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    • MGK blurs genres, brings out Lainey Wilson and solidifies star status at Nashville’s Skydeck
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    MGK blurs genres, brings out Lainey Wilson and solidifies star status at Nashville’s Skydeck

    Eira Gwyneth Posted on

    Cleveland-raised, genre-blending rising superstar MGK performed a headlining performance at Nashville’s Skydeck on Tuesday night. McKenna Grace and Avery Anna opened, Lainey Wilson appeared as a guest from MGK.

    Genre-busting, Cleveland-raised pop star Machine Gun Kelly’s (aka MGK) free Nashville showcase Tuesday night at Skydeck on Broadway downtown was something of an awakening of kindred spirits.

    On a sultry autumn evening, around 2,000 fans gathered in a 100,000 square meter building.

    And then a hailstorm broke out.

    MGK thunders into the country’s redefined pop expectation

    “Man, that’s one hell of a vibe,” said the artist, who for two decades has tried to deal with the traumas associated with childhood bullying, depression and tragedy through graffiti tagging, guitar riffing, kick-flipping and singing As a songwriter, he has made his way through no fewer than half a dozen musical genres, selling 5 million albums and 50 million singles.

    Last year, he came to Nashville at the behest of his Grammy-nominated, bluesy-singing rapper and country singer pal Jelly Roll. This happened simultaneously with the centuries-old tradition of country music winning a metaphorical shootout with the wisdom of all genres of the music industry.

    As a result, country music and Western culture will not remain exceptions in pop for the next 50 years.

    “It was supposed to be an acoustic set, but this night looks like we modeled it on a Hollywood movie,” MGK continued from the Skydeck stage.

    If MGK were an artist who fit the country’s traditions, an acoustic set would have made sense. However, like the hailstorm that accompanied the first half of his concert, it pushes uncomfortably against expectations, washing away the old while thundering in the new.

    Raw lyrics encourage serious interactions between artist and audience

    During the performance, MGK smoked about half a pack of American Spirit cigarettes.

    MGK performed nine songs Tuesday night, followed by child actress-turned-teen pop artist McKenna Grace, opening night, and 20-year-old 2024 CMT Next Women of Country class member Avery Anna.

    During the first quartet of songs, he nervously navigated “BMXXing” by performing as if he were a local rapper at an open mic night, relying on the crowd to get him excited and in response in response spat out bars to catch him through. “Papercuts” followed as he picked up the first of five guitars he would play in an hour, playing grunge crunches in the style of Green Day’s album-era “Dookie.”

    He began to calm down with a solo version of his 2019 YUNGBLUD and Travis Barker collaboration “I Think I’m OKAY,” the pop-rock grooves, thousands of screaming fans, and the sudden chill of a storm-tossed breeze closing in on him calm down – At least that’s what conventional logic would lead you to believe.

    “I Think I’m OKAY” contains the following shockingly raw revelation of a lyric:

    “I guess it’s just my life and I can take it if I want / But I can’t hide in the hills of California / ‘Cause these hills have eyes and I’m paranoid / I’ve hurt myself sometimes, that’s too scary.” for you?”

    Chanting these thoughts every night is probably a lot less easy than it seems. MGK hopped off the stage and hugged fans over the guardrail while signing autographs between songs to calm himself down. While singing about suicidal thoughts, he looked into the eyes of a young fan on his mother’s shoulders. When he was finished, he greeted her:

    “Oh my God! That was you in West Virginia?!?!? There were a lot of sports fans there, but you, a little girl who always smiled for me, got me through this show! Thank you for being here!” As the crowd cheered in approval, he invited the girl and her mother to the stage to sit near the stage for the rest of the show.

    MGK’s ballad work furthers his journey toward healing from his traumas

    “I’m smiling because I feel like I’m in a room full of friends – it’s either that or the mushrooms,” MGK joked on stage.

    MGK happily hugged no fewer than half a dozen children during his live performance.

    As he launched into record-defying renditions of songs like the pop-punk ballad “Forget Me Too,” he slid off his knees feeling like Jimi Hendrix at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967.

    When singing “Don’t let me go”, the lyrics “I ran from secrets that I hated as a child and I never confronted them / I just called mom / Said I forgive her for not being there.” was when I needed her.” ” Anders was struck given his recent revelation on Jelly Roll’s wife Bunnie’s “Dumb Blonde” podcast

    When he sang his rendition of Zach Bryan’s “Sun to Me” and arrived at the line, “Find someone who makes flowers grow in the darkest parts of you,” it not only solidified MGK in discovering a personal path to country authenticity , but also something of his own work in this genre reflects the possibility of finally having a space in which he can proudly present his best, healing self to the world.

    Lainey Wilson appears, euphoria sets in

    Instead of Jelly Roll performing during MGK’s performance of their new duet “Lonely Road,” he was instead joined by the country’s reigning Entertainer of the Year, Lainey Wilson.

    This moment caused the brightest euphoria to pour from MGK’s tattooed chest and mouth, similar to the most bizarre Care Bear of all time.

    It also allowed him to announce the next course of the mainstream country industry’s genre-bending, pop culture-invading effort.

    “Having Lainey here makes me feel so accepted in the community here in Nashville – (“Lonely Road”) isn’t just a country song or whatever you want to call it. It is a US Song that speaks volumes about community development in this city.”

    The idea that embracing the truth inspires unprecedented freedom is at the core of all country music that leads American popular culture. On Tuesday night, after this expression of honesty, three happy children stood on stage with MGK and loudly sang along to “Bloody Valentine.”

    “I don’t do fake love, but I’m gonna take something from you tonight (take something from you tonight) / I know I gotta go, but I might just miss the flight / I can’t stay forever, let’s play.” as if / And treat this night like it’s happening again / You’ll be my damn valentine tonight,” they sang.

    “We should only do a few songs, but that’s not my ethos,” MGK offered on stage.

    On the one hand, describing everything that happened on stage Tuesday night might make you feel like you’re speaking in mentally confused word salads. However, if you take everything that happened as seriously as possible – just as MGK honestly tried to hug each of the nearly 2,000 fans in attendance – what seemed to be unhinged coalesces into joyful innocence.

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    Eira Gwyneth
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