The year is 2013, and one of your favorite bands that you listen to daily announces they’re breaking up. You are heartbroken. You hoped to see them live one day. The lyrics you and your friends sang together at lunch on your iPod touch, sharing wired earbuds, now hit even harder. My Chemical Romance wasn’t just an emo band. They made a name for themselves by incorporating theater elements into their music and concerts. Stephanie Meyer said her inspiration for the Twilight franchise was this band! Their breakup came as a complete shock to fans worldwide. Now imagine my surprise when they announced their reunion in 2019! My Chemical Romance (made up of Gerard Way, Michael Way, Ray Toro, and Frank Iero) began touring again in 2022 but hasn’t released any new music since the breakup. I was lucky enough to see them on August 30th, 2026, in San Diego’s Petco Park for their “The Black Parade 2026” Tour.
The Black Parade is My Chemical Romance’s third studio album, released in 2006. It can best be described as a rock opera about a man with cancer who is lying on his deathbed and reflecting on his life and the choices he made. On his deathbed, the patient, in his final moments, joins the black parade (the afterlife). The concert follows the album from start to finish, with parts of their music videos displayed during the show. If someone bought tickets to this tour without any prior knowledge of the album and its story, they would be very confused. The way the band performs on stage fits the narrative so well, even though the album is over twenty years old and the members are in their mid-to-late forties.
I took my mom to this show. This was never really her scene, but when I told her I was going out of town for a concert (again), she wanted to join me, regardless of who was playing. As soon as you get into the venue, you can feel the excitement from the fans: some are in line to buy merch, others are taking pictures together, some are wearing My Chemical Romance shirts, and others are in costumes dressed as band members from different music videos. It’s such a great feeling of community to see everyone having fun, ready to listen to such an iconic band.
The show started with the opener BABYMETAL, a kawaii metal band from Japan made up of Suzuka Nakamoto, Yui Mizuno, and Moa Kikuchi. These girls ROCK! They’ve been singing metal music since they were all 12 years old! They had an amazing stage presence and had the crowd jumping and moshing. The best song they performed was my favorite, “Gimme Chocolate!” BABYMETAL performed 8 songs and got the crowd excited for My Chemical Romance.
Finally, the moment we had been waiting for. My Chemical Romance came on stage and performed “The Black Parade” in its entirety, with lots of performances from the band and other characters. This performance included two of my favorite songs from the band: “I Don’t Love You” and “Disenchanted.” I love these songs because they aren’t like their usual sound. They’re filled with melancholy and raw emotion. I cried while hearing these songs live. After they played The Black Parade in full, the band pretended the show was over, UNTIL they came back for an “encore” on a secondary stage and played songs from other albums. On the secondary stage, the band was no longer in character from the theatrics of the main stage. The best part of the secondary stage was when they played “Ghost of You,” another sad song, but this one has more of the rock elements they are known for. Based on my research, the secondary stage set list differs at each tour stop, and this show was lucky to get a lot of songs that haven’t been played live recently.
Overall, it was an amazing performance I have waited my whole life for, and I feel so lucky to have experienced this. I love traveling for concerts, and this may be the farthest I’ve traveled for one. I’d love to hear from you now! Have you ever listened to My Chemical Romance? If you have, what’s your favorite song?
SETLIST
Main Stage
The End
Dead
This Is How I Disappear
Sharpest Lives
Welcome to The Black Parade
I Don’t Love You
House of Wolves
Cancer
Mama
Sleep
Teenagers
Disenchanted
Famous Last Words
The End.
Blood
Secondary Stage:
Na na na na
Thank You For The Venom
It’s Not a Death Wish, It’s A Fashion Statement
Ghost of You
Zero Percent
Planetary (GO!)
Our Lady in Sorrows
Helena
Vampire Money
I’m Not Okay (I promise!)
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