The song was written by Paul Stanley and producer Bob Ezrin.

"Detroit Rock City" began with a guitar part by Paul Stanley, who explained: "I had the basic riff of the song, the 'get up, get down' part, but I didn't know what the song was about except it was about Detroit.

It started as a tribute to Detroit, and then it kind of took a left turn, because we played Charlotte once, and somebody coming to the arena was killed in an accident.

So there's a juxtaposition in that song about singing about how great Detroit is, and actually about someone going to the show who doesn't make it.

[5]Bassist Gene Simmons played an R&B-influenced bassline, which he considered a departure from his usual style.