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Biography
MGK has since departed from the rap scene and entered the pop punk and alternative rock genres. This musical duality is just one of MGK’s star qualities; the musician also has several acting credits to his name.
MGK was born in Houston, TX, but bounced around as far as Egypt before settling into Colorado with his father. With his mother out of the picture, MGK struggled growing up as his father dealt with depression and unemployment. The young artist found solace in MCing and channeled the dark feelings in his life into his rhymes after taking inspiration from Ludacris, Eminem, and DMX.
As he grew up, MGK began to find all sorts of troubles for himself, including fighting and drugs. After his first mixtape was released in 2006, it led to bigger and better things for the rapper. His fan base grew locally and soon enough he was touring high schools around the country. His excited fans often caused such a commotion that security began to turn him away from his own gigs.
In 2009, MGK performed at the famed Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York City. Not only was he the first rapper to win the Apollo Theater Showcase competition, he won three times in a row. He gained further exposure that year when he freestyled his “Chip Off the Block” single on MTV2’s “Suckerfree Freestyle” show.
MGK kept working hard through the birth of his first child and even self-managed a potentially career-ending bit of vocal damage. He was rewarded when the release of his Lace UP mixtape boosted his popularity to new heights.
MGK signed a deal with Bad Boy/Interscope and, after being one of XXL’s 2012 freshmen, his debut album was released, hitting number four on the charts and selling over 50,000 copies in its first week. He followed that up with the release of 2013’s Black Flag mixtape, featuring the likes of French Montana and Wiz Khalifa.
In 2014, MGK made his film debut. He played a rapper named Kid Culprit in the romantic drama Beyond the Lights. The next year in June, he released his second album, General Admission. This was followed up with the joint single “Bad Things” with Camila Cabello in 2016. It climbed to number four on the U.S. Billboard 100 chart.
Shortly after, MGK was set to join Linkin Park’s One More Light Tour as a supporting act. The tour was canceled, however, due to the tragic death of frontman Chester Bennington. MGK later paid tribute to Bennington by releasing an acoustic cover of the band’s song, “Numb.”
In 2018, MGK got into a feud with Eminem which spawned a series of hits for both rappers. MGK released, “Rap Devil,” a response to Eminem’s diss track, “Not Alike.” The song reached the top of the iTunes Chart. Later that month, Eminem responded with the song, “Killshot.”
MGK then dropped his new EP, Binge. He followed up with a new studio album, Hotel Diablo, which debuted at number five on the Billboard 200 chart, making it his fourth Top 10 album. It includes the single, “I Think I’m Okay,” with Yungblud and Travis Barker. This would be the first of many collaborations between MGK and the Blink-182 drummer.
The following year, MGK teased an upcoming pop punk album produced by Barker. Tickets to My Downfall came out in September 2020 to critical acclaim. The record was also a commercial success, debuting at the top of the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. It became MGK’s first album to be certified platinum by the RIAA.
MGK’s sixth studio album, Mainstream Sellout, is also a collaboration with Barker. The album dropped in March 2022 and became the highest-selling album of the week. It was also MGK’s second number one album.
The next month, MGK announced his engagement to actress Megan Fox. The pair met while filming the 2021 movie, Midnight in the Switchgrass. They’ve also starred together in MGK and MOD SUN‘s comedy, Good Mourning. MGK has also appeared in the movies Nerve, Bird Box, Big Time Adolescence, The Dirt, and Project Power. While this multi-talented artist has had success pursuing acting, he shows no signs of stopping releasing music for his fans worldwide.
Live reviews
One of the most unique American rappers that is currently on the scene, Machine Gun Kelly rarely disappoints – whether it be through his live performances or his many mixtape releases since he made his musical introduction in 2010. His punk-like appearance doesn't make him seem like he would make the best rapper, but his hard hitting lyrics and ridiculously fast flow would instantly prove you wrong, and there was no better showcase of those features than on his 2013 Raging With Reindeer Tour. Walking onto the stage puffing a cigarette and wearing a dufflecoat, you could already tell that MGK was a charismatic character. Everyone immediately started screaming as the smoke machine erupted and the lights flashed on and off continuously, building a strong atmosphere in Club 77 as he said 'welcome to the greatest show on earth'. Starting the show all guns blazing with songs from his latest mixtape 'Black Flag' including 'Breaking News', probably the most energetic song from his discography which naturally got the audience incredibly hyped up. The addition of a live guitarist and drummer on set meant that MGK's song had a rock & roll feel to them, something that fans can anticipate on his upcoming tour dates with Limp Bizkit. In dedication to the Jacksonville-based band, he performed his own cover of the massive hit Rollin' which was one of the many occasions during the night that the roof got torn off.
The amazing amount of energy that Machine Gun Kelly brings to his live shows clearly reflects on the nature of his audience, who are always bouncing and hand waving at every opportunity. The 24-year-old is certainly a natural born performer and has a great future ahead of him if continues to have the same enthusiasm whilst touring.
billy_taylor
How do I even start here? It was my girlfriends and myself s first concert ever, and just the anticipation of knowing we would see him in real life was already tearing our stomachs up. We were so nervous and also maybe I was little more jittery than her because I knew what I was going to try later on that night. But first let me tell you how big of fans we are of his, that way whoever reads this can compare with their level of respect for Kells. We've seen every thing he's most likely applied to on YouTube, all the kellyvisions, and watched him coming up way back when. I can even remember my buddies in highschool laughing at me whenever I would try to tell them about the most inspirational dude on the planet. Anyways from opening with DubXX who sent a wicked ass vibe to jump start things off and get everyone even more physced up. To the point whenever MGK came up I had to stand behind my girl so she wouldn't get knocked over. That night May, 2nd 2017 was one I'll rant about forever. After he did our song I got down on one knee and proposed to her, the people around us knew what I was doing cause I asked them to not step on me please so they didn't just do that but also had a spotlight of phones on us with a huge circle. Everybody was screaming it was so cool definitely felt like a dream. King Kells will have us at his concerts for now on when they're close, but if we didn't need jobs and bill money we'd see every damn one he has on the globe!
Tres001
It’s been a pretty meteoric rise for Machine Gun Kelly who has gone from rookie rapper to rap-rock superstar. And one of the main reasons for this is his incredible live shows. His ‘90 Cities in 99 Days’ tour shows just how much he loves playing to his fans and he always puts on the best show. The gigs are high octane, high energy, wild – and usually shirtless. And they’re never short of a dramatic moment or two. You’ll see the audience on the stage or MGK crowdsurfing through them. But it’s his rapid fire flow (hence his Machine Gun tag) that’s the real draw.
That’s what made his debut album stand out so much and live these songs come to life. Tracks like ‘Edge of Destruction’, ‘Hold On’ and the title track, ‘Lace Up.’
You’ll also get his big hit ‘Wild Boy’ and if you’re lucky you may even get a cover of Limp Bizkit’s “Rollin” – he’s recently supported the Bizkit on tour – as well as Invincible, which was the official theme song of WrestleMania XXVIII. And that’s not forgetting his slew of mixtapes, including the most the recent "Black Flag" which included the Diddy-featuring ‘Champions’. From the clubs to the stadiums, wherever he plays you can be sure Machine Gun owns it.
DannyjWright
Machine Gun Kelly is definitely a force to be reckoned with in the Hip-Hop world. Hailing from Cleveland, Ohio, this artiste signed to Bad Boy and Interscope Records. He takes his stage name for his rapid-fire lyrical flow in reference to the infamous criminal George “Machine Gun Kelly” Barnes. He performs this evening at a basketball court, seamlessly flowing through his lyrics, rapping at a speed that I have rarely heard before. This guy has so much charisma, and this audience know it as he launches into his song “Wild Boy”, which just lifts the roof of this venue, seeing this whole audience with their hands in the air, waving them from back to front and side to side, some people trying their best to join in and keep up with Machine Gun Kelly’s flow but no one comes close. He follows this with “Freestyle”, which has plenty of curse words but who cares? This guy is fantastic and truly a master of his trade.
Lannistaar
MGK is one of the BEST live performers ever. I fucking mean it. I've seen many, many bands and musicians on stage, but Kells beats them all. He's perfect. And he's probably the coolest dude alive right now. Everything he does, the way he moves, the way he raps... you can't beat that level of coolness, tbh. He's even better on stage than on the record, and his albums are dope af already. Everyone NEEDS to see this guy live at least once in their lives. Cause if you don't, then you definitely miss out on an amazing show. I wish I could see him again on this tour, I already miss the concert.
rocket-queen
Absolutely incredible performance, one of the best concerts I have ever seen. He is on an elite level as a performer. He was the opening act for Fall Out Boy so was a shorter show, he performed for about 35-40 minutes. The negatives were he didn't sing Alpha Omega, and only sang the chorus from Wild Boy. In fact, he never did any of the signature double-time fast raps that he's named for, which was a bit of a downer. Overall, though, showed an incredible range of talents rapping, singing, and playing guitar.
craig-fossella
I loved seeing him live! It was my first time! He’s so full of energy! He jumped up on the speakers && back off, into the crowd && ran a loop through the sections && aisles. His band was awesome, I loved the drums && electric guitar he totally rocked out on as he sang! His voice is deep && almost country singer like, I wish he’d do an album in the style he performed or even if it was a chopped && screwed album! It’s definitemy worth the expense && I can’t wait to see him again next time he comes around!!
ellie-cinquegrano
The gig was high octane fuelled music and energy from both Machine Gun Kelly and the excited crowd. Machine Gun Kelly did not disappoint from a live performance to climbing on the upper deck of the venue to the crowd and yes they went wild. It was raw and honest performance especially his rendition of Numb by the band Linkin Park and dedicated to Chester Bennington. Very solid and wild but controlled performance by Machine Gun Kelly I'm sure there's more to come from him and bigger venues in his future.
Went to see him perform three times in one week (I'm a BIG fan) and I got to specifically point out that his energy on stage is LIT.
Whether he's playing a small venue like Rockhal (LUX) or a festival like Mainsquare Festival (FR), he's able to create an amazing vibe and a strong bond between the audience and himself.
MGK is a true artist, and above all true to his heart. He dares to speak his mind and I can only applaud that. Lace Up, EST for life.
MiroTheCat
This show was absolutely amazing. I'll remember it forever. MGK and Mod Sun's energy was amazing. Best night of my life. This tickets weren't super expensive and the people at the concert were cool for the most part. Took a lil while for the concert to start up but it was worth the wait. IF YOU ARE AN MGK OR MOD SUN FAN I STRONGLY RECOMMEND YOU ATTEND A SHOW IN THE ALPHA OMEGA TOUR! You'll regret it if you don't.
devin-parham-1
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