Pick a Day

Gerard Way is born in Summit, New Jersey. After witnessing the September 11 attacks, he forms My Chemical Romance, channeling his trauma into music. He also creates the comic book series The Umbrella Academy, later adapted into a Netflix series.

As Gerard Way watches in horror from the Manhattan ferry as the World Trade Center's Twin Towers collapse, he realizes life is too short to not follow his dream. Shortly after, he starts his own band: My Chemical Romance.

New Jersey-based emo outfit My Chemical Romance release their vampire-themed debut album, I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love. Released through the independent punk label Eyeball Records, it was produced by Thursday frontman Geoff Rickly.More

Bolstered by the hit singles "Helena" and "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)," My Chemical Romance go mainstream with their second album, Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge.More

"Helena" by My Chemical Romance peaks at #33 on the Hot 100. It's the band's first big crossover hit.

Theatrical rockers My Chemical Romance release their wildly popular third album, The Black Parade, which was recorded during the band's stay at the notoriously haunted Paramour Mansion in Los Angeles.More

Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance marries Mindless Self Indulgence bassist Lyn-Z backstage at Linkin Park's Projekt Revolution festival.

A number of British tabloids, including The Sun and The Daily Mail, blame the "emo suicide cult" for the death of 13-year-old Hannah Bond. My Chemical Romance take the brunt of their ire for allegedly glamorizing death on albums like The Black Parade, which was a #2 hit in both the US and UK. MCR, who insist they never encourage self-harm, respond by leading their fans in chants of "F--k the Daily Mail!"

Gerard Way (of My Chemical Romance) becomes a father when wife Lyn-Z (of Mindless Self Indulgence) gives birth to daughter Bandit Lee.

On their fourth and final album, Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys, My Chemical Romance cast themselves as post-apocalyptic outlaws fighting corruption on the mean streets of California. More

My Chemical Romance announce their breakup after 12 years as a band. They return to action in 2019.

The superhero series The Umbrella Academy, based on a comic by former My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way, premieres to positive reviews on Netflix. The show, starring Ellen Page, also features Mary J. Blige as an assassin.

My Chemical Romance return after a seven-year absence with a show at the Shrine Expo Hall in Los Angeles.

Thanks to a re-release, the My Chemical Romance album The Black Parade goes to #1 20 years after after it was first released in 2006, when it peaked at #2. That 20-year gap is the longest an album has ever taken to reach the top of the chart.