What does Machine Gun Kelly's blackout tattoo mean? Rapper addressed the symbolism behind his body ink

Rapper and songwriter Machine Gun Kelly discussed the blackout tattoo on his body on the August 19 episode of Million Dollaz Worth of Game. The rapper got the tattoo on his torso and arms, which covered his older ink. He revealed the tattoo in February. At the same time, his single, Don't Let Me Go, was also made public.

While talking about his work and career in the podcast, he said,

“I’m in a new body, I literally am in a new body. I covered everything on my arms and my body. I left windows to it, just like there’s windows to my old work, but I’m a new person so the evolution has led me from a caterpillar to a butterfly now.”

The tattoo can be understood as a metaphor representing the change in the musician's life that came with all the transitions and adjustments. When asked what the 'windows' represented, he said that fans didn't appreciate an artist who doesn't look back to the work that made them fall in love. He added that even though he didn't resonate with his older work, he resonated with his fans.

“The one thing I think fans don’t appreciate is an artist turning their back on what made them fall in love with you. Now while I may not resonate as much with older work that I’ve done, I do resonate with the fans, always. So, I don’t ever want to run away from them,” said Machine Gun Kelly.

According to the rapper, a huge part of his career was his image, besides music. In the weekly podcast, he said people remembered him as the tall, skinny, tatted white boy. This is why he didn't want to erase everything and suggest he was running away from it. Instead, he just wanted to put on armor.

He revealed the tattoo for the first time on February 21 via Instagram and added the caption "for spiritual purposes only."

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Machine Gun Kelly shared his experience of getting the tattoo in April

On April 1, Machine Gun Kelly shared a video on his Instagram page that showed the process of getting the blackout tattoo. It required 44 needles to get the work completed. The entire process lasted multiple weeks, and the rapper had to undergo lengthy sessions, which took a huge toll on his body.

As seen from the video, his arms bled out at one point in the process while his elbows swelled up. He said it was one of the most painful experiences in his life. Towards the end of the video, Machine Gun Kelly was seen sitting in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber with an oxygen mask on his mouth. He mentioned that doing this helped him heal faster.

In the March 20 episode of the Call Her Daddy podcast, the rapper's partner Megan Fox said that the blackout tattoo was an elevated version of all the tattoos Machine Gun Kelly had. Fox also mentioned that the singer had an emotionally conflicted relationship with the previous tattoos, so he wanted to get rid of them.