Machine Gun Kelly spoke to RESPECT about a variety of topics, including working with DMX, Mac Miller topping the charts, his upcoming album and Drake.
On His Album "Lace Up":
RESPECT: You said it’s going to be timeless. What did you do differently in the process to really ensure the music lasts?
MGK: I didn’t speak on any subjects that can limit that. I didn’t speak on any subjects- there’s no cars, money, clothes, hoes. I think it’s been the same with all my mixtapes really. I think all my mixtapes- I mean, Rage Pack is kind of for the now, but Lace Up mixtape and 100 Words and Running mixtape, where I spit over all industry tracks, are timeless raps. I think you could go back and play those records 15 years from now and be like, “Goddamn, that kid could rap his ass off."
On Drake:
And Drake brought you out to perform “Wild Boy” in Cleveland. What does someone like Drake mean to hip-hop? He shows so much love to everyone? He embraces all the younger artists.
MGK: It’s fucking cool. It’s tight. You know, I learned from that. I learn from him when he speaks how he does, when he acts how he does towards other artists. It definitely makes me mature as a young artist, it makes me be like, “Okay, maybe shunning people is not the route.” Not that I do that, per se, but I definitely do have a lot of competitiveness in my blood, where I’ll be like, “Shit, muthafucker, I want that number one spot.” But when you see Drake who has the number one spot so willingly give it all, it’s cool.
On The Music Industry:
You had one lyric which really stood out for me recently, “Colleges only come around here looking for Brett Favre.” The record industry seems like the perfect analogy for college these days because you can become educated on your own. Like Mac Miller sells 100,000 records and becomes number one. How do we break down the stigma attached to not attending college, for artists?
MGK: Fuck this industry, man. I can’t tell you anything about it. I’m not an industry muthafucker. I don’t pay attention to shit that goes on in the industry. I don’t give a fuck who sold 100,000 records. I don’t give a fuck if I sell 100,000 records. I don’t give a fuck who’s number one. All I want to do is change the world for my generation of kids, and I know that no artists who’s out, or is coming out, is going to do that except for me.
Check out the entire interview here
