Machine Gun Kelly can’t skip the airport security line anymore, and a past cocaine possession charge is the reason why.
The 36-year-old rapper opened up on the Take Flight podcast about how a drug bust from years ago continues to impact his travel, keeping him locked out of TSA PreCheck and Global Entry.
Speaking backstage at Kudos Bank Arena in Sydney with host Hadyn Wings, MGK explained the situation that’s haunted him for nearly a decade.
“I got caught with cocaine on the way back from New Zealand last time I was out here,” he told Wings, according to Daily Mail. “Traveling was difficult because I have a level one narcotics possession or whatever.”
The charge has created a permanent barrier between him and the convenience services most frequent flyers take for granted. He’s still stuck waiting in regular lines like everyone else, no matter how many arenas he sells out or how successful his career becomes.
The eight-year gap between his last visit to Australia and this one tells the real story. MGK didn’t just disappear from the country because he felt like it.
The legal ordeal kept him away, and returning required him to navigate the consequences of that past mistake. His journey toward sobriety has been documented publicly, with the artist announcing in August 2024 that he’d been clean for almost a year.
“I still don’t get TSA PreCheck or Global Entry or any of that fast stuff in the airport,” MGK said, emphasizing the ongoing reality of his situation.
The rapper has two daughters, 16-year-old Casie and one-year-old Saga, and the travel restrictions affect his ability to move quickly between gigs and family time.
When he returned to Australia this time, he posted on Instagram that he wouldn’t wait another eight years to come back, signaling his commitment to moving forward despite the bureaucratic obstacles.