Mike Shinoda has opened up with some more details about how Linkin Park's surprise reunion - and new line-up came about. Speaking to Brian Haddad and Kenzie Roman of Chicago radio station Q101, the singer admitted the process was more organic than a concerted effort to get everything back up and running after the 2017 passing of frontman Chester Bennington.
"The idea of auditioning people, or getting the band back together was not the start. That felt really stupid to us to be honest!" He admits. "It's so clumsy and [an] unattractive way of approaching things."
He goes on to explain that jam sessions between himself, turntablist Joe Hahn and bassist Dave Farrell eventually turned to writing new material - "playing around with some ideas, inviting people in."
"Colin [Brittain, drums] and Emily [Armstrong, vocals] were the ones who stuck," he says, going on to reveal that the band had worked on material with a number of "different people to feel [things] out".
"The album [From Zero] evolved at the same time the band evolved," he continues. "It just became... It blurred into existence, in a way."
Although the band's return to the stage on September 5 attracted mass interest - the YouTube livestream currently sits at over 7 million views, while tickets for their comeback shows in Los Angeles and New York sold out almost immediately - the Linkin Park reunion has not come without its controversy. Particularly surrounding new vocalist Emily Armstrong, singer of Dead Sara.
Social media posts over the weekend highlighted the singer's alleged Scientology links and alleged support for actor Danny Masterson, who was convicted of rape in 2023. Armstrong addressed the allegation in her own social media statement on Instagram. "Several years ago, I was asked to support someone I considered a friend at a court appearance, and went to one early hearing as an observer," she wrote. "Soon after, I realized I shouldn't have. I always try to see the good in people, and I misjudged him. I have never spoken with him since. Unimaginable details emerged and he was later found guilty.
"To say it as clearly as possible: I do not condone abuse or violence against women, and I empathize with the victims of these crimes."
A number of online critics have also questioned the band's decision to continue under the Linkin Park banner. Speaking to Q101, Shinoda was asked directly if the band had considered changing their name.
"To me, that was such an important question," he acknowledges. "We were keeping things very loose and we didn't define the band - we just said we were going to make music with people. That was our MO. In the middle of the process, we were open to [ideas] like, 'Maybe the lineup is a moving lineup? Maybe there's multiple vocalists. Maybe it's got a different name.'
"As the music came into focus, it was like 'this is as Linkin Park an album as we could make. It's so Linkin Park, if we call it something else we'd be idiots."
He also explains that the title of the band's upcoming album From Zero has deeper meaning, tied to Linkin Park's original name, Zero. "It's a double entendre," he explains. "It's us starting from zero, but also being in touch with the things we loved back then."
While Shinoda didn't directly acknowledge some of the backlash surrounding the reunion, he did point out some comments fans had made about the decision to recruit Armstrong as the band's new vocalist, making his stance clear.
"People say things like, 'Emily stepping into Chester's shoes, blah blah blah'... I don't love that phrasing because I get that she's filling a space in the visual line-up of the band. But I also feel like Chester was one of a kind. He's only Chester. Emily is also one of a kind - she's only Emily. When I hear her sing, it doesn't sound like him to me; she sounds like her and that's what I like. When she sings on the songs, they sound like Linkin Park songs."
The first single from the reformed group, The Emptiness Machine, certainly dials the clocks back to Linkin Park's earlier style. New album From Zero is set for release on November 15, while the band will embark on a world tour starting in Los Angeles on September 11 and stopping in New York, Hamburg, London, South Korea and Columbia. For the full list of shows - and to find out more about the band's upcoming album - visit their official website.
Watch the full interview with Q101 below.
