Sure, Machine Gun Kelly has been in the headlines for his music a lot. But let's be honest: fans are more excited about his romantic collaboration with Megan Fox than they are over his video collab with Halsey.
Fans are pretty sure that Machine Gun Kelly's meeting Megan Fox was pretty much the best week of his life. It's true that the rapper really rose to fame in 2018 thanks to a public feud with Eminem, but his "soulmate" status with Fox is probably helping keep him in the spotlight.
As CheatSheet highlights, it wasn't always that way. Machine Gun Kelly struggled to get fans' attention back in the day, releasing four different mixtapes between 2006 and 2010. So the "feud" with Eminem put Kelly in the spotlight, connecting him to the notorious rapper in a way that couldn't have happened otherwise.
The fact that both rappers are signed to the same label (Interscope) suggests that the pair may have closer ties than fans first assumed. After all, each rapper's diss track about the other used the same producer. Besides, MGK has called Eminem his inspiration in the past, naming him as one of the early influences on his career.
Anyway, now that "Machine Gun Kelly" is squarely in the public eye, fans want to know everything about him. Starting with his real name, and how he got his rap moniker.
According to AllMusic, the rapper was born Colson Baker and earned his rap name as a teen. He started rapping in high school and made his own way with gigs he created with the help of his manager, who was a t-shirt shop owner. Around that time, Baker also welcomed a child with his now-ex, Emma Cannon.
MGK is clearly very much in his daughter's life (she's 11), though the jury's out on fans' opinions of his parenting abilities. After all, the star is a bit reckless (and Megan Fox climbed up the roof of The Roxy in LA, according to his Instagram (and press inquiries) back in September.
He really is making a name for himself as quite the character. But the nickname Machine Gun Kelly ultimately came from Baker's rapping ability. His speed at riffing off lyrics was rapid-fire, like a machine gun.
If Wikipedia is to be believed, Baker's early fans gave him the title, which also stems from notorious criminal George "Machine Gun" Kelly Barnes. The 1940s criminal, CheatSheet notes, committed crimes such as illegal liquor trafficking, bank robbery, and kidnapping.
The connotation probably isn't surprising to fans, since Baker himself identifies as an anarchist and has done a bit of rule-breaking in his day, too.
The final question fans have about Machine Gun Kelly's name: is that what Megan Fox calls him?