LINKIN PARK's MIKE SHINODA On CHESTER BENNINGTON: 'He Was Such A Happy, Fun Guy'

September 18, 2017

LINKIN PARK's Mike Shinoda spoke to the Los Angeles radio station KROQ Monday morning (September 18) about the band's first concert since Chester Bennington died in July. The group will perform a one-off "celebration" to honor the singer on October 27 at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.

A press release promises an "an unforgettable night of music" featuring a number of other artists. Proceeds from the show will go to Music For Relief's One More Light Fund in memory of Bennington.

Shinoda told KROQ that the decision to move forward with the tribute concert took some encouragement. "I had gone to [producer] Rick Rubin as a source of guidance," he explained (hear audio below). "He had said, 'I think you guys need to get on stage. I think that'll be the thing that'll feel good. It'll be super, super hard.' We haven't gone out together in public, we haven't played — we haven't gone on stage. He said, 'The fans want to see you. Not because they want to see a show, but there's a cathartic experience that needs to happen and it'll inform what you guys are doing.' And I thought it over — and I know that for some of the guys in the band, getting on stage [without Chester] is more scary than [for] other guys in the band, but I will say that for all of us, it's definitely the thing that we want to do. It feels like the right way to celebrate Chester."

Shinoda also touched on Bennington's tragic death at the age of 41. The singer was found after committing suicide at his home in Palo Verdes Estates, California on Thursday, July 20, leaving behind his wife Talinda and six children from multiple relationships.

"With something like this, and it was the same at his funeral… I know that the circumstances of his passing were really dark, and as we said at the time, the darkness that he had was always there and was kind of part of the package, but what was so unique and special about this guy is that he used it as fuel to do so many positive things," Mike said. "His overall, the way he was, he was such a happy guy, he was such a fun guy. When he'd walk in the room, there was such a positive, funny, upbeat energy, and that's what we wanna get out of this show."

He continued: "I know it's gonna be a roller coaster of emotion. But when we talk about this and when we're focusing on the show, it's really about, like we say, celebrating life."

The pre-sale for LINKIN PARK's Hollywood Bowl concert — the guest list for which is "still coming together," according to Shinoda — begins September 19, while tickets become available to everyone on September 22.

Find more on Linkin park
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).