Machine Gun Kelly Says He’s “Hands Down” A Top 5 Rapper In The Current Class

    Machine Gun Kelly has one of the largest cult fan bases in Hip Hop music today. His music has inspired many in their late teens and early 20’s to follow his movement but is often times not considered a top rapper by many in the industry.

    Recently sitting down with Invasion Radio, MGK said he believes he is a top rapper and his fans can back him up on the matter.

    “Hands down, there’s no way I’m not in the top 5, it just makes no sense,” he said. “If I’m honestly not considered in the top 10 lyricists of right now [shakes head]. You can’t tell my fans there’s a better rapper than Machine Gun Kelly.”

    Perhaps any proof of the Cleveland native’s lyrical ability is evident on his latest release, Black Flag. MGK also talked about his newest album and said it’s his most well received release to date.

    “I’m actually going to consider that my second album. I’m calling it a free album,” he said. “I think I’m just going to continue to work these songs and do different variations of the production of the songs and release those… This is my best received project I’ve ever released.”

    Watch the full Machine Gun Kelly interview with Invasion Radio below:

    RELATED: Machine Gun Kelly – Black Flag (Mixtape Review)

    134 thoughts on “Machine Gun Kelly Says He’s “Hands Down” A Top 5 Rapper In The Current Class

      1. I’m glad without a Google search I have no idea who YMCMB or MMG is. I can’t get the radio off fast enough when I hear this pop rap. I don’t shop for hip hop music at iTunes, Walmart & Target.

    1. He is one of the top 5 rappers to have a career that ends within 5 years though. This pop music they call hip hop now days is a joke. His rap career wouldn’t have even been giving the opportunity to start at all in the 80′ or 90’s because people wouldn’t have put up with this lame garbage.

    2. There is no top 5, all of these new rappers suck. The only one good enough to be on a top 5 is Jay Electronica. I’m not impressed

      1. oh he 39 so that means……what? you a lame ass nigga for that comment. you trying to date him or what?

    3. MGK stans are the only ppl that rate him as an MC everyone else see the truth hes a corny wigger his lyrics are shit fuck him n his bullshit ‘message’ lace up is one the dumbest hip hop sayings ever along with swag n dat shizzle saying

      1. Top 10 real niggas in rap no pussy niggas

        1. Gucci Mane
        2. Beanie Seagel
        3. Lil Boosie
        4. DMX
        5. Jadakiss
        5. 50 cent
        6. Yo Gotti
        7. Styles P
        8. Webbie
        9. Ja Rule
        10. Trae the Truth

      2. IF you think Gucci Mane can even be referenced in as a top anything besides most ignorant rappers alive then you don’t have the slightest clue what hip hop is supposed to sound like. Lil Boosie hahaha wow Ja Rule hahaha you are killing me with this list. How old are you 13?

    4. Dude is one of the best spitters and probably THE best performer of the new generation. A lot of these new rappers don’t have fanbases, they only have people who buy into the hype, but this dude is building a die hard fanbase one song and show at a time. Just watch his Vlogs if you don’t believe me. His music isn’t for everybody but he does speak to people who are just like him…which is what it’s supposed to be like anyway..

    5. He sold more first week than French Montana, Rich Gang, Tyga and Ace Hood!!! You gotta give him that much!!!

      1. Since 2005 Compilation albums generally never sell that much
        he has not outsold Tyga
        his album has been out longer than frenchs as well as ace hood. none of which are huge stars

      2. i said first week sales, he sold more FIRST WEEK than everyone i listed and he has sold almost twice as much as French to date

    6. no offense but him having a decent size fan base doesn’t mean anything. Especially since any white rapper that is half decent is gonna have a good fan base cuz white people are always looking for the “white hope”.. thats with anything..but thats beside the point. He may be top 5 white rappers.. but not top 5 rapper. I admire the confidence tho..

      1. any rapper thats half way decent is gonna get a good fan base–with your hate comment you just upped him at the same time. smh. just give him props and keep it moving hes nice

      2. there are lots of rappers that are way better than mgk that dont have his fan base. Also, how am I hating? I said he’s half way decent at best and not even in the top 20 rappers. BUT as i said..i admire his confidence..call it what u want..his not that good

      1. Danny Brown is the 1st and only rapper mentioned on these comments that isn’t a fake gangster and can actually spit bars that have some content worth mentioning.

    7. this dude is feeling himself way too much. I mean if you ask lil b fans they’ll say lil b is the best rapper.

    8. New Rappers Top 10:
      1. Kendrick Lamar
      2. Drake
      3. J. Cole
      4. Earl Sweatshirt
      5. Joey Bada$$
      6. Chance the Rapper
      7. Mac Miller
      8. Big K.R.I.T.
      9. A$AP Rocky
      10. Schoolboy Q

      And that’s not including Action Bronson, Wale, Ab-Soul, Big Sean, and Danny Brown. Yeah sorry MGK, you’re definitely not in the top 10.

      1. great list i would add ab soul and big sean take out earl and mac since mac had a big following during the time wiz was hot

    9. Most white rappers are better than black rappers. There far more great white MCs than black MC’s. Macklemore, Machine Gun Kelly and Yelawulf are all better than all the black rappers combined. Whites are bringing creativity to hip hop. Creativity which is something most black MC’s lack. Just look at 2 Chains and Trinidad James, that’s your average black mc right there.

      1. mgk and mac miller are creative? gtfo… i guess vanilla ice was the best old school rapper huh??? Em was creative but thats all. most hip hop artist are black so of course some redundancy is gonna happen. Same shit applies to rock and roll but in reverse…jimi hendrix is a legend, does that mean i can say black ppl are more creative and make better rock and roll? troll

      2. White people are more “creative” than black people? So why is the entire legacy of American music created by black people then? Jazz, blues, rock & roll, disco, R&B, house, and now hip hop. MGK, Macklemore and whatever other whack ass white rappers out there trying to make a cultural and musical movement created by black Americans for black Americans all about them and white people tripping over themselves to claim they “do it better,” it’s the same shit Elvis Presley did with rock & roll, take some shit black folk have been doing for years, do it half as well but slap a white face on it and all of a sudden he’s the best out there. Hip hop is black music… sorry but no way a white MC could ever be the best at it. Nobody but a racist would try to say otherwise, which you obviously are.

      3. But hip hop is the only genre where black people get to act like retards. White rappers are more disciplined and civilized. Plus MGK, Macklemore and Mac Miller are better than every black rapper out right now. Its a fact

      4. Elvis made rack and roll better. When black people where doing rock nobody cared about the genre, but when Elvis came he made it a money making industry. Plus Macklemore is outselling every black rapper out there including Kenrick Lamar!

      5. i have to agree white artist are the best going now they’re actually doing something we havn’t heard before every new black rapper is just a worse version then before including kendrick

    10. You bring a valid point. White mcs are just better rappers in general. They are more lyrical, creative, original and just make better music than black rapper’s do. Black rappers are only interested in rapping about buggatis, and how much money they have and i am just so sick of it. By contrast white rappers talk and rap about real shit that matters.

    11. top 5 is pushing it DEF top 10 though- hes got skills on the mic his black flag mixtape was fire too.

      he just doesnt get his props idk why hes got lyrics for days though

      1. Yeah right..drake, j-cole, kanye, jay-z, big sean, kendrick lamar, asap rocky, rick ross, wale, nicki minaj… in no particular order im just easily naming 10 rappers that are still “active” and are superior to him. He gets props but he just isn’t a top 10 rapper..just stop it

      2. why do people think asap rocky is good? hes nothing special and could possibly win the award for biggest biter of the century

    12. surprised this guy is gettin so much love on here. was always turned off by his goofy wack ass persona. never listened to him though. he can rap?

      1. ^^^ i respect you saying he is your top 5 but you know there are better rappers cuz thats how i put things. I know MGK is prolly better lyrically than 2chainz but id rather listen to 2chainz becuz he makes fun music..music thats catchy but you can laugh at cuz the lyrics are stupid.

    13. The fact that white rappers always outsell black rappers speaks for itself. The black man may have birthed hip hop but the white man took it to a whole other level and made the genre bigger and better.

      1. Eminem was the first rapper to sell 10 mill twice! And rappers like Macklemore are outselling every mainstream rapper.

      2. That couldnt possibly have anything to do with the disproportionate ration of black:white people in the US, could it? I mean, 13% of the US population is black, with like 60% being white. White rappers’ content probably appeals to white people more often than black rappers’ content. It would be logical then that the white rappers sells more than black rappers based on that alone. I’m not saying that white and black kids dont enjoy the music of other races, but I am fairly certain that the appeal and, therefore, sales is heavily in favor of white folks. I know white people who listen to Macklemore and Eminem but couldnt give a shit about hip hop.

      3. ^CO-SIGN! It’s hip-hop for people who don’t like hip-hop.
        I can’t tell you how many people have told me this is the only exception to their hatred towards the entire hip-hop genre, because Macklemore’s music is so “meaningful”. Since when do people take the meaning behind songs into serious consideration when determining if they enjoy the music or not? And these are the same people who listen to The Beatles sing about LSD, Warrant sing about Cherry Pie, and AC/DC sing about having big testicles. SOOOOOOO MEANINGFUL!!!!!!!!!!

        This is nothing I haven’t heard before, and Macklemore’s ridiculous popularity is pretty disgusting to me. Thrift Shop is a fun song, but it certainly gets old when it’s practically drilled through your ears and implanted into your brain.

    14. LMFAO @ most of the comments on here!! You fools need to get your hearing checked out as soon as possible!! MGK is straight garbage just like all the rest of your favorite so called rappers. You CLOWNS are either deaf or have extremely bad taste in music.

    15. AY MACHINE DILDO KELLY, WE GET TO DECIDE IF YOUR GOOD ENOUGH TO BE TOP 5 MC NOT YOU!!!
      AND YOUR NOT.
      NOT EVEN CLOSE….
      AT ALL

    16. STop it with the Lil Wayne Jay-Z comparisons. Just stop it. It’s like comparing LeBron to Jordan. Just plain ignorant.

      IANAHM2 is Wayne’s 10th album. BP3 was Hov’s 11TH. Counting collaboration albums like Watch The Throne and Best Of Both Worlds, Jay-Z has 15 albums, 12 of which are #1’s. IANAHM2 will be Wayne’s 4th #1.

      Jay-Z sold 31 million records in the US ALONE, with his Highest selling album (Vol. 2) selling 8 mill worldwide. Wayne has only sold 8 million TOTAL, with highest selling (C3) moving 3 mill.

      Jay-Z has 4 #1 singles. Wayne has 2.

      At metacritic, which is a site that averages the ratings of all album reviews from publications like Rolling Stone and XXL, Jay-Z has an overall score of 75/100, one of the highest for a rapper; with his highest rated album (The Blueprint) receiving an 88/100, indicating “universal acclaim”. Lil Wayne has a score of 62/100, not bad but not Hov. His highest rated album (Tha Carter III) received an 82/100.

      The only the Wayne has more of than Jay-Z are mixtapes, tatoos, and fairweather fans that love him now but will be no where to be found 10 years from now.

      Is Lil Wayne better than Jay-Z right now? Depends on who you ask. Is Lil Wayne better overall? NOT A CHANCE.

      Its still up for debate weather Jay-Z is the best to ever do it or not, but Wayne is no where near this mans legacy. PERIOD.

    17. MOST OF RAPPERS ARE NAMING HIMSELF EITHER TOP 5 OR TOP 10 OR TOP WHATEVER. Y’ALL NOT MAD AT ALL. FOR EXAMPLE Y’ALL SAY SHIT WHEN JADAKISS NAMES HIMSELF TOP 5 DEAD OR ALIVE, MGK IS TALKING ONLY ABOUT CURRENT CLASS AND IT IS PRETTY OBVIOUS HE IS TOP 5 WHEN IT COMES TO YOUNG MCS. Y’ALL TALKING ABOUT JOEY BADASS AND SHIT, THESE GUYS HAVE NO RELEVANT ALBUM YET, MGK DEBUTED IN THE TOP 10, YOU CAN’T JUST COMPARE ANY IRRELEVANT JACKASS TO MGK.

      AND FOR THE GUY BELOW – DON’T TRY TO BE ME! THERE’S ONLY ONE YEBO AND THAT’S ME. IF YOU WANT TO COPY ME, AT LEAST PUT IT ALL IN CAPITALS TO MAKE IT LOOK RELEVANT.

    18. Action Bronson, Logic, Wrekonize, Brotha Ali, Yelawolf, (sometimes) Macklemore, Eminem, Rittz and David Dallas are a few decent white MCs. MGK isn’t as bad as people say he is, I like D3mons and Edge of Destruction, but I haven’t heard much of his other stuff.

      1. look up Ubiquitous of Ces Cru, either his own mixtape or his tracks with godemis as Ces Cru, also you forgot rittz and R.A. 😉

    19. Man i can easily name 50 – 100 rappers right now that are better. I like his flow and he has a couple decent tracks but fuck outta here with that top 5 shit

      Tech N9ne, Crooked I, Kendrick, Rittz, Eminem, J Cole, Royce, Budden, Nas, Krit, Yelawolf, Action Bronson, Jarren Benton, Kutt Kalhoun, Jay Rock, Trae da Truth, even Red Cafe and Los on the same label as him are better, and Bun B, Twista, Jon Connor, Dizzie Wright, Schoolboy Q, Ab-Soul, R.a da Rugged man just to name a few better than MGK

    20. He is clearly not but i respect him saying his opinion rap is competitive and most rappers will say they are the best.

    21. how can he be a top 5 artist when he continues to recycle all his music, when he releases a new song i’m always like “wasen’t this what he released 3 weeks ago or something?” what i mean is al his songs sound alike

    22. I don’t know man. It doesn’t have to do with him being white at all. I put Yelawolf over this guy. I’ll even put Mac Miller over this guy. I’m not even feeling Asher Roth as much but heard bits of his new Greenhouse tape and i’ll put Asher over this guy. I feel like MGK doesn’t have a consistent stance as an artist. He’s trying to find his pocket but instead says he’s versatile. I hate that shit. You gotta have a core sense of self and then work from that. I’m just not a fan. Wild boy was pretty cool but i’ve heard the mixtapes it just feels like he hypes himself too much and he is not “doing it in the music”…Hey that’s just my opinon..

    23. why does this idiot assume all his fans are some cult that boycott every other rapper and all believe hes the best. what a dumbdumb lolololololol he is painfully annoying. people have opinions brah brah. and most peoples are that you fucking suck.

    24. 1. Kendrick Lamar
      2. J. Cole
      3. Yelawolf

      BIG GAP

      4. Kid Cudi
      5. Macklemore

      MGK is probably right around 10 or 11. (New generation of course)

      1. Don’t understand how people always rank Kendrick Lamar but forget Ab-Soul.

        Ab-Soul >> everyone on that list

    25. Machine Gun Kelly is in my Top 5 “delusional prettyboys living under a rock huffing their own hype fumes who could probably get demolished in a battle in half a verse from someone elses grandmother”

    26. 1. Roc Marciano
      2. Kendrick Lamar
      3. Big K.R.I.T.
      4. Action Bronson
      5. Fashawn
      6. Freddie Gibbs
      7. Joey Bada$$
      8. Ab-Soul
      9. Danny Brown
      10. Oddisee

      …new school, of course

    27. the faces of rap over the 90s till now:

      1990-1993 snoop dogg
      Early 1990s was a great experience being a hiphop fan the whole west coast movement chill laid back sounds classics like regulators and the g funk movement was dope. At this time hiphop was more peacefull chilled west coast beats and style.

      1994-1997 tupac and biggie
      Hiphop started changing becoming more agressive. Tupac was producing deep songs that touched people emotionaly while biggie was pioneering the soon to be club banger hiphop music this was also a very exciting time to be a hiphop fan. The fued brought a sense of tension and you just didn’t know what to expect

      1998-1999 dmx
      With the death of tupac and biggie who predominately dominated the mainstream hiphop scene this allowed for many other artists to establish and make a name for themselves such as ja rule, jay z,eminem and many more. DMX how ever stole the spot light releasing rough riders anthem aswell as other agressive songs that made you feel agressive and tough.

      1999-2003 eminem
      During this time period eminem dominated mainstream rap producing hit after hit. He was very entertaining by mocking pop culture aswell as producing some of the best rap songs and even making hits with his crew d 12. Personally this was my favourite period everything was fun and hiphop was all about having fun and expressing what ever you want to express freely.

      2003-2005 50 cent
      This time was the start of the downfall of hiphop being predominately lyrics about money and women. 50 cent pioneered the soon to club rap that flo rida and pitbull make today. At first it was fresh and seemed upbeat but after a while it got repetetive.

      2005- 2008 jay z and kanye
      These times felt flat and forgettable. Jay z and kanye did produce a lot of great music how ever the emotion and the energy that hiphop had before wasn’t there any more. At this time society was changing from the tough agressive people into the swag fags

      2008- 2011 lil wayne
      Nothing much to say than absolutely garbage and skinny jeans

      2011- present Drake
      It became oool to idiolize pussies and adapt swag yolo with skinny jeans

      1. Also put Too Short and Ice Cube together with Snoop they were among the best selling solo rappers between 1990-1993

      2. I couldn’t have said it any better; that was literally perfect, although you should’ve added the mid-late ’80s with Kool G, Afrika Bambaataa, and others who brought real life and interesting or intellectual thoughts to hip hop, which was just beats on a loop before then. Thoughtful music of any form has always been the best.

        I’m so sick of this swag generation; just when I thought that rap couldn’t get any worse after 50 Cent and that whole era, these losers come along and turn most of this generation of kids into little punks who worship childish clothing styles, mediocrity, apathy, and ignorance. They think that they’re the voices of the new apathetic generation, but they’re just a bunch of creepy losers with flat brimmed hats, bright clothes, and think that using meaningless, minimalist slang as lyrics makes them “deep.” It’s the dumbest thing ever; the best modern musicians go unnoticed, and the rest who may have talent end up selling out to get popular. Music isn’t about thoughts, feelings, anecdotes about life, or teaching others anymore; it’s just about money, popularity, images, gimmicks, and trying to be overly simplistic, as to appeal to more people. It’s been dumbed down and ruined.

    28. Top 5, Jay, Kendrick, Kanye, Ross, J. Cole. No doubt Jay, Ross, Kanye have relased classics and Kendrick and Cole soon to be. MGK aint nowhere near. Most these white rappers are shit rappers.

      Bawse!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    29. Top 5 Dead Or A live

      1. AZ
      2. Nas
      3. LL Cool J
      4. DMX
      5. Dr Dre

      Top 10 MC Dead Or Alive

      1. AZ
      2. Nas
      3. LL Cool J
      4. DMX
      5. Dr Dre
      6. 50 Cent
      7. Jadakiss
      8. Ghostface Killah
      9. Lloyd Banks
      10.Fabolous

      Top 20 MC Dead Or Alive

      1. AZ
      2. Nas
      3. LL Cool J
      4. DMX
      5. Ja Rule

      etc

    30. Lmfao… Odd Future, Pro Era, Flatbush Zombies, Nell, The Underachievers, Denzel Curry, Ab-Soul, Yung Simmie, Kendrick Lamar, & Chance The Rapper are way better than this clown smh…

      1. Dumbfoundead, Wax, Shad, Tonedeff, Blu, Dillon Cooper, Sam Lachow, Oddisee, Sene, Eyedea, Slug (from Atmosphere), Zion I, Andre Nickatina, Freddie Gibbs, XV, Dyme Def, Sadistik… I feel like there’s more too.

        MGK doing his thing, though. Not gonna hate on someone making music if they want to. He’s just gotta tweak his perspective a little bit.

    31. this girl need to shut up n sit down!! your an embarrassment to white people everywhere!! u need to know offspring made a song about u pretty fly for a white guy…

    32. What the hell happened to hip hop? Or music in general? When did it become a fucking contest about “who’s the best?” That is the attitude that absolutely ruined hip hop in the first place; once Tupac died, and all the early pioneers like Kool G, KRS-One, Akrika Bambaataa, etc, fell out of popularity, morons like Puff Daddy, Jay-Z and the rest destroyed hip hop by turning it into a popularity and money contest. All the lyrics became about who was more of a “hustler,” who had more money, cars and luxuries, who sold the most drugs and killed the most people, all of these inside of their imaginary fantasy lives. And for some stupid reason, people actually bought this crap and made it popular.

      Guys like Eminem, Wu-Tang Clan, even lesser known guys like Jedi Mind Tricks, Immortal Technique and Cannibal Ox, tried to bring hip hop back to being a viable musical art about thoughts, feelings, and anecdotal stories that people could relate to on a personal level, which worked for a little while and delayed the inevitable takeover by idiots like 50 Cent, The Game, and others. Finally, Lil Wayne, the antichrist of hip hop, who opposes anything intelligent and interesting, came and destroyed music as we know it, creating this generation of “swag fags” who will lie, pretend, and do ANYTHING to be “hip” or “cool.”

      It’s truly sad how stupid people have become, whether white, black, brown, whatever fucking color you might be, it doesn’t matter anymore; to think that in the greatest society to have ever existed, kids grow up now and worship liars, cheaters, thieves, and murderers. Then, they don’t mature when they’re older, and they end up as a 30-40 year old, immature “manchild,” like Jay-Z, who talk and act like little boys, still living out ghetto-lord fantasies in their heads, though nearly all of them don’t have the money these famous idiots have, and they live in squalor, and raise their children to be equally stupid. It’s pathetic, considering all the opportunities we have to educate ourselves and act smart; you can learn anything on the internet in your own time, but they choose to worship complete morons instead. Truly sad.

      1. Dude, Amen, just Amen. I actually am an aspiring hip hop artist and I’ll never be big because I don’t rep lyrics that appeal to stupidity. Rap and hip hop inherently have a powerful effect on the mind; unfortunately tight beats are being used for nothing but manipulation.

    33. what about strange music’s artists like tech n9ne, krizz kaliko, rittz,wrekonize ,bernz, godemis, ubiquitous,stevie stone,Big scoob, murs, and prozak

    34. for sure he is top 5, and everyone can get mad at me for saying that but just becausee he isnt as popular as other guys or you may not like him as much doesnt mean he isnt good. he is for sure one of the best rappers of his time.

    35. Where does he get the idea that his lyrics are good? They’re pretty damn basic.. Eminem and Nas murder MgK and Kendrick Lamar is on a different level than any rapper currently..

      MGK isn’t horrible, but top 10 I seriously doubt.. you’ve got not as well known rappers like tech nine and atmosphere who are lyrically superior…

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