Helena ( song ) - wikipedia Helena ( song ) `` Helena '' Single by My Chemical Romance from the album Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge Released May 23, 2005 ( 2005 - 05 - 23 ) Format 7 '' vinyl CD digital download DVD Recorded Genre Emo punk rock gothic rock Length 3 : 22 Label Reprise WMG Songwriter ( s ) My Chemical Romance Producer ( s ) My Chemical Romance Howard Benson My Chemical Romance singles chronology `` Thank You for the Venom '' ( 2004 ) `` Helena '' ( 2005 ) `` Under Pressure '' ( 2005 ) `` Thank You for the Venom '' ( 2004 ) `` Helena '' ( 2005 ) `` Under Pressure '' ( 2005 ) Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge track listing 13 tracks `` Helena '' `` Give ' Em Hell Kid '' `` To the End '' `` You Know What They Do to Guys Like Us in Prison '' `` I 'm Not Okay ( I Promise ) '' `` The Ghost of You '' `` The Jetset Life is Gonna Kill You '' `` Interlude '' `` Thank You for the Venom '' `` Hang ' Em High '' `` It 's Not a Fashion Statement, It 's a Fucking Deathwish '' `` Cemetery Drive '' `` I Never Told You What I Do for a Living '' `` Helena '' ( sometimes titled `` Helena ( So Long & Goodnight ) '' on digital retailers such as iTunes ) is a song by American rock band My Chemical Romance, and is the third single from their second studio album, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge. Contents 1 Reception 2 Music video 3 Track listing 4 Charts 4.1 Chart successions 5 Release history 6 References Reception `` Helena '' was released to radio on March 8, 2005. The single has become a moderately - selling hit, both in the US and internationally. Way stated in an interview with Channel V that the main influence behind `` Helena '' was from the song `` Aces High '' by Iron Maiden and tracks by The Ventures. This song is also My Chemical Romance 's sixth overall single. Way described it as representing the band 's image and sound, and as such it was often used to end the band 's shows. The single was certified as a Gold Record in United States. Despite charting lower than their prior hit, `` I 'm Not Okay ( I Promise ) '' on the `` Billboard '' Modern Rock Tracks chart peaking at number 4 where `` Helena '' peaked at number 11, `` Helena '' was the band 's first crossover hit crossing over to Top 40 radio at number 33 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and it also still had more airplay on alternative rock stations. NME declared that the song was one of the `` 20 Greatest Goth Tracks '' and that it was `` a pivotal moment in cross-fertilising goth with emo '' and that `` MCR spawned a hybrid that ensured black clothes and eyeliner became, once again, teenage rebellion 's default setting ''. Music video The music video was shot on - location in the Immanuel Presbyterian Church on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, directed by Marc Webb, and choreographed by Michael Rooney. The video has a simple plot, with Gerard Way as a very emotional mourner at a funeral where the band is performing. There are also mourners who dance and mourn the death of Helena. Near the end, the dead body of Helena ( played by actress and dancer Tracy Phillips ) rises and dances down the nave representing crossing over into the afterlife. After she falls back into the casket, the pallbearers ( also played by My Chemical Romance and a fan named Cameron ) carry the casket to the hearse ( in the pouring rain ), surrounded by a phalanx of dancing men and women with umbrellas. Though the song in general is about the band members Gerard Way and Mikey Way 's late grandmother, it was stated in an interview that the video told a different story. The music video shows the funeral of a girl, who, according to Gerard Way, died tragically ( possibly in a car crash, with the line in the bridge of the song, `` When both our cars collide. '' ) The sixth pallbearer and the majority of the mourners are fans who 'd received emails from the band asking if they 'd like to be in the video. During the `` Making Of... '' video, found as a bonus on the Life on the Murder Scene CD / DVD, it was noted that Frank Iero, while joking about being `` 4'9 '' ``, did n't actually carry any weight of the casket, and that it rested on the other band members and their 6th pallbearer to carry the weight. Also noted was that the rain used in the sequence between the church and the hearse was n't planned for, but the director used it to his advantage, as it set the mood of a funeral. The video was nominated for five Moonmen at the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards : Best Rock Video, Best Choreography, Best New Artist, and the MTV2 and Viewer 's Choice Awards ( both of which are chosen by viewers ). They lost to bands such as Green Day, Fall Out Boy, and The Killers. Though the band did not win any awards, they did do a surprise performance of the song towards the end of the show. They also won an MTV Video Music Awards Latin America `` tongue '' for the Best New Artist - International. They also won a Best Video award in the 2005 Kerrang ! Awards. In November 2005, the video was nominated for two MTVU Woodie Awards ( voted on by college students ) and won the Woodie of the Year. In the Philippines, Helena has reached a cult - like status because of the popularity of Alternative music. The video was also voted # 1 by viewers of MTV Latinamerica in the 2005 `` 100 Most Wanted Videos ''. The video was uploaded to YouTube on October 22, 2006 and currently has 35.5 million views as of July 17, 2017. Track listing UK promotional CD No. Title Length 1. `` Helena '' 3 : 22 UK CD and 7 '' vinyl No. Title Length 1. `` Helena '' 3 : 22 2. `` I 'm Not Okay ( I Promise ) '' ( live ) 3 : 37 UK DVD No. Title Length 1. `` Helena '' ( Live Video ) 2. `` I 'm Not Okay ( I Promise ) '' ( Video ) Australian CD No. Title Length 1. `` Helena '' 3 : 22 2. `` I 'm Not Okay ( I Promise ) '' ( live from Sessions@AOL ) 3 : 37 3. `` You Know What They Do to Guys Like Us In Prison '' ( live from Sessions@AOL ) 3 : 40 iTunes single No. Title Length 1. `` Helena '' ( live from the Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, New Jersey ) 4 : 14 Charts Chart ( 2005 ) Peak position Australia ( ARIA ) 78 Brazil ( ABPD ) 18 Europe ( European Hot 100 Singles ) 61 Germany ( Official German Charts ) 67 Ireland ( IRMA ) 46 New Zealand ( Recorded Music NZ ) 27 UK Singles ( The Official Charts Company ) 20 UK Rock ( The Official Charts Company ) U.S. Billboard Hot 100 33 U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 11 U.S. Billboard Mainstream Top 40 32 U.S. Billboard Hot Digital Songs 13 U.S. Billboard Pop 100 32 Chart successions Preceded by `` Somewhere Else '' by Razorlight UK Rock Chart number - one single May 29, 2005 - June 19, 2005 Succeeded by `` Wake Me Up When September Ends '' by Green Day Release history Region Date Label Format Catalogue United Kingdom 2005 Reprise, Eyeball CD PRO15371 May 23, 2005 7 '' vinyl W671, 5439160437 CD W671CD, 5439160432 DVD W671DVD, 7599386352 Australia August 22, 2005 CD 9362428022 References Jump up ^ `` Top 100 Emo Songs of All Time ''. The Boston Phoenix. Archived from the original on May 2, 2015. Retrieved May 4, 2015. Jump up ^ Bryant, Tom. `` The Top 10 Best My Chemical Romance Songs ''. TeamRock. Jump up ^ `` Release The Bats - It 's The 20 Greatest Goth Tracks - NME ''. 5 March 2009. Jump up ^ `` FMQB Airplay Archive : Modern Rock ''. Friday Morning Quarterback Album Report, Incorporated. Archived from the original on March 22, 2013. Retrieved October 30, 2016. Jump up ^ `` Release The Bats - It 's The 20 Greatest Goth Tracks - NME ''. 5 March 2009. Jump up ^ My Chemical Romance ( 22 October 2006 ). `` My Chemical Romance - Helena ( Official Music Video ) '' -- via YouTube. Jump up ^ `` Australian-charts.com -- My Chemical Romance -- Helena ''. ARIA Top 50 Singles. Jump up ^ `` Brazil '' ( PDF ). ABPD. October 6, 2001. Retrieved April 1, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Top 100 Music Hits, Top 100 Music Charts, Top 100 Songs & The Hot 100 ''. Billboard.com. Retrieved 2012 - 02 - 21. Jump up ^ `` Musicline.de -- My Chemical Romance Single - Chartverfolgung '' ( in German ). Media Control Charts. PhonoNet GmbH. Jump up ^ `` Charts.org.nz -- My Chemical Romance -- Helena ''. Top 40 Singles. My Chemical Romance Bob Bryar James Dewees Frank Iero Matt Pelissier Ray Toro Gerard Way Mikey Way Studio albums I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge The Black Parade Danger Days : The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys Compilation albums Conventional Weapons May Death Never Stop You The Black Parade / Living with Ghosts Video albums Life on the Murder Scene AOL Sessions The Black Parade Is Dead ! ¡ Venganza ! EPs Like Phantoms, Forever Warped Tour Bootleg Series Live and Rare The Black Parade : The B - Sides The Mad Gear and Missile Kid Singles `` Vampires Will Never Hurt You '' `` Honey, This Mirror Is n't Big Enough for the Two of Us '' `` Headfirst for Halos '' `` I 'm Not Okay ( I Promise ) '' `` Thank You for the Venom '' `` Helena '' `` Under Pressure '' ( with The Used ) `` The Ghost of You '' `` Welcome to the Black Parade '' `` Famous Last Words '' `` I Do n't Love You '' `` Teenagers '' `` Desolation Row '' `` Na Na Na ( Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na ) '' `` The Only Hope for Me Is You '' `` Sing '' `` Planetary ( Go ! ) '' `` The Kids from Yesterday '' `` Fake Your Death '' Tours Warped Tour 2005 Projekt Revolution The Black Parade World Tour The World Contamination Tour 10th Annual Honda Civic Tour Related articles Discography List of songs Awards Pencey Prep Leathermouth Death Spells The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys `` Mama '' `` Cancer '' Book Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Helena_(song)&oldid=805184872 '' Categories : 2004 songs My Chemical Romance songs Songs in memory of deceased persons Music videos directed by Marc Webb Songs written by Gerard Way Song recordings produced by Howard Benson 2005 singles Reprise Records singles Songs about death Songs about women Hidden categories : Music infoboxes with deprecated parameters Articles with hAudio microformats All articles with specifically marked weasel - worded phrases Articles with specifically marked weasel - worded phrases from February 2013 Singlechart usages for Australia Singlechart usages for Germany Singlechart usages for New Zealand Talk Contents About Wikipedia Eesti Español فارسی Français Հայերեն Italiano Polski Português Русский Українська Edit links This page was last edited on 13 October 2017, at 16 : 52. 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Question: meaning of the song helena by my chemical romance
Answer: about the band members Gerard Way and Mikey Way's late grandmother