‘I earnt that s***’: Machine Gun Kelly addresses hostility from the rock community

Musician has been criticised by some for hopping between genres

Machine Gun Kelly has addressed the hostility he believes he is faced with as a pop-punk artist, claiming it “kills” certain bands to see his success.

The controversial rapper and singer, real name Colson Baker, is releasing his new album, Mainstream Sellout, this Friday (25 March).

In a new interview, he spoke about the criticism he has faced after transitioning from rap to rock music, stating that he’s “earnt that s***”.

“I know it kills certain bands in that community that I got the success that I got. But I earned that s***,” he told Billboard.

“Dude, I was f***ing loading up the van with our drums and amps in 2010, driving to Indiana and Chicago, playing Warped Tour. I can tell you the f***ing Wi-Fi codes to venues in Blackfoot, Idaho. Can you say that s*** as a band?” he asked.

Addressing his role in the ongoing revival of the pop-punk genre, he commented: “The 2010s was great for singers and rappers, and I was part of that. But I think we needed something else: we needed an instrument. Kids come up to me like, ‘Dude, the first time I ever saw someone play guitar in concert was at your concert – and now I take guitar lessons.’”

“[Rock] needed a defibrillator,” he added. “Who cares who gives it, just as long as that motherf***er doesn’t die?”

Machine Gun Kelly is known for his controversial statements (Getty Images)

Shortly after the interview was published, rapper Joyner Lucas called out Lollapalooza festival for having MGK as a headliner, while billing Lucas lower down.

He claimed to have rejected the festival’s “weak ass” offer but said the festival had put him on the poster anyway.

​​“Then you got this goofy ass n***** headlining? Smh how sway?” he wrote, alongside a photo of Machine Gun Kelly. “Ain’t nobody worried bout a n**** who paints his nails.”

MGK came under scrutiny this week over resurfaced video clips that showed him making unsavoury comments about women.

Posting on Twitter, fellow musician Alice Glass called on him to apologise for what she branded “predatory behaviour”, including comments where he admitted to having a crush on a then-17-year-old Kendall Jenner.

In a separate clip, he told an interviewer that “Black girls give the best h***”, in comments that Glass called “disturbing”.

The Independent has contacted Machine Gun Kelly’s representative for comment.