Machine Gun Kelly Custom Inflatables

Machine Gun Kelly Mainstream Sellout Custom Inflatables

Machine Gun Kelly’s [MGK] 2022 World Tour, Mainstream Sellout, is centered around his beef with the internet and all his critics.  The tour traveled around the United States before heading to Europe with over 50 dates.  During the tour, MGK and his crew performed in various size venues and at different festivals.

Machine Gun Kelly wanted to make sure that he didn’t only put on a good show but also told a good story.  With those goals in mind and the logistics of travel and different-sized venues, MGK’s production team came to Inflatable Design Group to help bring the artist’s vision to life.

“I am the Internet.  You are what I say you are.”

As mentioned before, MGK wanted to tell the story of his battle against the internet and his critics during his tour.  To help bring this vision to life, IDG created two custom inflatable characters for the artist.  The first one, dubbed as ‘TV Man’, was a 29’-foot-tall custom inflatable character.  In place of a head, MGK’s production team rigged a giant TV thus creating the ‘TV Man’ who represented the internet during the show.

“The Internet looms over the upstage area in the form of TV Man, a 29′-tall, matte black, puppeteered inflatable, with articulating limbs and an LED tile face.  ‘The torso is actually in two pieces so that it can be festival-, shed-, and Europe-friendly…. If there isn’t enough trim height, we can choose not to inflate the legs.  There is a void in his torso so he can bend over the stage and not get an inflatable scrunched stomach.  All R&D work was done with the Inflatable Design Group….”

– Susan Trevelyn, Man vs. Machine: Crafting a personal statement for Machine Gun Kelly’s new tour

The giant inflatable character was customized so that he could be used in various sized venues and would work in Europe for the last part of the tour.  During the show, the ‘TV Man’ would move its hands and occasionally interact with MGK, with a giant face appearing on the tv screen.

Defeating the Internet

By the end of the show, MGK defeats the internet (causing TV Man to deflate).  However, he does not accomplish this alone.  He has the help of another custom inflatable character, a female figure that stands at 20-feet-tall and appears on the right side of the stage.

“Machine Gun Kelly can’t defeat TV Man; that’s when another inflatable appears… she [the other inflatable character] rasies up as this 20′-tall, high-gloss [figure] in a relaxed, but curious, pose.  [MGK] asks her who she is, and the first words of ‘Emo girl’ [are] ‘I am a god’.  She appears and brings love, energy, and positivity into his world so that he can defeat and deflate the internet”

– Susan Trevelyn, Man vs. Machine: Crafting a personal statement for Machine Gun Kelly’s new tour

By the end of the show, MGK and the inflatable female character are left on stage with ‘TV Man’ gone and deflated.

Custom Inflatable Stage Props for Concert Tours

Inflatable Design Group’s team had a great time working with MGK and his team to bring their vision to life in the form of two custom inflatable characters.  Our talented group of craftsmen was able to take a hand-drawn concept and make it a reality.  It was amazing to see not only what our team accomplished, but also how MGK and his production team then incorporated the custom inflatables into the show to tell a story.

Custom inflatables are a great solution for any artist that is going on a concert tour.  IDG’s team is extremely talented and can make virtually any vision come to life in the form of custom inflatables.  Another big benefit of incorporating custom inflatables into your stage design is that they are lighter than traditional materials used in stage sets and pack up into relatively small packages, making them cheap and easy to transport.

IDG has worked with many clients in the entertainment industry over the years.  We have created custom inflatables that have been used as stage sets, album covers, movie promotions, and more.  Check out more examples of our entertainment industry custom inflatables on our website.  Questions or ready to get started on your custom entertainment industry inflatable?  Give us a call at 619-596-6100 or email us at info@inflatabledesigngroup.com to get started!

Read more about MGK’s Mainstream Sellout stage set in Susan Trevelyn’s article Man vs Machine: Crafting a Personal Statement for Machine Gun Kelly’s new tour in the August edition of Light and Sound America (pages 48-54)

Some photos were taken from Instagram and the Light and Sound America article linked above.