On October 24, 2026, I went to the final date of My Chemical Romance’s Long Live the Black Parade Tour. Well, technically not the last night of the tour, but the final performance featuring theatrics such as live “executions,” clowns blowing up, scary silent dictators in dark sunglasses who preside over a country called Draag known for its wheat. Y’know, very normal themes for a stadium tour. If it doesn’t make any sense, it’s not supposed to.
I’ve been a fan of My Chemical Romance since I was 14, bored in quarantine and looking for something to distract me from the mundanity of sitting in my room all day. My obsession was strongest in those early teen years, but my love for them has remained constant. October 24 marked the fifth time I’d seen them and the third time I’d gone to that tour specifically. I’d also attended the tour’s first performance in Seattle, as well as my hometown show in San Diego. I just can’t get enough of them!
To briefly recap their history, they started out in the wake of 9/11 and gradually became the face of emo before breaking up in 2013. Their 2019 reunion and subsequent 2022 and 2025 tours have given them a new life. Since I started liking them in 2020, a new generation of fans has emerged because of the tours that, like 14-year-old me, make My Chemical Romance their whole personality. And because of their activity and because of some possible hints given by many different sources, some fans have speculated that a fifth album is on its way. The rumors come from a mix of frontman and primary songwriter Gerard Way proclaiming we fans “deserve another record,” Gerard and bassist Mikey Way’s father telling some fans at the first Hollywood Bowl show to wait for the “new stuff” they’re working on, rhythm guitarist Frank Iero’s cryptically posting random dates only to deny he ever posted them once they arrive. Wishful thinking or strategically placed hints? Who’s to say so far?
I might get crucified for this, but in all honesty, I don’t crave another My Chemical Romance album. If one were ever announced, of course I’d probably scream and cry in sheer hysterics, count down the days until its release, and listen to it over and over again until every lyric was seared into my brain. But their discography is already so precious and perfect, stunning in its conciseness. Each album has such a distinct identity that adding another one sixteen years later might muddy that individuality. But it could also be a masterpiece that fits perfectly alongside the others.
The joy I felt that night on October 24 is incomparable. Seeing My Chemical Romance on this tour, meant you were guaranteed a great show. This time, every audience member was given an American flag (representing the flag after Draag’s takeover of America) and two red carnations. The stage was populated by men with flat plastic guns, Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders (not the real ones; the real ones reportedly filed a cease-and-desist, though the band seems to have ignored it), a USO tour-inspired kickline consisting of Draag-ettes. It all just sounds like a fever dream. You really just have to be there.
I think what’s so wonderful about My Chemical Romance’s fan community is just how dedicated people are to showcasing their love at a concert. So many people were dressed up for the show, recreating outfits Gerard Way had worn at previous shows, looks from different music videos, and from the current tour. Someone even wore an outfit that had only debuted on the tour two nights before! I even wore an outfit inspired by the “I’m Not Okay” music video. But deep down under the elaborate costumes and the over-the-top commentary on our current political landscape, there’s a sincerity and a bravery in My Chemical Romance’s music. They wear their hearts on their sleeves, but their music doesn’t wallow. It’s about moving through the pain, not letting it consume you, and choosing every day to keep facing the world even in its ugliness. At the October 24 show, Gerard Way started talking about all the artists in the fan community, how they took the elaborate costumes and aesthetics from different eras of the band and gave it their own mythology. I think that’s what’s so beautiful about their theatrical nature; it gives way to so much difference of interpretation, and that richness and depth and everyone adding their own unique take on something is what’s so wonderful about fandom spaces. Sure, things can get ugly anywhere, but the beauty of art, of proudly being over-the-top, makes every MCR show inspiring to see, whether or not a fifth album will get announced at the end of it.