Jump to content

Mikey Way

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by CustardToast (talk | contribs) at 04:19, 20 June 2007. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Mikey Way

Michael James Way (born September 10, 1980), most commonly known as Mikey Way, is the bass guitarist for the alternative rock band My Chemical Romance and is the younger brother of frontman Gerard Way.

Personal Life

Mikey Way was born in Newark, New Jersey, USA. Although born in Newark, Mikey was raised in Belleville. He attended Belleville High School with his older brother, Gerard Way and also My Chemical Romance's future lead guitarist, Ray Toro. After leaving school, he returned to Newark to live with his brother. Mikey and Gerard are maternal second cousins of Joe Rogan, host of the NBC game/stunt show Fear Factor and former cast member of the sitcom News Radio. He is of Scottish and Italian descent.[1] He came up with the band's name, taken from the book Ecstasy: Three Tales of Chemical Romance, by Irvine Welsh, while working at a Barnes and Noble bookstore in Clifton, New Jersey. Mikey had been working in the music section of the store, and had decided to take out the books to discuss with a coworker. Mikey also got his brother Gerard a job there working in books. Early on in My Chemical Romance's career, it was said that Way learned bass in order to be able to play in the band, which lacked a bassist at the time. But during interviews with Way in their DVD release, Life on the Murder Scene, Mikey claims that he had been an amateur musician since he was young and was in bands as a bassist before MCR. He plays a Highway one Precision Bass and a Fender Standard Precision Bass, among others.

Mikey is well known amongst fellow bass guitarists for pioneering the use of cheese wire as strings.

Mikey Way had been known for his trademark glasses to correct his nearsightedness, but had Lasik eye surgery and no longer wears them. [1]

On March 7, 2007, Mikey married his fiancée Alicia Simmons backstage at the Orleans Arena, Las Vegas after the band's show that evening.[2] The couple were married by James Dewees, who was ordained as a minister in order to perform the ceremony. His brother Gerard was his best man, since there were rules preventing him from having all the other band members as his best men. [3]

Mikey is often distinguished as the "little brother" figure in the band. Many of his outrageous antics have been released to the press including sticking a fork in a toaster and bringing a heater into the shower. While his is often teased by his fellow band mates for his ditziness, he is looked on like a sibling that needs full attention to stay out of trouble. Overall, Mikey is delighted at being a member of his brother's band.

Mental health

While recording The Black Parade, Mikey had been having trouble dealing with personal problems, which caused him to leave the band temporarily, and almost caused them to break-up completely. He said in an interview with Alternative Press, in the December 2006 issue of Blender magazine, Mikey explained his anxiety about his ability to play. He said, "Here I was, I finally had everything I'd struggled for my whole life, and it wasn't fun anymore. I was standing on the stage looking out, and not enjoying it at all."

Mikey left the band to live with My Chemical Romance attorney and "band mom", Stacey Fass. He went through intense psychotherapy and saw a therapist four times a week. After several weeks, he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. After receiving therapy, he returned to the recording studio as a commuter.

Sabbatical

On April 23 2007, it was announced that Mikey will temporarily leave My Chemical Romance to spend time with Alicia. Mikey's brother Gerard said on My Chemical Romance's website that "The band has decided to give him and his wife a much needed break from the road to start a life and have a proper honeymoon and do all the things a newlywed couple should do. I'm very proud to announce my brother's recent marriage. Watching him grow up into a man and finding love makes me the happiest brother alive. I know this is upsetting news, as it is for us, but we will continue to tour with a temporary replacement until he has situated himself in his new life." Mikey's temporary replacement is Matt Cortez, a guitar technician, and friend of the band. In Amsterdam, the Netherlands before a show at the Heineken Music Hall on June 5th 2007, Gerard revealed to a fan that he expected Mikey to return to the band in time for the Projekt Revolution tour[4]

References

  1. ^ a b "Mikey Way". Retrieved 2006-12-26.
  2. ^ http://mychemicalromance.com/news#node_252
  3. ^ Winwood, Ian (March 2007), ""This is the best time of our lives!"", Kerrang!: 20–24{{citation}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  4. ^ "Gerard Way's brother leaves My Chemical Romance". NME.com. 2007-04-23. Retrieved 2007-04-23. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
Wikiquote has quotations related to Mikey Way.

Template:US-bassist-stub

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mikey_Way&oldid=139360356"