Linkin Park Star Defends Decision To Hire New Singer After Criticism From Chester Bennington's Family

Mike Shinoda said the group's new era is not "a redo or a rewrite of Linkin Park".
Mike Shinoda and Emily Armstrong of Linkin Park performing earlier this month
Mike Shinoda and Emily Armstrong of Linkin Park performing earlier this month
via Associated Press

Linkin Park performer Mike Shinoda has insisted he isn’t trying to “rewrite” the group’s history with their latest musical era.

Earlier this month, the band made headlines when they revealed they had recruited a new co-singer, Emily Armstrong.

She and Mike will share vocal duties on the rock band’s music moving forward, following the death of frontman Chester Bennington seven years ago.

Emily’s vocals will appear on Linkin Park’s upcoming album, and she’s also performed with the band at select live shows this past month.

However, her addition to the line-up hasn’t been without its controversies, with Chester Bennington’s son and mum criticising the band for moving forward in their new form.

Writing in Rolling Stone last week, Susan Eubanks claimed she’d not been consulted about her late son’s bandmates carrying on without him, saying she felt “betrayed” by the decision.

Chester Bennington performing in 2013
Chester Bennington performing in 2013
via Associated Press

Speaking to Radio 1, Mike made it clear the new line-up was not “meant to be a redo or a rewrite of Linkin Park”.

“This is intended to be a new chapter of Linkin Park,” he said. “The old chapter was a great chapter and we loved that chapter. It ran its course and now we were faced with a challenge of: ‘Well OK, if you start from scratch with another voice, what do you do?’.”

Mike and Linkin Park OGs Joe Hahn and Dave Farrell will be joined by Emily and fellow new addition Colin Brittain on drums, with Brad Delson also making the decision not to join the band on tour.

His guitar work is featured on their new album From Zero, however, which is due for release in November.

“We were just slowly coming together and then eventually things just started to fall into place with Emily and with Colin our new drummer,” Mike added to Radio 1.

Since being appointed as a new vocalist in Linkin Park, Emily has also spoken out about past controversies in her past, most notably her previous support for convicted rapist Danny Masterson, who she knew through the Church of Scientology.

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