I saw MCR at sixteen and I got to talk to gerard, and something he said to me will always stick with me. I told him what his music meant to me and how I had just been hospitalized for a suicide attempt, and he told me that "it's okay not to be okay. Just know it gets better, and this isn't permanent. See you at the next show, kid."
@@ridleysomeliana-lauer5814 well, my nephews and kids at shows, bars. People tend to open up to me. I don't got kids. 😆 But really I tell my nephews and nieces, and some 21 year olds I know, I try to give them things nobody told me. Like learning to work hard, learning to do your laundry, cook, pay your own cell bill, by 18, because it don't get easier, so the sooner you learn skills , the easier adulting is. Or I tell them to enjoy your youth, to a point, but don't overdo it, and work towards your future too. You are young. You have your youth, strength, and vitality to get you through. Or don't get more than 1 credit card and only use it for gas.. pay it off every month. Dont get in debt. Or to get therapy young, so your trauma doesn't come back to haunt you at 40, cause it always resurfaces or, new traumas stack on it. So take care of it, no matter how bad it hurts because it will help so much later, being able to adult in a normal functioning brainspace. Because I had to learn the hard way. I was a depressed abused neglected poor kid, and moved on my own at 15. I knew how to do house stuff, but they gave me my first credit card at 16. I'm 49 now, and had to learn adulting, and not to party so hard you die. 😆 🤣 😂. I want kids to not suffer anymore than they have to, but also not screw up their life by living so hard to hide the lain, they get a late start to life.
How you know MCR is still huge and has a legacy: if they reunited and toured, they would sell out arenas all over the country. Some multiple nights over.
An old band of mine played with MCR at the height of the I'm Not Okay popularity and I was struck by how every member has a singular focus: the band. They were literally like a squad of Army guys preparing to go to battle it was inspiring.
My daughter was born the year they were at the VMA (2006) She loves this band now, and she found them on her own. I was an old school goth kid in the late 90s and she found MCR while branching out from the old goth I had introduced her to. So yeah they are definitely going to be popular for generations.
Hey, you could be in your early 30's and still holding onto nostalgia too, haha! If AIM was still a thing and I used it today, my away messages would still be lyrics from Three Cheers like they were back in 2004 when I started listening to them my freshman year of college.
Failing Novelist I love all of those bands but imo my chemical romance is an amazing band especially when you listen to each album front to back instead of just listening to them on shuffle
@@katrice8588 I find that is the best way to listen to their albums. Then again maybe I've just done so so many times that the next song starts playing in my head before it actually starts and then I end up just listening to the whole thing when I meant to listen to a particular song. None of them are really skip-worthy either, so that really helps too.
I teach at a middle school, and there hasn’t been a year yet where at least one student hasn't worn a MCR shirt regularly. Their legacy lives on. And, I’m with you on having a preference for Three Cheers over Black Parade.
I think you should have added the fact that they were bottled and boo'd at reading festival, continued to play while dodging bottles and won the entire crowd over by the end of their set.
@@RSSZN Sorry didn't see this until just now. I'll have to check my history and see if I can find it again. But from talking with others, people chuckin' bottles is a pretty common thing drunk fans do. Which to me is royally f'uked up
An interesting thing I remember reading about Gerard Way, he was an intern at Cartoon Network and was on the way to pitch a cartoon he had created one morning. Then 9/11 happened. He was in New York and really experienced the horror of it. He quit CN and focused on doing something to help people deal with the horrors of life, which is why he started MCR.
Here's Gerard's cartoon ua-cam.com/video/fnt__lyGIQ4/v-deo.html Also imagine if one day Cartoon Network and Gerard decide to make a cartoon together (especially now that he's a big star), imagine how awesome that would be.
Yea that story is wild. Saw the towers get hit while he was on the ferry and decided there's more to life than working a 9-5, went home and wrote their first song Skylines and Turnstiles.
Holy shit man like he was in Manhattan when the fucking planes hit, and just DECIDED to go start a band that became literally bigger than Metallica, all along while LITERALLY thousands of suicide attempts? Most baller shit ever. More baller than say Mike Tyson or Dr Dre.
@@eatassonthefirstdate literally bigger than Metallica? I do not like Metallica but c'mon. Metallica's first 7 albums have sold more copies *EACH* than MCR's total career album sales. Let's not devolve into hyperbole. Edit: I should have read the rest of your comment because after reading it I realize you're being facetious.
Three Cheers is about a guy who dies and wants to be with his wife so the devil says "Ill let you go back if you bring me the souls of a thousand evil men"...I wrote a fan story based on it in 8th grade and it was FUCKING BAD
I was definitely a MCR hater when they first came out. I was right out of High school and was still clinging to the hope that NU metal wasn't dead haha. My brother and his friends had started listening to MCR and The Used and I hated it. Fast forward to present day, I just found a box of old CDs my wife owns and I found the Black Parade, I asked her how she could listen to this "filth". She then told me about how much the album helped her growing up, she had lost her mother to cancer when she was young and felt that the message of hope when she felt hopeless, especially in her Highschool years really helped her keep going. After eating a slice of humble pie I finally gave the album a shot and was blown away by this modern take on 1970s rock! They are still making new fans, and their sound absolutely transcends generations. Great video man! Keep them coming!
Since i have always been into any form of rock and metal. I liked MCR along with other emo punk rock time groups. They got just fucking annoying for awhile. Greenday eas annoying as fuck in 04 as well.
Dude story of my high school life. I kept thinking "what is this fake ass wannabe emo punk bullshit" back in the day, but over the years I've grown to REALLY appreciate their musicianship and how they take nods from older rock and music in general. Their messages also helped a LOT of kids at the time. It's a shame I was too immature to really dig deep into them back in the day. Black Parade and Three Cheers are just solid, fun albums to jam to till this day.
I think also what helped is as a teenage girl who was obsessed is the amazing music with also how well they treated their fans. Looking back you can find videos of them telling off guys trying to get girls to flash and them always treating their fans kind. Hell they came back for their first show and they handed out blankets to fans camping out the night before, not one but TWO band members made sure a dog in the crowd got a blanket.
I really think their feminist stance early on and "no groupies" paved the way for them to have a young, female fan base. Combine having a large, young, female fanbase that feels safe and appreciated (which is RARE in the alt-rock genre, tbh, especially at the time) with them having actual musical talent, never getting complacent with their skill level or creativity and it was the perfect combination
@@dextermoore278 yep. Gerard and Frank were in long term, committed relationships when the band started (Frank eventually married her.) and there was an interview I remember seeing but can’t find where they talked about how they wanted their shows to be safe spaces for kids of all types, gay, straight, women, whatever they were feeling, it was okay when they got to see or listen to MCR. So if there was any kind of ‘groupie’ situation going on it could and would effect that and how people view their shows and music. I also know that they’ve talked several times about how single minded they were all about wanting the band to succeed so they were really focused on making the best music they could and becoming the best players they could be. Groupies were the furthest thing from their minds. Idk how much of a ‘policy’ it actually was so much as they collectively knew and were devoted to the message and idea of the band and that any kind of groupie situation could derail or taint that. There’s a lot more I could say about it and there are a lot of things that happened with my chem and their fan base that were unique to them and the time and created a really special fan/band relationship. It’s super cool and idk how many other rock bands have something like that but I’d imagine very few.
@@heather23renae Yes its very unusual because so many guys say they got in Bands just so they could get a lot of girls. Most Bands want Groupies like Van Halen and Motley Crue were notorious for their antics with Groupies l
@@heather23renae I love them so much for that and that‘s *exactly* the reason, why I feel so safe with them. So many members of other alternative bands have done stuff like doing things (…) with minors, extremely sexualising women in their music and stuff like this, while mcr never did any of this. I am hoping to see them live one day and if I will, I will feel safe at their shows too, because I know they won‘t allow s. a., sexism, queerphobia, racism, etc there and the same with all the fans that know and understand the bands message.
I was 30 when i found MCR. Yeah, I know I'm far older than most of their fans, but the band truly saved my life. I was in a dark place, nearly committed suicide, but the boys spoke to me, gave me a cathartic release I needed to get through the day and return to life.
With the way that music is today where CD sections in stores are quickly shrinking, Walmart still sells The Black Parade in-store. They don’t sell any other “hard rock/metal” other than Five Finger Death Punch and Metallica. That says a lot about their legacy.
@@wolfshoen I remember my sister had the clean version and the only difference from the explicit version is that there is one bleep on the hidden track Blood. Other than that the album is untouched
"Style AND Substance" That is MCR in a nutshell. Great point. I initially hated MCR because I thought they were another Style only band, but they proved they had both in spades.
I think that the longevity of them is attributed to a lot of things, but one of the biggest is the actual demographics of their fans. They were the disaffected youth of the late 2000s, and they built that almost cult like following. When you look at the state of the world now, those disaffected youth have progressed into an adulthood that didn't really provide the same opportunities for advancement like it did for past generations, that helps people transition out of that depressed teenager phase of life we all go through into a happy adulthood. A lot of people my age (26) are still kind of stuck and stagnant so I think this type of music that helped them through their teens still is still relevant to the feelings they are going through now. They are still looking for the light at the end of the tunnel. From one marketing professional to another I respect the shit out of everything you do on this channel and I'm glad I found your stuff.
wow, i think you hit the nail on the head with this. i'm turning 29 this year and the term "stagnant" is just about the most accurate way i could describe the past decade of my life. thank you for sharing your thoughts.
They were the last rock band that were doing something new and different WHILE ALSO being very accessible. I always hated the "ugh, they're ripping off Queen". That would be bad except for the fact that NOBODY else sounded anything remotely like Queen. With a modern culture of both mainstream and underground obsessed with being "Real", they're a bunch of artsy dorky kids making up stories and playing dress up. There's just nobody else that ever really scratched that itch the same way.
The only thing that sounds like Queen are the guitar solos, and if we're being real that's one of the most inspired moves they brought to the Pop Punk table.
My theory on why they are still so big, maybe even bigger. A lot of it is the songs and how they resonated with people. There is hardly a mental health topic MCR didn't address somewhere in their music, gender dysphoria, depression, anxiety, addiction, suicidal tendencies, ptsd, etc. The fact that they didn't wallow in it and wrote songs that that tried to give people some sort of hope without being dismissive really stuck with people. Even though they are often viewed as an "emo" band its really more the "I am not afraid to keep on living I am not afraid to walk this world alone (or dead)" type lyrics really set them apart. A lot of people who weren't fans (and some who were) found the whole MCR-saved-my-life type people to be a bit cringy but for a lot of people that was how the honestly felt. This combined with Gerard Way doing solo music (which I thought was really good) and writing the comic books and having the netflix show has kept their friends interested long after the band stopped playing. And lastly the songs they wrote really cast a pretty big net as to who they relate to. Nearly every highschooler relates to "I really need you to list to me, I mean, I'm okay, trust me, I'm not okay I'm really not oh-fucking-kay" because that is just an awkward time in life. So even though Three Cheers, and the Black Parade are about 15 years old now they wrote songs that can bring in new fans. All of this combined is something that I think is a bit rare in bands, especially bands in the emo scene.
I used to have the outward appearence of an MCR hater when I was a teenager due to being a metalhead, but secretly I really enjoyed their music. I'm still amazed at how good Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge is 15 years on, it's one of the freshest, most creative Pop Punk records going, seeing the video for 'I'm Not OK (I Promise)' at the age of 11 was definitely a formative experience for me.
"They kinda broke through with that whole black suit with red tie and messy dyed black hair and guyliner thing" *Billie Joe Armstrong has joined the chat*
@@SobrietyandSolace yeah, i saw in an interview where they were talking about the time they opened for Green Day for the Bullet in a Bible tour. Their really awesome about it. Basically, they were talking about how they were really great guys and they had played pranks on them.
I really wanna see a "How did Linkin Park get so big?", especially considering the change in musical styles in every single album. One of my favourite bands of all time
I was that artsy band girl from the suburbs. MCR helped me deal with what would become the estrangement of my father as well as the death of a friend from cancer when we were 24. I was deep into emo music but I loved the message of picking yourself back up that My Chem had. To me, they are the band that best represents “my youth” and don’t make me cringe now
Baden Dennis I tried looking through multiple live shows spanning from 2000-2004 to see if this was true , but couldent find anything , endless you got a link to prove that statement , I don't believe you sir
I feel like currently active “emo” bands such as Fall Out Boy, Panic At The Disco and Twenty One Pilots are what’s getting younger fans into My Chemical Romance. In the age of UA-cam and Spotify playlists it’s really easy to find related artists and if plenty of young people (I would argue most people in general) are always looking for their next favorite band. It’s crazy how many comments you can find on their music videos and unofficial fan lyric videos saying that they just found this band, fell in love with them, and are just heartbroken that they broke up and will likely never get back together.
I personally disagree, and yeah ik this comment is a year old lmao. All those bands have MUCH different styles then they used to. And people who listen to FOB, PATD, and TOP nowadays aren't usually big fans of MCR, suprisingly. Every person I've met, with 1 exception, who were into those bands, didn't like MCR that much actually. And the one person who did only liked Danger Days. I prefer older Panic and I've never really been into FOB or TOP, but I absolutely love MCR along with a few other "emo" bands. I'm 13 for reference btw.
@@kittykittybangbang9367 I like that site as much as the next person but it's a perfectly valid observation to make that FOB's new direction is not comparable to the quality of their old sound and they've alienated their fans. I'm not so simple or feeble-minded as to automatically dismiss any stylistic change from a band (or adaption of popular media) because my brain is incapable of more objectively analysing it, denouncing anything new as scary and therefore deserving of rejection, constraining artists from growing and developing because of the narrow scope of my own mind. I'm one of the few people who didn't slag off Muse for releasing The 2nd Law FFS. I'm well aware of the trope/stereotype and suspected some smart ass would try to dismiss my opinion by bringing it up. Now try thinking for yourself instead of just copy-pasting links to present your argument.
@@suggarion1362 I've been getting more into Black Veil Brides and Motionless In White recently, but it's kinda impossible to stop listening to MCR lmao.
Ngl...this video made me cry. MCR got me through the darkest parts of my adolescence and to see that they haven’t been and probably will not be forgotten makes my heart sing.
Same! I just can't express what they mean to me... I would probably faint if i met Gerard, and i never faint ;) I'm so set at getting a Black parade tattoo somewhere in the near future!
@@trinity5066 I went on my first USA trip (i live in europe) a while ago and i ended up in the Newark airport. Knowing Gerard and co would've been there probably a billion times made me want to kiss the ground lol
I really really loved this video. The very first concert I went to was MCR opening for Green Day. I ended up seeing MCR 5 times live. Every time incredible. My best friend died the day before the black parade album came out. What that band has done for me is everything. I’m not a typical MCR fan, but I identify emotionally so much with this band. so hearing you talk them up felt really good. Keep up the great work! MCRforlife
I'm almost 43 and I didn't start listening to them until my teenage daughter turned me on to them in my late 30s, now they are one of my top twenty favorite bands of all time and my daughter and I will get to see them this October, just pointing out that you don't have to be an emo teen to love this band, you can also be an emo middle aged person. Greatness is greatness
To be fair Finn would have been about 27 when mcr became big, I'm not sure how much teenage angst you have left by the time you're that age, I know by the time I was 27 I'd let that sort of stuff go
"Teenagers" was hugely underrated in my opinion as well. Super anthemic jam that was kind of like a mix of "I wanna rock" by Twisted Sister and something off of "Warning" by Green Day... Also the solo was pure classic rock. That song writing is what will make them one of the bands that my kids will bring up casually, trying to sound hip and into "old bands"
I remember when I first heard MCR right after Danger Days came out when I was like, 12 I think?? I was hooked. I listened to everything they put out, watched their documentary, and watched every interview and music video they did. I didn't know it, but I was living with untreated anxiety and depression, which is being treated now, and they made me feel so happy and accepted in a way that no other person or piece of media had been able to make me feel. They helped give me the courage to seek help and still help me to this day. I'm so glad I got to be alive at the same time as them.
Ah, I also became a fan during danger days. I remember it well, early 2012. I was 10 and my older cousin was obsessed with Danger Days so I became a fan from hearing her talk about MCR all the time and play their music. She even offered to take me to a concert, but my parents told me that I wasn't old enough and I remember being super pissed lmao
@@zorcher1016 search "My Chemical Romance - Life on the Murder Scene (Video Diary) " on here! should be the first result. If if gets taken down before you can watch it, you can rent it on iTunes for 3.99USD
other things that really helped them out -they toured with the used and tbs before they released three cheers right when both bands were blowing up -they were on warped tour 2004 which was fucking WILD. it was just after three cheers dropped which added to the hype even more. they were the poster kids of the emo movement that blew up that summer. -their live shows were amazing. even after gerard sobered up he still had his insane energy. at the start of the 2000s lots of bands were caring less about shows because they had the internet and mtv but mcr toured so much and so well it was impossible to ignore. gerard was a great frontman and the rest of them were all super into it too. also they totally rode along with the "stage gay" craze that also helped out bands like the used and panic! a lot at the time. -and they actually made good music
The girl you saw on the train was probably either Jamia (Frank's now wife) or Katmandu (gerard's girlfriend at the time) I'm not aware if any other members were in a relationship at the time
@@Inaworldoflove We’re in the same boat. MCR were in diapers when I graduated high school. If the scene is popular, I’ll probably notice. If the music sounds good, I’ll actually listen.
I always feel old whenever I look at MCR’s legacy. I was management at Spencer’s and Hot Topic for a few years and it always blew my mind when I’d see these like 13 year old kids that would come in wearing their shirts and possessing a vast knowledge of their songs. It’s like “Dude, I saw them live when you were still in diapers. How do you know their stuff better than I do?” That’s pretty awesome.
Im from the philippines and most young rock band will cover mcr. Mcr shirts still sells like gold (ive fought someone six years younger than me for a Three cheers shirt). Their songs are still being played and shared by the fans, especially to younger peeps. We still check updates on the members. And the online groups are still active. Hell, I've met a lot of friends because of this band.
I remember when they signed major there was SO much backlash against them and they made this absolutely brilliant Myspace post just trashing the gatekeepers. I can't remember exactly what it said but something along the lines of if you think you're better than some girl in a green day t shirt for being too main stream than you're just an asshole. I remember it being a big deal for awhile because they were the first band I can remember to really tell the scene that if they want to be assholes than they can go pound sand.
I tried looking everywhere for a copy of the blogpost, but couldn't find anything between fansites, forums, MySpace, Web Archive, nothing. If anybody can find it, I'd love to read it.
Man, people can be such snobs sometimes; I used to get a lot of that shit at punk shows AT MY OWN HOUSE just because I didn't dress a certain way and wasn't ashamed of liking something that somebody else thought was too mainstream or whatever, but me and my housemates put our asses on the line a lot to put those shows on and never asked for anything except donations for the touring bands, which half the people said they were too broke for when they clearly had twelve packs. I'd be lying if I said it didn't hurt sometimes
I found this from their post about signing to Reprise. "‘About elitism: if for one minute you think you’re better than a sixteen-year-old girl in a Green Day T-shirt, you are sorely mistaken. Remember the first time you went to a show and saw your favourite band. You wore their shirt, and sang every word. You didn’t know anything about scene politics, haircuts, or what was cool. All you knew was that this music made you feel different from anyone you shared a locker with. Someone finally understood you. This is what music is about."
I think that another huge factor for them was their connections to the comic book world and geeky culture in general at the time. It was before the mega-blockbuster Marvel films and being a comic book nerd was still a pretty outsider subculture to be a part of. MCR and Coheed (who I would also love to see one of these videos on) were the only bands from that comic-book-shop-emo-kid scene that really blew up and made it big before liking superheroes was mainstream, and it's a part of why they're still popular now, especially with Gerard becoming such a huge name in comics after the band broke up.
Love MCR, I met Gerard and Frank. They are really cool guys! They really cared about their fans too! Still love them, thanks for doing a video about them. Great video! MCR stood out at that time and are quite creative musically and visually.
Just saw MCR a few weeks ago and the audience was just *crowded* with teenagers that couldn't have been around for MCR back in the day. Some of them followed me around, me being the oldest one who already knew the stadium, and they all told me the same stories I've already heard when I was a teenager. How the band saved them, how there's truly no other band that they feel heard and understood by. It just makes me kinda happy that one of my favourite bands still has that impact on kids today and that their music seemingly never dies out. Just really proud to be part of this community.
I remember being in 7th grade and hearing Im Not Okay (I Promise) on the radio and like at the time I was absolutely obsessed with Queen due to my dad's influence and really into more punky stuff like the Misfits, early AFI, alongside the 90's pop punk golden age stuff, When I heard I'm not Okay it was like the Music gods specifically tailored a song just to my interests I was blown away by the song, I was instantly the biggest fan of MCR. Like I remember listening to KROQ with my dad and he pointed out that the lead guitar work sounded like it came out of Brian May's playbook. He was right.
Spot on with the light at the end if the tunnel part. That’s what they were going for. I never felt depressed, but I love how this music helps people who do feel that.
"It feels like they never left" No it doesn't I still cry on March 22nd. My Chemical Romance better come back. OMG they're back. I've never been so happy in my life.
Small world. My friend's roommate in the early 2000's was dating Gerard Way. I wonder if it was the same girl you saw on the train? I got You Brought me Your Bullets...for review in a fanzine and I was interested because Geoff from Thursday produced it and I knew of Frank from booking shows in NJ. I really dug that album though I thought the "we're vampires" shtick was a pretty corny trend (AFI, Alkaline Trio, etc.) Then when I heard Three Cheers...I thought "man, they got lame.I guess this is the last we'll hear of them." Boy was I wrong.
My Chemical Romance was an essential band, (and probably is) in fact my favorite band. They have an amazing take on a classic rock and punk/hardcore fusion and in my opinion, their members and albums are some of the best rockstars and albums of the 2000s. I found them very early on in my teen years (11/12 years old) and it just resonated and worked with me as I grew up. Such a versatile and influential group. EDIT: I can confirm that they wrote all of their own material, except for a few covers they did obviously. All their core albums were written by the members.
The first time I heard an MCR song, I was a kid watching random The Sims videos on UA-cam and the creator used the MCR song Helena. I had the melody in my head for DAYS. I finally tracked the video down (a difficult feat on dial-up internet), learned the song name, and the rest was history.
To what I know, Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge carries on with the kind of concept of I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love. In IBYMBYBMYL, there is some type of apocalypse (I think zombie) and a couple (the demolition lovers, aka the people in the three cheers cover) must live through it. However, the girl gets bit and the guy makes the hard decision of shooting her so he can survive. This is where Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge picks up. The guy misses the girl so much that he makes a deal with the devil. The deal is that if he can kill 1000 evil men, then the guy can stay with his lover for the rest of time. To include some parts of the album. Give Em Hell Kid is where he starts his journey. To The End is when he goes to a wedding to find more people to kill. You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us is about him being in prison. You get the point. After killing 999 men, the guy finally sees where the devil messed with him. He finds out that the last evil man he must kill is himself. So he does just that. And that is how the album ends. Now I am not claiming all of this is correct put I think I got it right lol (sorry that it is SUPER long) *TLDR; “The story of a man, a woman, and the corpses of a thousand evil men.”*
I was working for a well known LA punk band and we were on the same stage in 2005 on Warped across the states. it was the year My Chem blew up. on that bill was My chemical romance, Fallout Boy , the used and All American rejects, And it was the year that the classic punk bands suddenly saw this new scene erupt. No bands had the cut and polish of My Chemical Romance and they had the biggest line at their merch table each day. so they struck a note. FalloutBoy was a way more polished POP (punk) band but My chemical harnessed what The Cure did to me and my friends decades before. whether you liked them or not it was nice to see fans really have a band that spoke for them and connected and took time to meet chat and sign stuff. I had respect for them..
Mr Mullen I never thought I'd see you here. Big fan, it's very cool that you watch these videos. Good to know we've got another member of the MCRmy slowly infiltrating the mainstream.
3:59 - Yes, thank you! Haha. Those Emo gatekeepers piss me off. Like... Just, stop. Anyway, another great video! MCR’s legacy has fascinated me as well. I really do think it has everything to do with them quitting while they were ahead. They left behind a solid discography (even if it’s really just Three Cheers and TBP, like you said.. look at Nirvana!) and their music is living on. I feel like other bands should take note. Sometimes ya gotta know when to quit instead of still hanging around and releasing a few sub-par albums. MCR doesn’t have anything like that tarnishing their legacy and it’s clearly paying off in the long run. I don’t think they *need* to come back. Them being gone is also part of the mystique that keeps them interesting. Almost like when an artist literally dies for real, they typically become more popular and categorized as legends. MCR has a similar thing going on. Side note: As far as the “solid image + music” thing you were talking about, I definitely think Panic! at the Disco nailed that as well. That’s pretty much WHY they blew up I think. They stood out in every area with a unique band name, look/image, sound, music videos and stage show. I mean, they came out of nowhere and won Video of the Year! It’s crazy, haha. Still waiting on a p!atd video from you, lol 😂
Omg I legit feel the same. They have that "dead rockstar" type following except they didn't die. They left at the top... there's NOTHING more sad to watch than a washed up rock band
Lol mcr is mall emo bc the actual emo is completely different. Thats why I have this thing call the 3 emos. Raw emo, midwest emo, and mall emo. Lol I still love my mall emo jams though
This video was great! I was 16 when Three Cheers came out and I have been a fan since. They're ridiculously talented, hard working and they are so good to us fans. I still follow all of them in everything they do and see them on their solo tours. I don't really mind if they never reunite, it was a great ride. I just want them all to be happy.
Loved My Chem growing up, and to this day still love 'em. Even as adults my buddies and I kept going to their concerts until they broke up. Their debut album, Bullets, has some of the coolest graveyard-vibey tracks ever. While Three Cheers is fun and anthemic, Bullets is complex and tense. They were one of those unique bands that wrote 99% amazing songs (Danger Days was so-so). An underrated personal favorite is their cover of Jack the Ripper by Morrissey. Wild that they were able to transform it in such a way, and the raw energy is ecstatic. I also listened to a lot of emo music, but never considered My Chem emo. I always thought of them as pop-punk.
I actually didn't get into them until I was suicidal in college. I knew of them, I did like them when they came on, I just never thought about them much. But when I rediscovered them, they really did explode into my mind. I am a big fan of all the classic rock and metal bands, and they really gave me those vibes but with a heavier feel. As I continue to listen to them and learn more about them, the lyrics are much deeper than you think when you first listen, and the instrumentals were amazing. I am a big fan of bands doing small stuff with their instruments or riffs to add just that little spark of color in the middle of a song, and unlike most emo bands they actually did it well to where it all fit perfectly. I went from enjoying when they would randomly come on to being a hardcore fan, and I do think they are worth being given a serious look at.
-Mall emo thing -heartagram sticker -watching invader Zim all night Let's pretend you don't know me and it's not 2020. And let's pretend I'm not 25 lol
Never been a MCR fan, but always appreciate talent. Funny story, I was in a music theory class in 2000-2001, when a guy was talking about the new underground scene called "emo", I didn't think it would catch. Oops.
Dude for fucking real. I hope he talks about the importance / insane time capsule that was Hellfest. Fall Out Boy and MCR were opening bands at those fests. Crazy to think about.
@@TheseBitchesWantNikes saw em ar mayhem fest 08? My dumb ass almost died from heat exhaustion during their set from wearing all black in south florida in the peak of summer.
I met Gerard. My dad would take take me to EVERY MCR show in DFW Texas area, drop me off on the side, give me 40 or 50 bucks and tell me not to tell my mom before waiting at a bar next door or going to get hammered at an Applebee's. I remember waiting in line to meet my idol and he was the most genuine famous person I ever met. Hugged me HARD like a real friend would, told some side dude to take a picture with my disposable camera (he took two), complimented my boy George shirt of all things, and told me it was nice to meet me. It just felt very person. I don't even remember being able to speak but he just kind of took control and knew my 14 year old ass was in awe. Gerard is the opposite of a creep, opposite of whatever egotistical is, and just a super genuine person. Whole meeting was like....three or four minutes if that but it stuck with me idk.
I feel like that’s been done to death by now. I mean I’m sure Finn could bring something new to the table, but they’ve just been covered so much from most angles. I wouldn’t be mad at it though.
I got top 2% of MCR Listeners on Spotify for 2019 😂🤦🏻♀️ kinda proud not going to lie, I have an MCR tattoo and would still buy anything they put there name too. I don’t even rationally know why, but the MCRMY is the most crazy, most dedicated fandom I have ever come across, they cast a magical spell. I’m a 29 year old who never stopped listening to them. They hold such a fundamental and special place in my heart, words honestly can’t describe.
"you know all this stuff anyway" "you know why" "i don't need to explain this stuff, you already know the anyway" me: ... i just started listening to their music 2 days ago. 🕵🏾♂️
MCR will always have a place in my heart, especially Three Cheers. When I saw the video for “I’m Not Okay” for the first time I was hooked. I wanted to be Gerard so bad, even thought of straightening my hair with a perm and dying it black( I have Afro textured hair, so it would have been a hell of lot of work and maintenance😂😂).Three Cheers was the first cd I owned. I remember buying it in 2005 with a Circuit City (lol) gift card in middle school. Some of the most catchiest hooks and well written guitar riffs I’ve ever heard in any of the mall emo albums from that time (that opening riff in Thank You for the Venom, The second verse riff in To The End, I could go on). Hell, I’d say rock in general. I still have that cd in my closet with a cracked case and everything. I still listen to that album to this day and it’s been on every mp3 player or phone I had since I bought it, even during my tr00 pop punk phrase. I loved the Black Parade as well. Never got into Danger Day’s though. Maybe I’ll go back and give it another listen.
I was scrolling to see if anyone's mentioned the Amory Wars - Coheed's been doing the concept/comics thing since 2002 with SSTB. MCR didn't release Three Cheers til 2004.
i believe one of the biggest reasons for their success is that they accepted and acknowledged their mostly female fanbase. most other bands hated „fangirls“ because as a rock band you want to seem tough which is harder with that fanbase. they really created a safe space
Hey, do you think you could do an episode on Cap'n Jazz, Midwest emo, and math rock? Also, idk if you've done this before, but an episode about "emo adjacent" artists. Artists that aren't technically emo, but that get support from the alternative scene, like gym class heroes, 3oh3, and even Billie Eilish. Of those, only gym class heroes takes musical cues from emo acts, and the association of the other two groups with emo suggests that aesthetic may matter just as much, if not more than, the music.
My Chem was the first band I really listened to and the reason I actually care about music also I am wearing an "I'm emo in a Gerard Way" t-shirt while watching this
Damn I am so nostalgic for the time were punkrock was big! Btw I love how you praise the bands that I also secretly liked, but didn't dare to admit to my gatekeeping punk/hardcore friends ;)
I’m sad to say I wasn’t able to see them in their prime as you did. At the age of 49 I have managed to see their reunion tour in Warrington. I loved and lived every minute of it.
Follow me on Instagram: instagram.com/finnmckenty
The Punk Rock MBA Do you remember which member of the band was the girl’s bf?
Great video! I really enjoy your channel and think that you should do a video on Sleeping with Sirens or Pierce the Veil.
Please please please do a saves the day video
I went to see the black parade in Nashville in 07 w my fam and we all have heartagram tats still listen to HIM and my chem
My son had died and I wanted to die and mcr made me laugh and made me hopeful
I saw MCR at sixteen and I got to talk to gerard, and something he said to me will always stick with me. I told him what his music meant to me and how I had just been hospitalized for a suicide attempt, and he told me that "it's okay not to be okay. Just know it gets better, and this isn't permanent. See you at the next show, kid."
Frfrrfr ❤️
That brought a tear to my eye. Wonderful. I tell kids the same but I ain't famous. Lol
@@elizabthharris6741 and that is so important. I’m glad you’re able to tell your kids that.
@@ridleysomeliana-lauer5814 well, my nephews and kids at shows, bars. People tend to open up to me. I don't got kids. 😆
But really I tell my nephews and nieces, and some 21 year olds I know, I try to give them things nobody told me. Like learning to work hard, learning to do your laundry, cook, pay your own cell bill, by 18, because it don't get easier, so the sooner you learn skills , the easier adulting is.
Or I tell them to enjoy your youth, to a point, but don't overdo it, and work towards your future too. You are young. You have your youth, strength, and vitality to get you through. Or don't get more than 1 credit card and only use it for gas.. pay it off every month. Dont get in debt.
Or to get therapy young, so your trauma doesn't come back to haunt you at 40, cause it always resurfaces or, new traumas stack on it. So take care of it, no matter how bad it hurts because it will help so much later, being able to adult in a normal functioning brainspace.
Because I had to learn the hard way. I was a depressed abused neglected poor kid, and moved on my own at 15. I knew how to do house stuff, but they gave me my first credit card at 16. I'm 49 now, and had to learn adulting, and not to party so hard you die. 😆 🤣 😂. I want kids to not suffer anymore than they have to, but also not screw up their life by living so hard to hide the lain, they get a late start to life.
hey man, killing yourself is pretty gay. chill.
How you know MCR is still huge and has a legacy: if they reunited and toured, they would sell out arenas all over the country. Some multiple nights over.
ye
in the uk too, man :,)
All over the world*
yah honestly their reunion tour would probably be way bigger than anything they ever played when they were active
Jason Westerkon all over the world
An old band of mine played with MCR at the height of the I'm Not Okay popularity and I was struck by how every member has a singular focus: the band. They were literally like a squad of Army guys preparing to go to battle it was inspiring.
Riffs, Beards & Gear that’s so rad!
Plug the old band!
Wow, Fluff, you played with MCR?
There is a level of WOW that might go unappreciated here
Riffs, Beards & Gear what was the band name?
“Will they ever get back together?”
*laughs in Dec. 20, 2019*
*cries in coronavirus 2020*
SAME
*laughs again in 2022 tour dates*
@@miettereis1055 Gerard school girl giggle im pleased for people who love the same band as i do
It was actually already known that they would have a reunion when this video came out
*laughed again in may 2022*
18:04 "There´s a new whole generation of fans who where too young to have ever really been fans during the band's prime''
You called me out
My daughter was born the year they were at the VMA (2006) She loves this band now, and she found them on her own. I was an old school goth kid in the late 90s and she found MCR while branching out from the old goth I had introduced her to. So yeah they are definitely going to be popular for generations.
yeah, same here ^^
i was a toddler when they were popular so also me 😼
Same lol I was 5 in 2004 but discovered them around 2007
"People in their late 20s who were fans and still holding onto nostalgia"
Wow okay way to call me out Finn
Lazergician I FEEL PERSONALLY ATTACKED
@@moniquenmckenzie ikr
Hey, you could be in your early 30's and still holding onto nostalgia too, haha! If AIM was still a thing and I used it today, my away messages would still be lyrics from Three Cheers like they were back in 2004 when I started listening to them my freshman year of college.
Failing Novelist I love all of those bands but imo my chemical romance is an amazing band especially when you listen to each album front to back instead of just listening to them on shuffle
@@katrice8588 I find that is the best way to listen to their albums. Then again maybe I've just done so so many times that the next song starts playing in my head before it actually starts and then I end up just listening to the whole thing when I meant to listen to a particular song. None of them are really skip-worthy either, so that really helps too.
I teach at a middle school, and there hasn’t been a year yet where at least one student hasn't worn a MCR shirt regularly. Their legacy lives on.
And, I’m with you on having a preference for Three Cheers over Black Parade.
击ChemicalCheezWiz british struggles smh
he didsay "we carry on"
As someone who was a middle schooler when Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge came out, that makes me happier than it probably should.
@@zackakai5173 Same! So proud of our little babies :)
Bruh you have cool students
I think you should have added the fact that they were bottled and boo'd at reading festival, continued to play while dodging bottles and won the entire crowd over by the end of their set.
No way, was this recorded?
@@royceabshire2453 it should be somewhere on bbc iplayer
@@nikosarin3403 I found some footage and it was nuts!
@@royceabshire2453 link?
@@RSSZN Sorry didn't see this until just now. I'll have to check my history and see if I can find it again. But from talking with others, people chuckin' bottles is a pretty common thing drunk fans do. Which to me is royally f'uked up
An interesting thing I remember reading about Gerard Way, he was an intern at Cartoon Network and was on the way to pitch a cartoon he had created one morning. Then 9/11 happened. He was in New York and really experienced the horror of it. He quit CN and focused on doing something to help people deal with the horrors of life, which is why he started MCR.
Here's Gerard's cartoon ua-cam.com/video/fnt__lyGIQ4/v-deo.html
Also imagine if one day Cartoon Network and Gerard decide to make a cartoon together (especially now that he's a big star), imagine how awesome that would be.
Yea that story is wild. Saw the towers get hit while he was on the ferry and decided there's more to life than working a 9-5, went home and wrote their first song Skylines and Turnstiles.
Holy shit man like he was in Manhattan when the fucking planes hit, and just DECIDED to go start a band that became literally bigger than Metallica, all along while LITERALLY thousands of suicide attempts?
Most baller shit ever.
More baller than say Mike Tyson or Dr Dre.
@@eatassonthefirstdate literally bigger than Metallica? I do not like Metallica but c'mon. Metallica's first 7 albums have sold more copies *EACH* than MCR's total career album sales. Let's not devolve into hyperbole.
Edit: I should have read the rest of your comment because after reading it I realize you're being facetious.
@@eatassonthefirstdate I wouldn't say
Bigger than Metallica but there up therr
Three Cheers is about a guy who dies and wants to be with his wife so the devil says "Ill let you go back if you bring me the souls of a thousand evil men"...I wrote a fan story based on it in 8th grade and it was FUCKING BAD
😂😂
It's probably loosely based on the story of Spawn.
Some say that girl still rides that train and says her boyfriend's band is going on tour.
I mean, i wish that that's real and that they really ARE going on tour
* Sobs in G-note *
well, they are now
@@IfYouMeetAWolf :)
IfYouMeetAWolf honey you got a big storm coming
IfYouMeetAWolf well.....
"Punk culture was at the peak of it's mainstream popularity" -Schrodinger's Punk
Is that anything like Schrodinger’s Cat?
@@squipp4572 punk is crap, only Black Flag, only Anticimex
@@klossner7205 no
@@squipp4572 The original punk scene was a big trend at least certainly in the UK
Now I need to know more about Rise Against and how they got big.
I was definitely a MCR hater when they first came out. I was right out of High school and was still clinging to the hope that NU metal wasn't dead haha. My brother and his friends had started listening to MCR and The Used and I hated it. Fast forward to present day, I just found a box of old CDs my wife owns and I found the Black Parade, I asked her how she could listen to this "filth". She then told me about how much the album helped her growing up, she had lost her mother to cancer when she was young and felt that the message of hope when she felt hopeless, especially in her Highschool years really helped her keep going. After eating a slice of humble pie I finally gave the album a shot and was blown away by this modern take on 1970s rock! They are still making new fans, and their sound absolutely transcends generations. Great video man! Keep them coming!
This was 100% me too. Started listening to them 6 months ago and I'm obsessed
Since i have always been into any form of rock and metal. I liked MCR along with other emo punk rock time groups. They got just fucking annoying for awhile. Greenday eas annoying as fuck in 04 as well.
@@bluBlaq33 dude I'm sorry he said it like that but thats what people who didn't like mcr back then would call it
@@bluBlaq33 you totally missed the point of what he was saying. If anything, his comment affirmed your position.
Dude story of my high school life. I kept thinking "what is this fake ass wannabe emo punk bullshit" back in the day, but over the years I've grown to REALLY appreciate their musicianship and how they take nods from older rock and music in general. Their messages also helped a LOT of kids at the time. It's a shame I was too immature to really dig deep into them back in the day. Black Parade and Three Cheers are just solid, fun albums to jam to till this day.
I think also what helped is as a teenage girl who was obsessed is the amazing music with also how well they treated their fans. Looking back you can find videos of them telling off guys trying to get girls to flash and them always treating their fans kind. Hell they came back for their first show and they handed out blankets to fans camping out the night before, not one but TWO band members made sure a dog in the crowd got a blanket.
I really think their feminist stance early on and "no groupies" paved the way for them to have a young, female fan base. Combine having a large, young, female fanbase that feels safe and appreciated (which is RARE in the alt-rock genre, tbh, especially at the time) with them having actual musical talent, never getting complacent with their skill level or creativity and it was the perfect combination
@@heather23renae I never knew that they had a "No Groupies Policy ". That is unheard of in the Music Industry.
@@dextermoore278 yep. Gerard and Frank were in long term, committed relationships when the band started (Frank eventually married her.) and there was an interview I remember seeing but can’t find where they talked about how they wanted their shows to be safe spaces for kids of all types, gay, straight, women, whatever they were feeling, it was okay when they got to see or listen to MCR. So if there was any kind of ‘groupie’ situation going on it could and would effect that and how people view their shows and music. I also know that they’ve talked several times about how single minded they were all about wanting the band to succeed so they were really focused on making the best music they could and becoming the best players they could be. Groupies were the furthest thing from their minds. Idk how much of a ‘policy’ it actually was so much as they collectively knew and were devoted to the message and idea of the band and that any kind of groupie situation could derail or taint that.
There’s a lot more I could say about it and there are a lot of things that happened with my chem and their fan base that were unique to them and the time and created a really special fan/band relationship. It’s super cool and idk how many other rock bands have something like that but I’d imagine very few.
@@heather23renae Yes its very unusual because so many guys say they got in Bands just so they could get a lot of girls. Most Bands want Groupies like Van Halen and Motley Crue were notorious for their antics with Groupies l
@@heather23renae I love them so much for that and that‘s *exactly* the reason, why I feel so safe with them. So many members of other alternative bands have done stuff like doing things (…) with minors, extremely sexualising women in their music and stuff like this, while mcr never did any of this. I am hoping to see them live one day and if I will, I will feel safe at their shows too, because I know they won‘t allow s. a., sexism, queerphobia, racism, etc there and the same with all the fans that know and understand the bands message.
Anyone else here watching this now that MCR are coming back ?
Me
Me! and who else was about ready to sell a kidney for a ticket
T E K I had tickets for my brother and I, they got refunded
Me
here in 2021 after getting the news the tour was postponed to 2022...
I was 30 when i found MCR. Yeah, I know I'm far older than most of their fans, but the band truly saved my life. I was in a dark place, nearly committed suicide, but the boys spoke to me, gave me a cathartic release I needed to get through the day and return to life.
I'm happy for you Daniel.
✌️ be with you. Appreciate your testimony 💯
i'm 52 now and still love them one of the best bands ever
I’m late to rely to this comment, but I was too! Discovered them when 3 Cheers dropped. I’m 48 now and they’re still my fav band.
I didn't really appreciate MCR until my college years. Truly a creative band who executed their ambitious style masterfully.
@@rorz999 It was probably Dead!
With the way that music is today where CD sections in stores are quickly shrinking, Walmart still sells The Black Parade in-store. They don’t sell any other “hard rock/metal” other than Five Finger Death Punch and Metallica. That says a lot about their legacy.
Wow! That does say a lot
To be fair it’s censored rip
@@wolfshoen I remember my sister had the clean version and the only difference from the explicit version is that there is one bleep on the hidden track Blood. Other than that the album is untouched
And I am that employee that makes sure it’s front and center every time 🤣🤣
"Style AND Substance"
That is MCR in a nutshell. Great point. I initially hated MCR because I thought they were another Style only band, but they proved they had both in spades.
that "no one cares what real emo is" part just... thank you it’s been YEARS and people are still hung up on that
BUT MCR WAS NEVER EMO, GET IT OVER.
@@gemin.r.jok. No one cares. How about you get over that
@@SxrxiZ hahahaha you got offended, so it means you're one of those who believes in emo crap. 🤣🤣🤣
@@gemin.r.j nah
I think that the longevity of them is attributed to a lot of things, but one of the biggest is the actual demographics of their fans. They were the disaffected youth of the late 2000s, and they built that almost cult like following. When you look at the state of the world now, those disaffected youth have progressed into an adulthood that didn't really provide the same opportunities for advancement like it did for past generations, that helps people transition out of that depressed teenager phase of life we all go through into a happy adulthood. A lot of people my age (26) are still kind of stuck and stagnant so I think this type of music that helped them through their teens still is still relevant to the feelings they are going through now. They are still looking for the light at the end of the tunnel.
From one marketing professional to another I respect the shit out of everything you do on this channel and I'm glad I found your stuff.
As a fellow 26 year old, I agree!!
I'll be 23 in exactly 2 months and I completely agree.
wow, i think you hit the nail on the head with this. i'm turning 29 this year and the term "stagnant" is just about the most accurate way i could describe the past decade of my life.
thank you for sharing your thoughts.
They are the band for millenials, is that what you're saying?
I'm also 26 and completely agree with everything you wrote.
They were the last rock band that were doing something new and different WHILE ALSO being very accessible. I always hated the "ugh, they're ripping off Queen". That would be bad except for the fact that NOBODY else sounded anything remotely like Queen. With a modern culture of both mainstream and underground obsessed with being "Real", they're a bunch of artsy dorky kids making up stories and playing dress up. There's just nobody else that ever really scratched that itch the same way.
MrJezzicho yeah such nerds 😂😂😂👍🏻
The only thing that sounds like Queen are the guitar solos, and if we're being real that's one of the most inspired moves they brought to the Pop Punk table.
My theory on why they are still so big, maybe even bigger. A lot of it is the songs and how they resonated with people. There is hardly a mental health topic MCR didn't address somewhere in their music, gender dysphoria, depression, anxiety, addiction, suicidal tendencies, ptsd, etc. The fact that they didn't wallow in it and wrote songs that that tried to give people some sort of hope without being dismissive really stuck with people. Even though they are often viewed as an "emo" band its really more the "I am not afraid to keep on living I am not afraid to walk this world alone (or dead)" type lyrics really set them apart. A lot of people who weren't fans (and some who were) found the whole MCR-saved-my-life type people to be a bit cringy but for a lot of people that was how the honestly felt. This combined with Gerard Way doing solo music (which I thought was really good) and writing the comic books and having the netflix show has kept their friends interested long after the band stopped playing. And lastly the songs they wrote really cast a pretty big net as to who they relate to. Nearly every highschooler relates to "I really need you to list to me, I mean, I'm okay, trust me, I'm not okay I'm really not oh-fucking-kay" because that is just an awkward time in life. So even though Three Cheers, and the Black Parade are about 15 years old now they wrote songs that can bring in new fans. All of this combined is something that I think is a bit rare in bands, especially bands in the emo scene.
I used to have the outward appearence of an MCR hater when I was a teenager due to being a metalhead, but secretly I really enjoyed their music. I'm still amazed at how good Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge is 15 years on, it's one of the freshest, most creative Pop Punk records going, seeing the video for 'I'm Not OK (I Promise)' at the age of 11 was definitely a formative experience for me.
"They kinda broke through with that whole black suit with red tie and messy dyed black hair and guyliner thing"
*Billie Joe Armstrong has joined the chat*
@Dominick Garcia Billie Joe is the og I will fight everyone lol.
@Dominick Garcia G is very open about how much of a Billie Joe fanboy he is. I love them both for different reasons.
@@SobrietyandSolace yeah, i saw in an interview where they were talking about the time they opened for Green Day for the Bullet in a Bible tour. Their really awesome about it. Basically, they were talking about how they were really great guys and they had played pranks on them.
Pleasance to watch,
Billie is in his 50s and still sporting the same look xD
I really wanna see a "How did Linkin Park get so big?", especially considering the change in musical styles in every single album. One of my favourite bands of all time
There's a video about that by Watchmojo on UA-cam
One word - Numb
unpopular opinion, Thousand Suns is my favorite LP album.
@@kafeimewtwo2410 Actual unpopular opinion: One More Light is my favorite LP album.
@@MANJYOMETHUNDER111 that's valid
I was that artsy band girl from the suburbs. MCR helped me deal with what would become the estrangement of my father as well as the death of a friend from cancer when we were 24. I was deep into emo music but I loved the message of picking yourself back up that My Chem had. To me, they are the band that best represents “my youth” and don’t make me cringe now
Even green day adopted the whole guy liner and black suit red tie thing lol
And they toured together around the time that they both started doing that too :P was for American Idiot and Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge
Nick B same! 2005 was the year! I saw them in STL on May 13, 2005
Billy Joe was doing the red tie thing in 2001/02 from memory
Baden Dennis I tried looking through multiple live shows spanning from 2000-2004 to see if this was true , but couldent find anything , endless you got a link to prove that statement , I don't believe you sir
Facs nephew ua-cam.com/video/GSBNvqCT_A4/v-deo.html
This actually made me cry. My Chemical Romance will always be a huge part of my life.
Sad
@@E1337Jerk Living up to your username I see...
Man..as an old MCR fan it makes me super happy to see a lot of younger kiddos connect with MCR, like they dont feel so alone and thats a good feeling.
I feel like currently active “emo” bands such as Fall Out Boy, Panic At The Disco and Twenty One Pilots are what’s getting younger fans into My Chemical Romance. In the age of UA-cam and Spotify playlists it’s really easy to find related artists and if plenty of young people (I would argue most people in general) are always looking for their next favorite band. It’s crazy how many comments you can find on their music videos and unofficial fan lyric videos saying that they just found this band, fell in love with them, and are just heartbroken that they broke up and will likely never get back together.
I personally disagree, and yeah ik this comment is a year old lmao.
All those bands have MUCH different styles then they used to. And people who listen to FOB, PATD, and TOP nowadays aren't usually big fans of MCR, suprisingly. Every person I've met, with 1 exception, who were into those bands, didn't like MCR that much actually. And the one person who did only liked Danger Days.
I prefer older Panic and I've never really been into FOB or TOP, but I absolutely love MCR along with a few other "emo" bands.
I'm 13 for reference btw.
@@Sunflower-ke6yo Agreed, and I'm 27 lol. FOB aren't what they used to be.
@@kittykittybangbang9367 I like that site as much as the next person but it's a perfectly valid observation to make that FOB's new direction is not comparable to the quality of their old sound and they've alienated their fans. I'm not so simple or feeble-minded as to automatically dismiss any stylistic change from a band (or adaption of popular media) because my brain is incapable of more objectively analysing it, denouncing anything new as scary and therefore deserving of rejection, constraining artists from growing and developing because of the narrow scope of my own mind. I'm one of the few people who didn't slag off Muse for releasing The 2nd Law FFS. I'm well aware of the trope/stereotype and suspected some smart ass would try to dismiss my opinion by bringing it up. Now try thinking for yourself instead of just copy-pasting links to present your argument.
@@Sunflower-ke6yo good to see the younger generation listening to good music. I listen to all 4 bands but MCR is the God
@@suggarion1362 I've been getting more into Black Veil Brides and Motionless In White recently, but it's kinda impossible to stop listening to MCR lmao.
Ngl...this video made me cry. MCR got me through the darkest parts of my adolescence and to see that they haven’t been and probably will not be forgotten makes my heart sing.
Same :) they were everything! Still kinda are
Was there ever any doubt?
Same! I just can't express what they mean to me...
I would probably faint if i met Gerard, and i never faint ;)
I'm so set at getting a Black parade tattoo somewhere in the near future!
@@trinity5066 I went on my first USA trip (i live in europe) a while ago and i ended up in the Newark airport. Knowing Gerard and co would've been there probably a billion times made me want to kiss the ground lol
I really really loved this video. The very first concert I went to was MCR opening for Green Day. I ended up seeing MCR 5 times live. Every time incredible. My best friend died the day before the black parade album came out. What that band has done for me is everything. I’m not a typical MCR fan, but I identify emotionally so much with this band. so hearing you talk them up felt really good. Keep up the great work! MCRforlife
I'm almost 43 and I didn't start listening to them until my teenage daughter turned me on to them in my late 30s, now they are one of my top twenty favorite bands of all time and my daughter and I will get to see them this October, just pointing out that you don't have to be an emo teen to love this band, you can also be an emo middle aged person. Greatness is greatness
I believe the genre they're in overshadows how great their music is.
Finn "I personally, but i get it" Mckenty
To be fair Finn would have been about 27 when mcr became big, I'm not sure how much teenage angst you have left by the time you're that age, I know by the time I was 27 I'd let that sort of stuff go
It always baffles me how you just meet people related to super huge bands. Keep up the good work, Finn!
Just be old and it will happen to you too lol
Also keep in touch with friends from your past. I usually find out people got big years after I knew them.
Yeah, my dad knew about Hooty and the Blow Fish in his college years before they blew up. Small world
Also living in cities with huge music scenes probably helps.
Straight to your face with the orange eyeliner.
"Will they ever come back?"
Yep, yesterday to be exactly hahaha
"Teenagers" was hugely underrated in my opinion as well. Super anthemic jam that was kind of like a mix of "I wanna rock" by Twisted Sister and something off of "Warning" by Green Day... Also the solo was pure classic rock. That song writing is what will make them one of the bands that my kids will bring up casually, trying to sound hip and into "old bands"
idk how that song is underrated, i was in middle school in 2014 and a bunch of kids would listen to that on their ipods
I think Desolation Row was hugely underrated
@@ogbee9690it’s definitely not underrated
I hung up some posters for them one year like 2003 and they got me into warped for free. Met the guys hungout at the merch tent. Was cool.
I'm not jealous.
* Sobs silently i G-note *
It bugs me a little how ‘I Brought You My Bullets You Brought Me Your Love’ is so underrated and is usually completely ignored.
Same, its my favorite
Their best album imo
Great album much better than their last which I just can't listen to it
@@alexb151 their last album is horrible. 😅
man that whole album is great
I remember when I first heard MCR right after Danger Days came out when I was like, 12 I think?? I was hooked. I listened to everything they put out, watched their documentary, and watched every interview and music video they did. I didn't know it, but I was living with untreated anxiety and depression, which is being treated now, and they made me feel so happy and accepted in a way that no other person or piece of media had been able to make me feel. They helped give me the courage to seek help and still help me to this day. I'm so glad I got to be alive at the same time as them.
Ah, I also became a fan during danger days. I remember it well, early 2012. I was 10 and my older cousin was obsessed with Danger Days so I became a fan from hearing her talk about MCR all the time and play their music. She even offered to take me to a concert, but my parents told me that I wasn't old enough and I remember being super pissed lmao
i know this is an old post but, what documentary!! please tell me i need it
@@zorcher1016 search "My Chemical Romance - Life on the Murder Scene (Video Diary)
" on here! should be the first result. If if gets taken down before you can watch it, you can rent it on iTunes for 3.99USD
Interesting,
other things that really helped them out
-they toured with the used and tbs before they released three cheers right when both bands were blowing up
-they were on warped tour 2004 which was fucking WILD. it was just after three cheers dropped which added to the hype even more. they were the poster kids of the emo movement that blew up that summer.
-their live shows were amazing. even after gerard sobered up he still had his insane energy. at the start of the 2000s lots of bands were caring less about shows because they had the internet and mtv but mcr toured so much and so well it was impossible to ignore. gerard was a great frontman and the rest of them were all super into it too. also they totally rode along with the "stage gay" craze that also helped out bands like the used and panic! a lot at the time.
-and they actually made good music
The stage gay thing wasn’t a craze at the time tho
I think that My Chemical Romance might have pretty good chance of getting into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
No. Seeing the people they nominate not a chance in the world
They will dude. And I live just outside of Cleveland lol I'll be there when they perform.
Eminem is in the rock and roll hall of fame but My Chemical Romance aren't
@@redfox8078 they’re not eligible until 2027 😉
If Radiohead or Rage Against the Machine can be in the Hall, so can MCR!
The girl you saw on the train was probably either Jamia (Frank's now wife) or Katmandu (gerard's girlfriend at the time) I'm not aware if any other members were in a relationship at the time
Yes, whos gf was this girl, lol , i need answers xD
How the hell does one even know the names of their girlfriends from way back then
@@BIGxBOSSxx1 hardcore fans ?
@@BIGxBOSSxx1 acknowledgments on the albums...
maybe gerards gf cuz didnt he go to school in Manhattan? i think frank stayed in NJ so its more likely to be him ? idk
honestly I think they're first album is one of the most underrated albums of the last 20 years.
I CLICKED SO FAST. IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS MY WHOLE LIFE, THANK YOU FOR THIS!!
literally what i wanted to say,thanks finn!
Mach 5 click right here.
Chill.
Kevin Luper naw man I couldn’t sleep for a few days and was sick as hell. I won’t chill cause it’s something that made me happy.
MCR is what got me into rock in general, I started off with Welcome To The Black Parade and now I'm listening to Cannibal Corpse
I'm 51 years old, and only discovered them 3 years ago. I'm a huge fanboy!
I thought I was old at 26 when I got into them lol
@@Inaworldoflove We’re in the same boat. MCR were in diapers when I graduated high school. If the scene is popular, I’ll probably notice. If the music sounds good, I’ll actually listen.
Be a fan, not a fanboy.
I'm emo in a Gerard Way.
Fuckin a
hotputridvomit wtf homie ypu lost or something this is not slam worldwide, go back to your basement fude
Don’t Letto this joke get to you
HotPutridVomit dude your slam. I'm a emo metalhead. HotPutridVomit go back to Slam worldwide lol.
We need to make emo slam a thing. My slamming romance?
nice dude - still jam to MCR monthly
Same
Daily but ok
I always feel old whenever I look at MCR’s legacy. I was management at Spencer’s and Hot Topic for a few years and it always blew my mind when I’d see these like 13 year old kids that would come in wearing their shirts and possessing a vast knowledge of their songs. It’s like “Dude, I saw them live when you were still in diapers. How do you know their stuff better than I do?” That’s pretty awesome.
My Chemical Romance: The most quoted band in AOL Instant Messenger away messages. (I'm so, so guilty of this...)
Im from the philippines and most young rock band will cover mcr. Mcr shirts still sells like gold (ive fought someone six years younger than me for a Three cheers shirt). Their songs are still being played and shared by the fans, especially to younger peeps. We still check updates on the members. And the online groups are still active.
Hell, I've met a lot of friends because of this band.
I remember when they signed major there was SO much backlash against them and they made this absolutely brilliant Myspace post just trashing the gatekeepers. I can't remember exactly what it said but something along the lines of if you think you're better than some girl in a green day t shirt for being too main stream than you're just an asshole. I remember it being a big deal for awhile because they were the first band I can remember to really tell the scene that if they want to be assholes than they can go pound sand.
I remember this too. That's one thing I always appreciated about them, they stayed true to themselves, at least from what we saw as fans.
I tried looking everywhere for a copy of the blogpost, but couldn't find anything between fansites, forums, MySpace, Web Archive, nothing. If anybody can find it, I'd love to read it.
Man, people can be such snobs sometimes; I used to get a lot of that shit at punk shows AT MY OWN HOUSE just because I didn't dress a certain way and wasn't ashamed of liking something that somebody else thought was too mainstream or whatever, but me and my housemates put our asses on the line a lot to put those shows on and never asked for anything except donations for the touring bands, which half the people said they were too broke for when they clearly had twelve packs. I'd be lying if I said it didn't hurt sometimes
iconic.
I found this from their post about signing to Reprise.
"‘About elitism: if for one minute you think you’re better than a sixteen-year-old girl in a Green Day T-shirt, you are sorely mistaken. Remember the first time you went to a show and saw your favourite band. You wore their shirt, and sang every word. You didn’t know anything about scene politics, haircuts, or what was cool. All you knew was that this music made you feel different from anyone you shared a locker with. Someone finally understood you. This is what music is about."
I think that another huge factor for them was their connections to the comic book world and geeky culture in general at the time. It was before the mega-blockbuster Marvel films and being a comic book nerd was still a pretty outsider subculture to be a part of. MCR and Coheed (who I would also love to see one of these videos on) were the only bands from that comic-book-shop-emo-kid scene that really blew up and made it big before liking superheroes was mainstream, and it's a part of why they're still popular now, especially with Gerard becoming such a huge name in comics after the band broke up.
I used to hate MCR in high school, but now I appreciate their work now. Also Ray Toro went to my college.
wow what was he like please tell
sarah mohammed productive.
@@ARogolino1 not surprised XD
Love MCR, I met Gerard and Frank. They are really cool guys! They really cared about their fans too! Still love them, thanks for doing a video about them. Great video! MCR stood out at that time and are quite creative musically and visually.
Just saw MCR a few weeks ago and the audience was just *crowded* with teenagers that couldn't have been around for MCR back in the day. Some of them followed me around, me being the oldest one who already knew the stadium, and they all told me the same stories I've already heard when I was a teenager. How the band saved them, how there's truly no other band that they feel heard and understood by. It just makes me kinda happy that one of my favourite bands still has that impact on kids today and that their music seemingly never dies out. Just really proud to be part of this community.
I remember being in 7th grade and hearing Im Not Okay (I Promise) on the radio and like at the time I was absolutely obsessed with Queen due to my dad's influence and really into more punky stuff like the Misfits, early AFI, alongside the 90's pop punk golden age stuff, When I heard I'm not Okay it was like the Music gods specifically tailored a song just to my interests I was blown away by the song, I was instantly the biggest fan of MCR. Like I remember listening to KROQ with my dad and he pointed out that the lead guitar work sounded like it came out of Brian May's playbook. He was right.
That's the exact same feeling I got when I heard "heaven knows" by rise against for the first time.
I made a study guide for my friend when she was trying to get into mcr and I literally referred to the black parade era as "emo sgt pepper"
Spot on with the light at the end if the tunnel part. That’s what they were going for. I never felt depressed, but I love how this music helps people who do feel that.
Who's here after hearing about their reunion announcement? 😁
"It feels like they never left" No it doesn't I still cry on March 22nd. My Chemical Romance better come back.
OMG they're back. I've never been so happy in my life.
My Chemical Romance are the emo Beatles
It's kinda like pop-punk version of Morbid Angel
except MCR is good
@@sttheodoratheempress78 but why, I just love you
They’re more the emo queen
@@jackiethedetestator7342 literally nobody cares. Nice username though. Green day is my favorite emo band.
Small world. My friend's roommate in the early 2000's was dating Gerard Way. I wonder if it was the same girl you saw on the train? I got You Brought me Your Bullets...for review in a fanzine and I was interested because Geoff from Thursday produced it and I knew of Frank from booking shows in NJ. I really dug that album though I thought the "we're vampires" shtick was a pretty corny trend (AFI, Alkaline Trio, etc.) Then when I heard Three Cheers...I thought "man, they got lame.I guess this is the last we'll hear of them." Boy was I wrong.
That Thursday connection was how I first heard of MCR.
My Chemical Romance was an essential band, (and probably is) in fact my favorite band. They have an amazing take on a classic rock and punk/hardcore fusion and in my opinion, their members and albums are some of the best rockstars and albums of the 2000s. I found them very early on in my teen years (11/12 years old) and it just resonated and worked with me as I grew up. Such a versatile and influential group.
EDIT: I can confirm that they wrote all of their own material, except for a few covers they did obviously. All their core albums were written by the members.
The first time I heard an MCR song, I was a kid watching random The Sims videos on UA-cam and the creator used the MCR song Helena. I had the melody in my head for DAYS. I finally tracked the video down (a difficult feat on dial-up internet), learned the song name, and the rest was history.
To what I know, Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge carries on with the kind of concept of I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love. In IBYMBYBMYL, there is some type of apocalypse (I think zombie) and a couple (the demolition lovers, aka the people in the three cheers cover) must live through it. However, the girl gets bit and the guy makes the hard decision of shooting her so he can survive. This is where Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge picks up. The guy misses the girl so much that he makes a deal with the devil. The deal is that if he can kill 1000 evil men, then the guy can stay with his lover for the rest of time. To include some parts of the album. Give Em Hell Kid is where he starts his journey. To The End is when he goes to a wedding to find more people to kill. You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us is about him being in prison. You get the point. After killing 999 men, the guy finally sees where the devil messed with him. He finds out that the last evil man he must kill is himself. So he does just that. And that is how the album ends. Now I am not claiming all of this is correct put I think I got it right lol (sorry that it is SUPER long)
*TLDR; “The story of a man, a woman, and the corpses of a thousand evil men.”*
I was working for a well known LA punk band and we were on the same stage in 2005 on Warped across the states. it was the year My Chem blew up. on that bill was My chemical romance, Fallout Boy , the used and All American rejects, And it was the year that the classic punk bands suddenly saw this new scene erupt. No bands had the cut and polish of My Chemical Romance and they had the biggest line at their merch table each day. so they struck a note. FalloutBoy was a way more polished POP (punk) band but My chemical harnessed what The Cure did to me and my friends decades before. whether you liked them or not it was nice to see fans really have a band that spoke for them and connected and took time to meet chat and sign stuff. I had respect for them..
Thanks, Finn. Great video. My Chem definitely helped me through some hard times.
Mr Mullen I never thought I'd see you here. Big fan, it's very cool that you watch these videos. Good to know we've got another member of the MCRmy slowly infiltrating the mainstream.
YO WHATS GOOD DANNY
3:59 - Yes, thank you! Haha. Those Emo gatekeepers piss me off. Like... Just, stop. Anyway, another great video! MCR’s legacy has fascinated me as well. I really do think it has everything to do with them quitting while they were ahead. They left behind a solid discography (even if it’s really just Three Cheers and TBP, like you said.. look at Nirvana!) and their music is living on. I feel like other bands should take note. Sometimes ya gotta know when to quit instead of still hanging around and releasing a few sub-par albums. MCR doesn’t have anything like that tarnishing their legacy and it’s clearly paying off in the long run.
I don’t think they *need* to come back. Them being gone is also part of the mystique that keeps them interesting. Almost like when an artist literally dies for real, they typically become more popular and categorized as legends. MCR has a similar thing going on.
Side note: As far as the “solid image + music” thing you were talking about, I definitely think Panic! at the Disco nailed that as well. That’s pretty much WHY they blew up I think. They stood out in every area with a unique band name, look/image, sound, music videos and stage show. I mean, they came out of nowhere and won Video of the Year! It’s crazy, haha. Still waiting on a p!atd video from you, lol 😂
Omg I legit feel the same. They have that "dead rockstar" type following except they didn't die. They left at the top... there's NOTHING more sad to watch than a washed up rock band
Fuck, I mean...mcr comes from that same tradition of first wave emo. Frank always aknowledges his influences in interviews. They're great in my books
Lol mcr is mall emo bc the actual emo is completely different. Thats why I have this thing call the 3 emos. Raw emo, midwest emo, and mall emo. Lol I still love my mall emo jams though
I realized the tweet was a copypasta
This video was great!
I was 16 when Three Cheers came out and I have been a fan since. They're ridiculously talented, hard working and they are so good to us fans. I still follow all of them in everything they do and see them on their solo tours. I don't really mind if they never reunite, it was a great ride. I just want them all to be happy.
Loved My Chem growing up, and to this day still love 'em. Even as adults my buddies and I kept going to their concerts until they broke up. Their debut album, Bullets, has some of the coolest graveyard-vibey tracks ever. While Three Cheers is fun and anthemic, Bullets is complex and tense.
They were one of those unique bands that wrote 99% amazing songs (Danger Days was so-so). An underrated personal favorite is their cover of Jack the Ripper by Morrissey. Wild that they were able to transform it in such a way, and the raw energy is ecstatic.
I also listened to a lot of emo music, but never considered My Chem emo. I always thought of them as pop-punk.
I'm so happy when you get sponsors, you deserve them with all the effort you put into your channel
The cover they did for watchmen is an honorable mention. Superhero/comic book movies were taking off
I actually didn't get into them until I was suicidal in college. I knew of them, I did like them when they came on, I just never thought about them much. But when I rediscovered them, they really did explode into my mind. I am a big fan of all the classic rock and metal bands, and they really gave me those vibes but with a heavier feel. As I continue to listen to them and learn more about them, the lyrics are much deeper than you think when you first listen, and the instrumentals were amazing. I am a big fan of bands doing small stuff with their instruments or riffs to add just that little spark of color in the middle of a song, and unlike most emo bands they actually did it well to where it all fit perfectly. I went from enjoying when they would randomly come on to being a hardcore fan, and I do think they are worth being given a serious look at.
-Mall emo thing
-heartagram sticker
-watching invader Zim all night
Let's pretend you don't know me and it's not 2020. And let's pretend I'm not 25 lol
The Black Parade is one of my top five favorite albums of all time. Of. All. Time.
Wait, you have four others that are in contention?
Same!
appreciate that in response for people criticizing you for wearing nike you wear a shirt with hella nike logos. respect
😎
Never been a MCR fan, but always appreciate talent. Funny story, I was in a music theory class in 2000-2001, when a guy was talking about the new underground scene called "emo", I didn't think it would catch. Oops.
Was really hoping you’d play footage from Hellfest 2003 when MCR played in between bands like Unearth and Walls of Jericho. What an era
They has even a cult like following even then which is surreal to think about
Dude for fucking real. I hope he talks about the importance / insane time capsule that was Hellfest. Fall Out Boy and MCR were opening bands at those fests. Crazy to think about.
Man who even remembers Walls of Jericho lol
@@TheseBitchesWantNikes saw em ar mayhem fest 08? My dumb ass almost died from heat exhaustion during their set from wearing all black in south florida in the peak of summer.
none of your business were they good?
I met Gerard.
My dad would take take me to EVERY MCR show in DFW Texas area, drop me off on the side, give me 40 or 50 bucks and tell me not to tell my mom before waiting at a bar next door or going to get hammered at an Applebee's.
I remember waiting in line to meet my idol and he was the most genuine famous person I ever met. Hugged me HARD like a real friend would, told some side dude to take a picture with my disposable camera (he took two), complimented my boy George shirt of all things, and told me it was nice to meet me.
It just felt very person. I don't even remember being able to speak but he just kind of took control and knew my 14 year old ass was in awe.
Gerard is the opposite of a creep, opposite of whatever egotistical is, and just a super genuine person. Whole meeting was like....three or four minutes if that but it stuck with me idk.
Hey Finn, you turned me onto a band I wrote off as mall rock. They are amazing. Thank you!
Linkin Park has the same type of legacy as MCR and Nirvana
Oooh good point
I mean I teach high school and the freshmen say they’ve been listening to them since 7th grade. It’s nuts
did you just drop a teaser for a "How did Nirvana get so big?" video?
Justin Jakimiak that’s a good idea for a vid
I feel like that’s been done to death by now. I mean I’m sure Finn could bring something new to the table, but they’ve just been covered so much from most angles. I wouldn’t be mad at it though.
I got top 2% of MCR Listeners on Spotify for 2019 😂🤦🏻♀️ kinda proud not going to lie, I have an MCR tattoo and would still buy anything they put there name too. I don’t even rationally know why, but the MCRMY is the most crazy, most dedicated fandom I have ever come across, they cast a magical spell. I’m a 29 year old who never stopped listening to them. They hold such a fundamental and special place in my heart, words honestly can’t describe.
"you know all this stuff anyway"
"you know why"
"i don't need to explain this stuff, you already know the anyway"
me: ... i just started listening to their music 2 days ago. 🕵🏾♂️
MCR will always have a place in my heart, especially Three Cheers. When I saw the video for “I’m Not Okay” for the first time I was hooked. I wanted to be Gerard so bad, even thought of straightening my hair with a perm and dying it black( I have Afro textured hair, so it would have been a hell of lot of work and maintenance😂😂).Three Cheers was the first cd I owned. I remember buying it in 2005 with a Circuit City (lol) gift card in middle school. Some of the most catchiest hooks and well written guitar riffs I’ve ever heard in any of the mall emo albums from that time (that opening riff in Thank You for the Venom, The second verse riff in To The End, I could go on). Hell, I’d say rock in general. I still have that cd in my closet with a cracked case and everything. I still listen to that album to this day and it’s been on every mp3 player or phone I had since I bought it, even during my tr00 pop punk phrase. I loved the Black Parade as well. Never got into Danger Day’s though. Maybe I’ll go back and give it another listen.
please father McKenty, make a linkin park episode
Yes that would be sick
YES!!
YES
Father mckenty sounds like an irish priest 😂🤣
That would be awesome
You have to do Coheed And Cambria!!
we are one amongst the fence
Oh yes
I had to unlike this so it stayed at 33
I was scrolling to see if anyone's mentioned the Amory Wars - Coheed's been doing the concept/comics thing since 2002 with SSTB. MCR didn't release Three Cheers til 2004.
Yes!!
''embarrasing dubstep album'' HAHAHAHAHAHAH
Korn
Clau te amoo, el video donde hablas sobre ellos me hizo revivir mi vida Emo 😂
Let's not forget Gerard's collaboration with Deadmau5, "Professional Griefers."
i believe one of the biggest reasons for their success is that they accepted and acknowledged their mostly female fanbase. most other bands hated „fangirls“ because as a rock band you want to seem tough which is harder with that fanbase. they really created a safe space
Hey, do you think you could do an episode on Cap'n Jazz, Midwest emo, and math rock?
Also, idk if you've done this before, but an episode about "emo adjacent" artists. Artists that aren't technically emo, but that get support from the alternative scene, like gym class heroes, 3oh3, and even Billie Eilish. Of those, only gym class heroes takes musical cues from emo acts, and the association of the other two groups with emo suggests that aesthetic may matter just as much, if not more than, the music.
My Chem was the first band I really listened to and the reason I actually care about music
also I am wearing an "I'm emo in a Gerard Way" t-shirt while watching this
Damn I am so nostalgic for the time were punkrock was big!
Btw I love how you praise the bands that I also secretly liked, but didn't dare to admit to my gatekeeping punk/hardcore friends ;)
I saw them in Portland 2009ish. Best live band I’ve ever seen. They had so much energy and passion I got chills.
I’m sad to say I wasn’t able to see them in their prime as you did. At the age of 49 I have managed to see their reunion tour in Warrington. I loved and lived every minute of it.