My Chemical Romance - Helena Healed A Wound I Didn't Know I Had | Grammy Member First Time Reaction

Helena healed a wound I didn't know I had. This is my Helena My Chemical Romance reaction to the official video, and the moment she dances down the aisle at her own funeral. As a Grammy voting member and songwriter, I've sung at people's funerals and watched families go through every stage of grief in one room. So I already knew Helena was written for the grandmother of the brothers in the band, Gerard Way and his brother Mikey. She taught them to paint and sing, and because the band was doing well they weren't around much in her final year. What I didn't expect was how angry it is. This isn't peaceful grief, letting someone drift off to heaven. It's denial and bargaining, hearses and matches and blades, and rhetorical questions to the one person who can't answer them. In this reaction I break down: 🖤 Why I basically looked like I could have been in this band in the early 2000s, without ever really listening to them 🕯️ The real story behind Helena: grief, and the guilt of not being there 🔥 Hearses, matches and blades: why the lyrics are so raw and so graphic 🌊 The half-time chorus, and how it gives you room to breathe and feel the grief differently ⚱️ What singing at funerals taught me about grief, and why an open coffin is such an interesting choice 🩰 She gets up and dances down the aisle: is it in his mind, or does it really happen? 👴 My granddad, the night I didn't go round, and the dream where I'm too scared to ask if he ever heard me sing 🎨 My colour report: an acid, bubbling green in the verses and a lilac silk blanket of a chorus My granddad died when I was 11. I didn't go round to see him the night before because I wanted to stay home and watch TV, and he died that night. I felt guilty for years. For so many years I've had a dream where I can see him, and I want to ask him if he's heard me sing, and I'm always too scared in case he says yes and didn't like it. So when everyone's heads are bowed and Helena gets up and dances, it healed something in me I didn't know needed healing. Just because we can't see them doesn't mean they're not there. 📺 If this one got you, RAYE got me too: I Don't Cry Easily, But RAYE Got Me https://youtu.be/2YuzoummcSc ═════ CHAPTERS ═════ 0:00 My Chemical Romance – Helena (official video) 1:35 I could have been in this band in the 2000s 1:59 Helena's real story: grief and guilt 4:39 The lyrics: hearses, matches and blades 7:44 That half-time chorus 8:30 Singing at funerals: every stage of grief 10:48 Helena dances down the aisle 12:33 My granddad, and the dream I keep having 15:34 So beautiful and so sad: final thoughts 16:33 My colour report: acid green and lilac 🎵 ORIGINAL VIDEO — My Chemical Romance - Helena [Official Music Video - 4K Film Restored]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCCyoocDxBA From Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge. All credit to My Chemical Romance. Please go and watch it in full on their channel. 👇 Did Helena introduce you to My Chemical Romance? And what else of theirs should I be listening to: The Ghost of You, Famous Last Words, or something deeper from the back catalogue? Tell me if you see colours when you hear music, too. I love it when you tell me all about the stuff you know. Subscribe and click the bell so you never miss a reaction: https://www.youtube.com/@ListenInColour?sub_confirmation=1 🎵 Watch ad-free and un-obscured on Patreon, no mid-roll and no cards over the footage, with special surprises for my Patreon pals: https://www.patreon.com/RachelWalkerMason ☕🫖 Working in the music industry as a songwriter is not well paid. If you'd like to, buy me a coffee or a tea (I'm British, so it's tea). You're under no obligation whatsoever. You can watch my videos and just enjoy them: https://buymeacoffee.com/rachelwalkermason 🛍️ Merch, all with "have a colourful day": https://listen-in-colour-with-rachel-shop.fourthwall.com/ New reactions Monday, Wednesday and Friday. 📸 https://www.instagram.com/rachelwalkermason/ 🎵 https://www.tiktok.com/@rachelwalkermason 📘 https://www.facebook.com/rachelwalkermason/ Loving my sofa? It's the Valencia Tuscany: https://us.valenciatheaterseating.com/products/valencia-tuscany?sca_ref=11257769.7lvR14tcS0 👤 About: BBC-recognised songwriting expert | Grammy voting member | Ivors Academy | Songwriters Hall of Fame executive member | Billboard Top 20 | UK Chart Top 10 | Estill-qualified vocal producer | Synesthete 🎨 #MyChemicalRomance #Helena #MCR #ThreeCheersForSweetRevenge #GerardWay #MCRReaction #GrammyMemberReacts #SongwriterReacts #ListenInColour Grow your channel with vidIQ: https://vidiq.com/ListenInColourwi