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20 Dec 2025 3:51
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  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    Gary Kemp believes musicians who struggle with fame "shouldn't be in the business"

    The Spandau Ballet guitarist suggested the likes of Chappell Roan - who has repeatedly complained about the scrutiny she has faced and being "yelled at in public" by fans - should lead "anonymous" lives instead, though he acknowledged up-and-coming artists may not realise what life in the public eye is like until it is too late


    He told the Daily Telegraph newspaper: "I mean, really, you shouldn't be in the business If you really feel like that, should you? Maybe you should just go out anonymous and never put a video out or a photograph out... but maybe they don't know until it's happened to them and then it becomes tricky."

    Gary believes his brother, former bandmate Martin Kemp, is "more of a celebrity" than he is.

    He said: "He's more of a celebrity than me. Years and years ago, fame was something that could get you a table at a restaurant or get you nearer to the front of the queue."

    And the 65-year-old songwriter is uncomfortable with the modern idea of stars being more open about their lives, particularly through social media.

    He said: "I loved Bowie when he was full of mystique. I didn't really like him when he went on 'TFI [Friday]' and told dad jokes."

    Gary - who has Finlay, 34, with ex-wife Sadie Frost, and Milo, 20, Kit, 16, and 12-year-old Rex with wife Lauren Barber - doesn't think Spandau Ballet received the credit they deserved at the height of their fame in the 1980s because of their largely female fanbase.

    He said: "If you're a good-looking band, you'll tend to have a lot of girls following you... and if that was the case in the 1980s, you weren't worthy. Blokey bands that had more men following them would be seen to be better musicians, for some reason - I have no idea why that is other than sexism, because you know us and Duran [Duran], who did have a lot of female followers, all played our instruments really well.

    "All wrote pretty good songs, were all great singers, but for some reason, we were discredited by that, especially by a lot of the male music writers from the time."

    © 2025 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

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     Today's News

    Accident and Emergency:
    Emergency services are responding to a serious crash involving a motorcycle on State Highway 35 near Opotiki in the Bay of Plenty 21:57

    Entertainment:
    Kylie Jenner is refusing to "live for whatever everyone else wants" her to do 21:50

    Entertainment:
    Lauren Cowell has joked a funeral could come before a wedding "at the rate we're going" 21:20

    Law and Order:
    Police are urging anyone with information to come forward, following suspected arson at Invercargill's Queens Park around two weeks ago 21:17

    Entertainment:
    Gene Simmons has apologised for stating that former KISS guitarist Ace Frehley died as a result of "bad decisions" 20:50

    Entertainment:
    Julia Louis-Dreyfus felt "backed into a corner" to reveal her cancer diagnosis 20:20

    Entertainment:
    Jamie Lee Curtis will be taking a break from social media over the Christmas period 19:50

    Entertainment:
    Melissa Joan Hart was fired twice in one night during "one of the worst days" of her life 19:20

    Law and Order:
    A former travel agent has been sentenced to 13 months' home detention after deceiving her employers and acquaintances 18:57

    Entertainment:
    Amanda Seyfried has "done a lot of therapy" 18:50


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