Machine Gun Kelly recently revealed he’s sober again. And it turns out he got clean after his daughter candidly — and heartbreakingly — called him out for his substance abuse.
The 34-year-old recording artist, whose real name is Colson Baker, opened up about his personal life on Sunday as a guest on the Million Dollaz Worth of Game podcast. This isn’t the first podcast in recent weeks on which MGK has shared some really heavy personal stuff. But as you’ll soon see, this is definitely the most touching and inspirational of all his recent reveals…
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The topic this time around was the Bloody Valentine singer’s previous years of substance abuse, and the impetus for finally getting clean and sober after living for so long with a clouded head: his teenage daughter Casie Colson Baker! As MGK explained during the interview, the 15-year-old — whom MGK shares with his ex Emma Cannon — came to him a few years ago, when she was just 11 or 12, and confronted him about not being sober. The way she said it at the time was so candid and chilling, too:
“It started with my daughter saying, ‘Dad, you know I can tell when you’re high.’”
OMG…
That’s a sobering thought if ever we’ve heard one. We don’t even know how we’d respond to something like that. And obviously, MGK was thrown by it at the time, too. He recalled being crushed over her admission:
“It broke my heart. It was like the ultimate letdown.”
Seriously, tho. So freakin’ sad!
But there is a happy ending to that story. Even though it took a little while longer for MGK to get clean — as he readily admitted, “obviously drugs have a vice grip on you” — he did step back from his substance abuse habits. And looking back on it now, the Emo Girl singer can confidently say that it was Casie’s confrontation that got him on the right path. That part of this story is SO good!!
The recording artist also did a lot of work on himself after Casie’s life-changing comment. That included reflecting on why he jumped into drugs in the first place, which came about in part due to childhood trauma involving his own father failing to step up. As MGK grew up, that trauma led to the star’s young adulthood spent abusing substances:
“Really that’s just a reflection of him [my dad] not being who he wanted to be. To be the father I wish my dad would have been, I have to break this generational curse for my kid.”
Breaking generational curses is clearly a thing that’s been on MGK’s mind quite a bit recently. As you may recall, that is also a major theme in his most recent single and music video for Lonely Road alongside Jelly Roll. Clearly, he’s thinking a lot about the future, and his daughter. And we love to see that things are going well now! Reactions and well wishes, y’all?! Share ’em (below)!
If you or someone you know is experiencing substance abuse, help is available. Consider checking out the resources SAMHSA provides at https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/national-helpline or check out StartYourRecovery.org.
