Wait, what year is it again? My Chemical Romance returned with their first new song since 2014 last week and have since embarked on their worldwide reunion tour, which began in the UK on Monday (May 16). With a new tour comes new merch, and the band did not hold back on the millennial nostalgia with the designs — which include a T-shirt that spotlights an iconic MCR tramp stamp that once made the rounds on Tumblr.
The tattoo belongs to former porn star Mickey Taylor, who was approached by the band to use his image for official memorabilia. Now a musician and animation student, Taylor told James Factora of Them that he got the tattoo when he was 18 years old and living in a hostel with a friend. He drew the band's logo by hand and his friend, who had never tattooed anyone before, inked it on him. "This was my peak fandom mixed with my rebellious who-gives-a-fuck phase," Taylor said, advising against getting at-home tattoos (although he has no regrets).
An unnamed member of the band reportedly reached out to him via email, inquiring about the tattoo after having seen it in one of the former adult film star's movies — a more likely story than a relatively obscure Tumblr post with around 2,000 notes. Taylor thought he was being sued at first, but was instead asked if he would "be down to take some photos for the merch."
"Honestly, the whole thing has been a pleasure," he told the publication. "I had no idea when or if [the shirts] would drop, but it happened and I found out through Twitter which was WILD! The hilarious and also super friendly comments have been incredible, and it's made the whole situation even more bizarre and fever dream-ish. None of it feels quite real."
Taylor added: "I just think they could have hired anyone — like some hot woman smoking a cigarette, as so many bands do — and called it 'edgy,' but they didn't. They hired the mixed-raced, queer, ex-sex worker and were the ones who came up with it."
Notably, another of My Chem's new merch designs by illustrator Kerin Cunningham features the band on the cover of a Tiger Beat-esque teen tabloid called Boy Zone. Cunningham described it as "a bit whimsical, a little bit ironic, and a whole lot stupid in the best way," but the design was actually conceptualized by Gerard Way himself.
Check out the MerchCR below.
The tattoo belongs to former porn star Mickey Taylor, who was approached by the band to use his image for official memorabilia. Now a musician and animation student, Taylor told James Factora of Them that he got the tattoo when he was 18 years old and living in a hostel with a friend. He drew the band's logo by hand and his friend, who had never tattooed anyone before, inked it on him. "This was my peak fandom mixed with my rebellious who-gives-a-fuck phase," Taylor said, advising against getting at-home tattoos (although he has no regrets).
An unnamed member of the band reportedly reached out to him via email, inquiring about the tattoo after having seen it in one of the former adult film star's movies — a more likely story than a relatively obscure Tumblr post with around 2,000 notes. Taylor thought he was being sued at first, but was instead asked if he would "be down to take some photos for the merch."
"Honestly, the whole thing has been a pleasure," he told the publication. "I had no idea when or if [the shirts] would drop, but it happened and I found out through Twitter which was WILD! The hilarious and also super friendly comments have been incredible, and it's made the whole situation even more bizarre and fever dream-ish. None of it feels quite real."
Taylor added: "I just think they could have hired anyone — like some hot woman smoking a cigarette, as so many bands do — and called it 'edgy,' but they didn't. They hired the mixed-raced, queer, ex-sex worker and were the ones who came up with it."
Notably, another of My Chem's new merch designs by illustrator Kerin Cunningham features the band on the cover of a Tiger Beat-esque teen tabloid called Boy Zone. Cunningham described it as "a bit whimsical, a little bit ironic, and a whole lot stupid in the best way," but the design was actually conceptualized by Gerard Way himself.
Check out the MerchCR below.