Live Report: mgk takes the 3Arena on a rollercoaster journey through his discography

On Thursday, mgk wrapped up the European leg of his Lost Americana tour at Dublin’s 3Arena, with an absolute rollercoaster of a performance – jumping between his roots as a rapid-fire rapper, the pop-punk sound of Tickets to My Downfall and Mainstream Sellout, and his latest LP, the pop-rock-oriented Lost Americana.

I never thought I needed an Era Tour-type show from mgk – formerly known as Machine Gun Kelly – but I'm grateful to have experienced it.

Before mgk took to the stage, American singer-songwriter Julia Wolf – known for merging indie pop with alternative rock, electropop, emo and pop-punk influences – performed an incredible, gritty and moody set. As she merged soft vocals with hard-hitting drums and electrifying guitar riffs, behind her, stretched out from behind a red curtain, was a mysterious, enormous hand holding a cigarette.

Julia Wolf supporting mgk at 3Arena on March 12th, 2026. Copyright Jason Doherty/www.hotpress.com

Once Wolf concluded her set, a message about how “the myth, the legend” mgk was created played. The moment it came to an end, the red curtain dropped, revealing the rest of the arm and mgk’s incredible stage set. Centre stage was the head of a nose-pierced Statue of Liberty – her mouth wide open and with her arm stretched out, holding a cigarette.

With the beginning synths of ‘outlaw overture’ playing, a red and white guitar, one of many mgk would use during the show, began to descend from the ceiling, as the singer rose from the statue's mouth.

As mgk’s band played the first chords of the song, the stage came to life, with kaleidoscope-like visuals providing the backdrop. The guitar-driven track, with its rhythmic drums and the singer’s raspy vocals, alongside the colourful visuals, made for a vibrant and bold start to his set.

mgk at 3Arena on March 12th, 2026. Copyright Jason Doherty/www.hotpress.com

Giving us a hint of what we were to expect during the night, ‘outlaw overture’ shifted, becoming a lot more mellow towards the end. Still upbeat and energetic, the song's tempo calmed, the drums almost completely disappeared beneath the singer's vocals, with the layered guitars and bass becoming the stars of the show.

‘starman’ and ’don’t wait run fast’, also from Lost Americana, continued this high raw energy feel, with their hard-hitting drums, reverbed backing vocals, scratchy guitar and raucous vocals. These tracks, accompanied by probe effect lighting, pyrotechnics, rich layered visuals and dancers, made the show overstimulating in the best way possible.

Making a soft transition to a more emo-punk sound, mgk performed guitar-rich, drum-driven ‘maybe’ and ‘ay!’, both from Mainstream Sellout. The singer then completely changed the energy in the venue as he performed ‘Wild Boy’. The shift was so dramatic that it seemed we had been transported to an entirely new concert. The 3Arena was filled with red lighting and mgk’s voice, as he rapped to the beat of his incredibly talented drummer.

mgk at 3Arena on March 12th, 2026. Copyright Jason Doherty/www.hotpress.com

Then, as the artist performed the upbeat ‘‘miss sunshine’, the entire arena sang along to the country-influenced chorus: “It’s a long way home, It’s a long way home”.

Later, the artist abandoned the main stage to go to a previously inconspicuous miniature stage at the back of the arena. The moment he moved his performance there, the 3Arena became extremely intimate, especially as he performed the slower-paced, melancholic and emotional ‘Glass House’ and ‘times of my life’. Before returning to the main stage, he sang a snippet of ‘Zombie’.

The peak of mgk’s performance was the emotional rendition of ‘play this when i’m gone’, which brought fans to tears. As images and videos of the singer’s daughter appeared on the screens, mgk turned his back to the crowd, singing the track to the photos: “And I’ll miss you, I’ll miss you”.

Throughout his set, mgk delved into his extensive discography, giving a performance that fans of any those eras would enjoy – and leaving us eagerly awaiting for his rumoured upcoming rap album...