Why Jelly Roll And Machine Gun Kelly Couldn't Stand Each Other

Musician feuds can often get out of hand, but this story of two artists and their working relationship is testament to the fact that positive change is possible, even when the hate is mutual. The Grammy-nominated Nashville-born Jelly Roll and Houston native Machine Gun Kelly are two artists who have both overcome difficult early lives to see their profiles explode in the music industry. Though they both entered the music scene as rappers, both went on to find success by crossing over into other genres. Jelly Roll became a country star, and Machine Gun Kelly experimented with pop-punk and alternative rock, becoming hugely famous in the process.

In July 2024, the two released "Lonely Road," a reworking of John Denver's country classic and unexpected Oktoberfest anthem "Take Me Home, Country Roads." The new track proved to be a major hit, providing a career boost for both artists. However, those familiar with their backstories may have been surprised that the duet came to fruition. After all, Jelly Roll and Machine Gun Kelly were known to have had a mutual dislike of each other that stretched back more than a decade — and it all seems to have stemmed from competition and jealousy.

Following the release of "Lonely Road" and in anticipation of the release of Jelly Roll's 2024 album "Beautifully Broken," Machine Gun Kelly appeared with the country singer on Spotify's "Countdown To" podcast. "It is so funny how much I love you now, because God, I hated you so much back then," Kelly admitted, meaning when they were both rappers trying to kick-start their careers. 

But the hate wasn't all coming from Machine Gun Kelly. Before Jelly Roll came to embrace the country genre, he spent many years of his early career attempting to make it as a rapper. His 2012 track "Malibu's Most Wanted" was widely seen to be a diss against Machine Gun Kelly. It got little traction at the time, but it has served as an artifact of the historic hate between the two one-time rappers. "F*** Machine Gun Kelly and his mohawk," Jelly Roll once stated publicly, according to Us Weekly.

During their appearance on "Countdown To," Jelly Roll described the basis of his animosity toward Kelly in the early days and admitted: "I was just a little spiteful, bitter f****** dude. ... You were just like skinny and handsome. I was just a hater." The pair concluded that being white rappers at a time when they were less common in the music industry increased the tension between them and made them bitterly competitive, with Kelly stating they were "bred to hate each other." 

Jelly Roll and Machine Gun Kelly's recent collaboration, "Lonely Road," took the pair two years to complete, and they worked in eight different studios during that time. It is testament to the friendship that now underpins their working relationship, which has been hugely fruitful for the two musicians. The crossover song made a splash on the Billboard charts, landing on 10 different tallies on release, hitting No. 1 on the Rock Digital Song Sales chart, and opening at No. 33 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also earned the pair a prestigious People's Choice Country Award for crossover song, which Kelly was on hand to gratefully receive at the ceremony at the Grand Ole Opry, Nashville, on September 26, 2024.

Indeed, it was when receiving the award that Machine Gun Kelly made more remarks about his and Jelly Roll's difficult past and delivered an uplifting message about overcoming jealousy and territorialism. "We went from 10 years ago hating each other to elevating each other," he told the crowd (per Us Weekly). "Comparison is the thief of joy. There is enough room on the couch for everybody. We found camaraderie in the chaos Last year, I was right there, sitting in that seat, watching my boy rock on that stage. And I was like, 'Man, I hope one day we're up there.' And we're here!"