Machine Gun Kelly Hair Transplant Analysis
written by Matt Dominance
In this post you’ll find out:
- How many hair transplant surgeries did Machine Gun Kelly have?
- How many grafts did he get? (Estimated)
- Was it FUE or FUT hair transplant?
- The Norwood stage before getting his hair transplant?
- Has he already started using Finasteride(Propecia) and Minoxidil prior to his hair transplant? Is he using it now?
MGK Before Hair Transplant
MGK started losing his hair already in his early 20’s. By the time he turned 24-25, he was already seriously balding.
His loss progression back then could be described on a Norwood scale between NW2 and NW3.
With high probability MGK hasn’t been taking any hair loss preventative medication during his early 20’s.
This unfortunately turned him into a Norwood 3 quite fast!
It’s crucial to focus on slowing down/stopping your hair loss progression in order to end up in a similar situation as MGK did in his early-mid 20’s!
Also read “The Big 3 of Hair Loss Prevention” to help you keep your hair loss under control instantly!
MGK Hair Loss in his early 20´s
- 23 – 24 years old
- Visible signs of male pattern baldness
- Norwood 3 Class established (see Norwood Scale)
- Well-preserved mid-frontal point on the hairline but the corners are noticeably receded
- No visible loss in hair density on the mid-scalp and crown
The road to Machine Gun Kelly's New Hair! 2012 vs 2015
HAIRLINE RESTORATION
- Frontal hairline has been rebuilt completely with a rather rounded shape
- Estimated hair density on the hairline: 50-55 grafts per square cm (graft= hair unit containing 1 or more hairs)
- Low see-through effect
- High level of naturalness on the hairline
- No noticeable hair restoration on temples (hairline only)
- High density of single hairs in the hairline with very high level of naturalness
How many hairs did Machine Gun Kelly get transplanted? (Approximation)
FUT (follicular unit strip surgery) has been used in MGK´s case.
Strip surgeries are easy to spot once the person cuts the hair on the back of the head short.
The FUT scar seems to be 15cm – 20cm long.
The current width of the strip scar doesn´t equal to the width of the original strip, which had been removed from MGK´s donor area on the day of his hair transplant.
FUT scars always become more narrow with time due to skin laxity, but they almost never shorten in length.
- My estimation of 2200-2500 grafts is based on: 1 the size of the transplanted area and 2. the size of the FUT scar (discussed below)
- The estimated hair per graft average (average number of hairs growing from each graft/hair unit) = 2 – 2.5
- Expected number of hairs transplanted could be at least 4600 up to 7000
- Red marks on the photo above show the zone which has been transplanted 100%
- The white marks define the zone behind the hairline (frontal tuft) which might/might not have been transplanted due to plenty of existing hair still growing there
Did Machine Gun Kelly get FUE or FUT Hair Transplant?
Estimating the hair transplant surgery type in MGK’s case is very easy. On the photo below you can see a 100% proof of FUT (follicular unit transplantation).
This type of hair restoration is performed by excision of a skin tissue containing hair follicles on the back of the head (donor area).
The scar is pretty narrow but visible to the human eye. In some cases doctors utilize so called trichophytic closure which allows the hair on both sides of the scar to grow through the scar tissue.
This type of closure make the hair surrounding the scar grow directly through the scarred skin. In MGK’s case it doesn’t seem like this type of closure has been utilized though.
FUT (follicular unit strip surgery) has been used in MGK´s case.
Strip surgeries are easy to spot once the person cuts the hair on the back of the head short.
The FUT scar seems to be 15cm – 20cm long.
The current width of the strip scar doesn´t equal to the width of the original strip, which had been removed from MGK´s donor area on the day of his hair transplant.
FUT scars always become more narrow with time due to skin laxity, but they almost never shorten in length.
Why did MGK choose FUT hair transplant instead of FUE?
During the time Machine Gun Kelly had his hair transplant, he was likely to be only 22-23 years old.
For patients in their early-mid 20’s hair transplant doctors almost never suggest FUE hair transplant, unless it is going to be only a very small session e.g 1000 +/- grafts.
MGK obviously needed way more than 1000 and that’s why FUT made more sense for him at the time.
All in all, he made the right decision as far as choosing between FUE and FUT. Why? Simply because having had FUT done first only affected only a small portion of his donor region.
Later on, he can still get another FUT or even multiple FUE’s. Combining FUE and FUT over the long term has always shown the best utilization of the donor area.
In other words, patients combining both methods were able to have more hair follicles extracted from the donor area compared to patients who went with FUE only for many procedures in a row.
When did MGK had his hair transplant done?
Estimated year of his hair transplant is 2012-2013. It´s very likely he had it done in the USA.
MGK long hair vs short hair after his hair transplant - which does look more natural?
On the photo below I decided to compare MGK’s short hair vs long hair after his hair transplant. The goal of this comparison is to find out whether the naturalness of his new hairline is the same – even if the hair is kept very short.
Normally, if hair transplant hasn’t been done 100% natural, we can spot the “mistakes” much more easily when the transplanted hair is cut shorter.
On the other hand, letting the transplanted hair grow longer usually camouflages the possible imperfections in the hairline e.g low density or unnatural graft placement.
Both haircuts of MGK after his hair transplant (disconnected undercut on top and shorter buzz cut below)show great naturalness.
When the hair is slicked back after hair transplant, the see-through effect on the hairline is usually the highest.
In order to end up with an undetectable transplanted hairline, the see-through effect should be minimized.
In order to minimize the see-though effect, the doctor has to place prevalently single grafts (hair units producing 1 single hair only) on the hairline in a good density (45-55 grafts per square cm) or sometimes even more.
In Machine Gun Kelly´s case, the see-through effect is fairly low and people who never knew him would have likely never notice that he had a hair transplant.
On the photo below (short buzz cut hairstyle), we can notice great naturalness and correct angulation of the transplanted hair.
The hair density, however, seems to be slightly lower on the photo below because the density of the transplanted hair doesn’t equal the density of the original hair (usually 50% less dense compared to the natural hair). Such lack of density can be spot by the human eye the most, when the hair is cut shorter as it was the case with Bradley Cooper’s hair transplant.
This is another reason, why transplanted hair usually looks better longer. It´s simply because we can rely on its coverage property better. Short hair on the other hand, doesn´t provide much coverage because the surface of a short hair is very small compared to a long hair.
Nonetheless, the hair transplant of Machine Gun Kelly is on a boarder of being almost undetectable
Will Machine Gun Kelly need another hair transplant in the future?
Yes. It is very likely that somebody who has already done a hair transplant with 22, will need at least 1 more hair transplant in the future!
Always be aware of the permanency of male pattern baldness.
Once you have it, your condition is ongoing regardless of getting a hair transplant or not.
The progression of male patter baldness can be slowed down or stopped by anti-hair loss treatments like Finasteride (Propecia) and Minoxidil (Rogaine).
Ending up as a NW 3 with 22-23 years old – like Machine Gun Kelly suggests, that a higher Norwood hair loss progression is likely to occur in the future (if no treatments will be implemented).
Once you start experiencing first signs of male pattern hair loss e.g hairline/temporal recession, make sure you also keep track of your hair thickness on the mid-scalp and crown.
These areas are often times ignored by guys, who think they´re only going bald on the front.
Balding signs on the mid-scalp and crown however, can often times suggest a higher Norwood stage scenario happening in the future.
Getting on the right anti-hair loss treatment as soon as possible gives you the best odds against combating male pattern hair loss and getting it under control.
Is Machine Gun Kelly on Finasteride?
Yes is a very likely answer.
I don´t exclude more than 1 hair transplant by now either.
Since his hair looks full and “bushy” without almost any signs of hair loss, my guess would be that he´s probably taking medication to prevent further hair loss.
Getting a hair transplant as a 22-23 years old NW3 who doesn´t go on any hair loss preventative treatment afterwards would result in at least 1 more hair transplant by the age of 30.
In case you are about to get your hair transplant in your early 20´s, you have to get on medication as well with almost no exceptions.