Vinnie Paul passed away on June 22nd
According to TMZ , Vinnie Paul Abbot , drummer for Hellyeah and former member of Pantera and Damageplan , will be buried in a Kiss , provided as a gift by Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley .
The drummer's brother, Dimebag Darrell Abbot , who was a Kiss fan and had a tattoo of Ace Frehley , was buried in 2004 in a coffin that featured the faces of all four members of Kiss. Dimebag was shot and killed during a Damageplan concert.
In a 2004 interview with The Washington Times , “Pantera was the opening act for Kiss in 1997. We toured South America and had a flight on my birthday, which is March 11th. We were flying to Chile, Kiss was in first class, and we were in business class. Halfway through the flight, they all came up to me and sang 'Happy Birthday.' They gave me a book, Kisstory . I felt like a 14-year-old boy. I had tears in my eyes.”
Vinnie Paul's funeral will be held today, June 30th, and will be private, with a public memorial service on July 1st. He will be buried next to his mother and brother.
Paul passed away on June 22nd in Las Vegas, at the age of 54. It is suspected that he suffered a heart attack, but this information has not yet been confirmed.