILD compared to many others and let me tell you... It kicked my ass. It's over now." KISS called off its show last Thursday in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania while fans were waiting for the gates to open. "I had been sick with flu-like symptoms and was tested repeatedly and was negative," Stanley tweeted that day. "As of late this afternoon I tested positive. The crew, staff and band have all tested negative once again." In a social media post, KISS said the whole band and the crew members who are traveling with them on the tour are fully vaccinated. Members of KISS "and their crew have operated in a bubble independently to safeguard everyone as much as possible at each show and in between shows," the band wrote in the statement. "The tour also has a COVID safety protocol officer on staff full-time that is ensuring everyone is closely following all CDC guidelines," the statement continued. On Friday, KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons told "TMZ Live" that Paul is "gonna be great because he got vaccinated. He's gonna be fine… Yesterday he started feeling like his voice wasn't up to it and he started feeling a little fatigued. So we always take precautions. And we sent a doctor over, and he said, 'Okay, you may be coming down with something. You guys better just stop.' And that's exactly what we did. And at the right time, as soon as we heard from the doctor, we had paramedics come in from a local hospital and tested the entire crew — the truck drivers, our backstage lineup, the band and everything. Everybody tested negative; Paul tested positive. Now we're quarantining ourselves — all of us; the band, the crew and everybody — for at least five days, just to make sure that we're not carrying it even though we're not experiencing anything. I feel great. We can do shows. My voice is great. Paul is not feeling great. And to be safe for everybody else, we're making sure." KISS kicked off the summer 2021 leg of its "End Of The Road" farewell tour on August 18 at the Xfinity Center in Mansfield, Massachusetts. The concert marked the band's first full-length live appearance in front of an audience since March 2020. KISS's farewell trek was launched in January 2019 and was originally scheduled to conclude on July 17, 2021 in New York City but is now expected to last well into 2022. KISS's current lineup consists of original members Stanley and Simmons, alongside later band additions, guitarist Tommy Thayer (since 2002) and drummer Eric Singer (on and off since 1991). Formed in 1973 by Stanley, Simmons, Peter Criss (drums) and Ace Frehley (guitar), KISS staged its first "farewell" tour in 2000, the last to feature the group's original lineup.

My COVID symptoms were MILD compared to many others and let me tell you... It kicked my ass. It's over now. pic.twitter.com/8HDMjKZT37

— Paul Stanley (@PaulStanleyLive) August 31, 2021

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