Machine Gun Kelly has been candid about his life experiences in his songs and in interviews for years. Most recently, he’s been opening up about his father, and how his dark past influenced who the musician is today. In an appearance on Bunnie XO’s Dumb Blonde podcast on August 5, MGK talked about a horrifying experience that his late parent endured at just nine years old.
According to the “Emo Girl” singer, his dad watched his own father die from an accidental gunshot wound. He then had to stand trial at the age of just nine, accused of the alleged murder of his own father. “The story that was always told to me was that their dad dropped the gun and his head essentially blew off.
All happened in the room with my dad at nine years old. So him and my grandmother were tried for the murder. They were both acquitted,” the rapper, 34, said on the show.
Here’s what we know about Machine Gun Kelly – and his relationship with his late father, James Colson Baker, up until his death. Where did Machine Gun Kelly grow up? {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"ImageObject","caption":"Machine Gun Kelly first began releasing mixtapes growing up in Cleveland.
Photo: @machinegunkelly/Instagram","url":"https://img.i-scmp.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2024/08/16/c50517ec-7f9b-4499-9615-18ff75bd85dc_7390c88c.
jpg"} Machine Gun Kelly first began releasing mixtapes growing up in Cleveland. Photo: @machinegunkelly/Instagram MGK was born in Houston, Texas, but lived in almost a dozen places throughout his childhood, including overseas. According to CapitalXtra, his parents were missionaries so they moved around a lot, living everywhere from Egypt and Germany to Chicago and Cleveland – where he began MCing and releasing mixtapes.
Per Cleveland Magazine, due to his stint in Egypt, a young MGK spoke Arabic before he spoke English. According to MGK’s interview with First Avenue, his father moved to Kuwait to work for the army while his son stayed behind and went to Denver’s Thomas Jefferson High School. At some point in ninth grade, MGK also lived in Kuwait, according to his post on X.
What did Machine Gun Kelly’s father do for work? Although some parts of MGK’s background aren’t very clear, US media reports that his dad, James Colson Baker, worked as a human resources executive for companies including Amoco, PepsiCo and Hewlett Packard before getting into missionary work when his son was in high school. According to MGK’s conversation with Dave Franco in Interview magazine, his dad was very strict. “I came from a father who was extremely religious and extremely strict, and wouldn’t even let me hold my pen the way I wanted to hold my pen,” he said.
“That made me rebel completely, and cut off communication completely, because I didn’t want to have any common ground with him.” MGK said he takes after his father During his appearance on Bunnie Xo’s Dumb Blonde podcast, MGK talks about how his “emotional side” comes from his father. “The emotional side of things I get from my father, who was very, you know, he wore everything on his sleeve,” he told the host.
“His depression was very obvious; his need for love was very [obvious]. I wish I could’ve told him before he died that I was really inspired by how emotional he was. I thought that was really cool in hindsight because I am very emotional as well.
” What happened to Machine Gun Kelly’s father? {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"ImageObject","caption":"A young Machine Gun Kelly with his strict but “emotional” father. Photo: Instagram","url":"https://img.
i-scmp.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2024/08/16/8cf07471-e2ec-422a-ba3e-a82b323909e8_3a4bcf23.jpg"} A young Machine Gun Kelly with his strict but “emotional” father.
Photo: Instagram Kelly recalled his last moments with his father in hospital in an interview on The Howard Stern Show . “The last thing we did was drink whiskey together,” he said. “I snuck a bottle in the hospital and we just drank”.
He said he asked his dad questions about his birth and past. Is Machine Gun Kelly close with his mum? {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"ImageObject","caption":"Machine Gun Kelly introduced the world to his mum in 2022.
Photo: @machinegunkelly/Instagram","url":"https://img.i-scmp.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2024/08/16/f304da85-72d4-4a57-bcce-1dc93e583716_818b6ccc.
jpg"} Machine Gun Kelly introduced the world to his mum in 2022. Photo: @machinegunkelly/Instagram Having previously opened up about how his mother had abandoned him at age nine and left his father “for another dude”, MGK reconciled with her in 2021, per British media. “The fans are responsible for me and my mum finally reconnecting,” he said on X at the time.
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"ImageObject","caption":"Machine Gun Kelly had a turbulent childhood, but managed to turn things around. Photo: EPA-EFE","url":"https://img.
i-scmp.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2024/08/16/6bab9aba-92f3-409b-be76-2c405a48bfa3_361b3867.jpg"} Machine Gun Kelly had a turbulent childhood, but managed to turn things around.
Photo: EPA-EFE A year later he shared a sweet photo of the pair on Instagram, simply writing: “Introducing ...
my mum.” How many children does Machine Gun Kelly have? {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"ImageObject","caption":"Casie Colson Baker and her dad Machine Gun Kelly at the 2021 American Music Awards in LA.
Photo: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic","url":"https://img.i-scmp.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2024/08/16/5c9a12da-2bc5-4ea3-9a71-392843a73f03_4d896d01.
jpg"} Casie Colson Baker and her dad Machine Gun Kelly at the 2021 American Music Awards in LA. Photo: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic These days, MGK is a father himself. He currently has one daughter, Casie Colson Baker , who he welcomed with his ex Emma Cannon in 2009, per People.
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"ImageObject","caption":"Contrary to rumours sparked by MGK’s recent music video, Megan Fox is not pregnant. Photo: @machinegunkelly/Instagram","url":"https://img.
i-scmp.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2024/08/16/1845c60e-810d-4e45-b141-d27f147059f6_8a66ae79.jpg"} Contrary to rumours sparked by MGK’s recent music video, Megan Fox is not pregnant.
Photo: @machinegunkelly/Instagram And, of course, he’s currently dating Megan Fox , who sparked pregnancy rumours last month after debuting a bump on MGK and Jelly Roll ’s “Lonely Road” music video. The rumours were later dismissed by US media, who said it was just for the video. In a new interview with Jelly Roll’s wife Bunnie XO on her podcast, MGK tells how his dad watched his own father die from a self-inflicted gunshot wound – then had to stand trial for his alleged murder The Bloody Valentine singer spent the first few years of his life in Egypt, and spoke Arabic before he spoke English; he also lived in Germany, Kuwait, Denver and Ohio.
