A few days ago, Linkin Park finally announced their new lineup which includes new lead vocalist, Emily Armstrong and sort of rose from the shadows, seven long years after the death of Chester Bennington. It would be an understatement if I said that the announcement broke the Internet and all hell broke loose soon after. Truly, all my news and social media feeds were flooded with news articles, opinion pieces and a barrage of posts from fans, most of which were criticizing the band for this announcement. I did see a few comments supporting the move and wishing the band all the best. But compared to the angry, disheartened, disappointed, betrayed comments, the number of positive comments seemed abysmal.
Almost all the negative comments stemmed from a sense of loyalty towards the late lead singer, Chester Bennington. Every comment echoed the same sentiment, ‘How could you replace him?’ Even the ones bashing the new singer were less about her skills and more about how she sounded in comparison with the late legend. Please note that I am not writing about the comments that brought in the angle of her once supporting a rapist, which according to her was her trusting a friend and cutting contacts when she came to know the truth. I really don’t know if she is telling the truth or if it is all bollocks and if she needs to be given the benefit of doubt. This blog is purely about the ‘Why did you ever replace him or had the guts to go by the same name?’ sentiment.
In most of these comments, the only acceptable way for the band to have come back into the limelight was for them to rebrand themselves, and no longer call themselves ‘Linkin Park.’ To these commentors, it was nothing less than blasphemy for the band to use the same name that has become synonymous with Chester (at least in the eyes of these fans) and then to bring in a new singer, which was considered an extreme dishonour to Chester’s spirit and his name. When the late singer’s son joined the bandwagon with scathing remarks against the band members and the new recruit, it was the much-needed ammunition for angry fans to scale up their attacks.
Having been a Linkin Park fan for many, many years and being one who has turned to their music at the worst of my depressive episodes, I found the extent of this attack ridiculous. The reason is simple. For a lot of fans, Linkin Park must primarily mean Chester, and I can’t blame them for that. But the truth is that, the band meant all of them, not just Chester who was the prime voice. Sure, it is difficult to imagine a Linkin Park song in a different voice and with a different face. But that does not in any way mean that the rest of the band is wrong in finally moving on. That is not them disrespecting their late partner in any way. That is simply them not abandoning a band that they all gave their blood and sweat to.
Some might not like the new voice, some might. That is absolutely subjective. But it is totally the band’s decision to choose who they feel would be the right fit. They might lose some fans, but they are not at fault for choosing someone. Why on earth should they rebrand themselves when the band was equally them as it was Chester? Isn’t that demand pure injustice to the rest of the band? If it was another member who we had lost instead of Chester, would people still be making the same demand? Hell, no!
Whatever their role in the band, they all have been and they all will be this band forever. And they don’t have to change their name or rebrand themselves to appease some fans and their misplaced grief and anger. Tomorrow when people talk about Linkin Park, it would definitely include the new recruits too, because whether you like it or not, they are Linkin Park now, just like Chester will always be.
Honestly, a lot of this whole fiasco sounds like bitter people asking a widow or widower how they could ever move on, find love again and get remarried. We don’t have to like or even give a chance to the new spouse, as long as we understand that it is not our place to decide what the other person wants to do for their future.
Also published on Medium.
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