From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"I'm Not Okay (I Promise)"
Single by My Chemical Romance from the album Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge
Released	January 17, 2005
Format	7" vinyl CD Digital download DVD
Recorded	2004
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	3:09
Label	Reprise Records
Writer	My Chemical Romance
Producer	Howard Benson
Certification	Gold (U.S.)
My Chemical Romance singles chronology
"Thank You for the Venom" (2004) "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" (2004) "Helena" (2005)
Re-release cover

"I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" is the second single and fifth track from My Chemical Romance's second studio album, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge. It is often wrongly referred to as their first ever single. It is however, their sixth overall single. It reached #86 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, and #19 on the UK Singles Chart. The song also helped expand the band's fan base. The song was re-released in November of 2005. The song is also included in the EA Trax listing for racing game Burnout 3: Takedown.

Contents 1 Track listings 2 Meaning 3 Music videos 4 External links

Version 1 (promotional CD)

1. "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" (radio edit) – 3:16

Version 2 (Australian-released CD)

1. "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" – 3:09
2. "Bury Me in Black" (demo) – 2:39
3. "You Know What They Do to Guys Like Us in Prison" (live from BBC Radio 1 Lock Up session) – 2:51

Version 3 (CD)

1. "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" – 3:09
2. "Bury Me in Black" (demo) – 2:37
3. "You Know What They Do to Guys Like Us in Prison" (live from BBC Radio 1 Lock Up session) – 2:51
4. "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" (live from MTV $2 Bill) – 3:24

Version 4 (re-released CD)

1. "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" – 3:07
2. "You Know What They Do to Guys Like Us in Prison" (live from BBC Radio 1 Lock Up session) – 2:51

Version 5 (re-released CD)

1. "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" – 3:09
2. "You Know What They Do to Guys Like Us in Prison" (live from BBC Radio 1 Lock Up session) – 2:51
3. "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" (live from MTV $2 Bill) – 3:24

Version 6 (digital download)

1. "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" – 3:09
2. "You Know What They Do to Guys Like Us in Prison" (live from BBC Radio 1 Lock Up session) – 2:51

The song's lyrics deal with emotional issues relating to relationship breakups, in particular, those of lead singer Gerard Way and his high school experiences of adolescent, loneliness and angst. It could also be about a girl Gerard was in love with. She took some pictures with her boyfriend, which upset Gerard. Hence the line "For all the dirty looks, The photographs your boyfriend took". The song's sentimental lyrics ushered people to label the band as "emo".

The "old school" version music video of the song features the band's life in New Jersey and them going on tour as well as a montage of video segments. It was produced by Rafaela Monfradini and Greg Kaplan, who was also the director. It also features pictures of brothers, bassist Mikey Way and lead singer Gerard Way, when they were little kids and teenagers.

The "prep school" version music video depicts life inside a fictional American high school in the form of a fake movie trailer. The band appears as a group of outcast, dorky students who are repeatedly harassed by another group who are portrayed as jocks. The band members then attempt to take on the jocks and ultimately have a showdown in a hallway, with the band members armed with croquet mallets and the jocks with lacrosse sticks. The music video was directed by Marc Webb, and parts of it were filmed at Loyola High School in Los Angeles. An interesting point to make here is that current drummer Bob Bryar appears in the second video, as he had been officially recruited by the band at this point, but not added. This is evident by the fact that Gerard repeatedly blocks Bryar's face, supposedly to keep viewers from thinking he was a member of the band at that time. Another reason to note is since he has recently joined, he is not seen with the other band members in the high school scenes or credited in the movie card at the end. This video is especially famous with "fangirls" because of the split second in which Frank kisses Gerard's cheek after uttering "Trust me".

This version of the video was also named #1 on Fuse's 25 Greatest Videos Countdown, beating out other videos such as "Basketcase" by Green Day and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana.

• "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" lyrics
• "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" song meaning

v • d • e My Chemical Romance
Gerard Way • Ray Toro • Frank Iero • Mikey Way • Bob Bryar Matt Pelissier • Matt Cortez
Studio albums	I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love • Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge • The Black Parade
Live album	Life on the Murder Scene
EPs	Like Phantoms, Forever • Warped Tour Bootleg Series • Live and Rare
Demos	Dreams of Stabbing and/or Being Stabbed
Singles	"Honey, This Mirror Isn't Big Enough for the Two of Us" • "Vampires Will Never Hurt You" • "Headfirst for Halos" • "Our Lady of Sorrows" • "Thank You for the Venom" • "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" • "Helena" • "Under Pressure" (with The Used) • "The Ghost of You" • "Welcome to the Black Parade" • "Famous Last Words" • "I Don't Love You" • "Teenagers" • "Mama"
Related articles	Discography • Pencey Prep • Leathermouth • The Umbrella Academy • The Black Parade World Tour • Eyeball Records • Reprise Records • Projekt Revolution