The Poster Memorabilia blog

Meeting My Teenage Favorites as an Adult

Mariachi skeletons in Pico Rivera, a party in London, and both men behind the most famous cartoon band on earth.

By an anonymous Hollywood insider

We millennials really ate good growing up in the early 2000s, didn't we? We had the most exciting movies, the funnest cartoons, the coolest series, the sickest anime, and, of course, the best music. Our generation had an entire slate of A+ artists who peaked when we were teenagers, and my favorite was Gorillaz.

I'll never forget finally seeing them live at the Demon Dayz Festival in LA, their last North American date on their 2018 The Now Now tour. They played at the Pico Rivera Sports Arena and infused the whole day with Mexican culture, just in time for Día de los Muertos. As a Mexican-American who's followed them since 2004, I appreciated those nods to my roots.

There were mariachis greeting everyone at the gates, and gigantic versions of the cartoon band members dressed as a skeleton mariachi band. It was so trippy to see them, and as much as I loved seeing the human members rock it out on stage, I admit I stared at those giants much longer than I realized.

“They didn't just produce music; they created an entirely new world.”

Then, during the encore, Damon Albarn brought out Graham Coxon, his old Blur bandmate, and the two of them tore through Song 2. I screamed so loud I lost my voice for two days.

Albarn is the man who started it all, of course. In 1998, the Blur frontman partnered with illustrator Jamie Hewlett and started Gorillaz, the most famous virtual band there has ever been. With Albarn's music and Hewlett's drawings, they revolutionized what it meant to be a musical artist.

They didn't just produce music; they created an entirely new world. You can imagine hanging out with 2-D, Noodle, Russel Hobbs, and Murdoc Niccals every time you hear their tracks. I remember there was talk of an animated project with the characters around 2018, but unfortunately, it never happened.

✦ ✦ ✦

If I could get the band members' autographs on my tour poster, I would, but alas, cartoons can't sign. Fortunately, I did get to meet Albarn after the show that night and got him to sign the poster instead. He was older than the boyish Blur frontman I'd always pictured, but it didn't matter. He was so cool and so good on stage, and I'm still freaking out that I got his autograph.

Meeting Jamie Hewlett was more challenging, but thanks to the power of friendship, I still did it. I visited a college buddy who'd moved to London in 2019, and he told me he'd been invited to an art-world party where he was sure Hewlett would be, and that I could come along as his guest.

So I put on my coolest outfit, brought my poster along with my buddy's blessing, and there he was. My buddy was a pretty big deal in London's art scene at the time, and he introduced me to the iconic illustrator. I didn't even have to ask for an autograph, either. My buddy had already told him I wanted one, so I just showed my poster, and he signed it.

I know there are other people in Gorillaz, but it was more than enough to get the founders’ autographs. I’m so glad they’re still active and working together, and I’ll always be here ready to support them.

Some things you watch. This one you keep.

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