Chester Bennington’s Mom Says She Feels ‘Betrayed’ by Linkin Park
Chester Bennington’s mother, Susan Eubanks, says she feels “betrayed” by Linkin Park over their reunion and the addition of recent vocalist Emily Armstrong.
Eubanks informed Rolling Stone that following the dying of Bennington in July of 2017, the surviving members of Linkin Park promised her that they’d focus on any potential rekindling of the band along with her prior to creating any official selections.
However, Eubanks claimed that nobody within the band reached out to her after they determined to begin working with Armstrong and thus she feels betrayed by them.
Why Eubanks Feels Hurt by Linkin Park
“I feel like they’re trying very hard to erase the past. They’re performing songs that Chester sang. And I don’t know how the fans are taking it, but I know how I take it. And having [Armstrong] singing my son’s songs is hurtful,” she wrote in a submit for Rolling Stone.
Eubanks additional famous that Bennington’s first spouse, Samantha Marie Olit, and their son Draven (22), had been additionally unaware that Linkin Park had been reuniting with Armstrong till they introduced it to the world.
She alleged that over the past couple of years, each Joe Hahn and Mike Shinoda personally made a promise to her that they’d fill her in on any happenings with Linkin Park. Hahn and Shinoda apparently let Olit and Draven know after they had been planning to share the beforehand unreleased tracks that Bennington sang on (“Lost,” “Friendly Fire” and and so forth.).
Eubanks says she discovered in regards to the track releases from Olit slightly than the members of Linkin Park.
How Eubanks Learned Armstrong Was Linkin Park’s New Vocalist
“I found out about Emily Armstrong joining the band on Google,” she continued. “I actually thought maybe the band was going back out, but that Mike would be the singer; Chester did teach Mike how to sing. He sang a song on [2017’s] One More Light that I thought was beautiful until Chester died, then I couldn’t listen to it anymore. I thought if they were to go back out, it would just be the band not adding a singer.”
Eubanks recalled tuning into the livestream live performance that befell in Los Angeles on Sept. 5, which was Linkin Park’s debut with Armstrong. She solely heard a quick little bit of the efficiency as a result of she did not wish to hear it.
“But it was her, I’m just going to say it, screeching her way through a very high note. And I got out of there as fast as I could,” she stated. “I cried.”
Eubanks Claims Shinoda Wanted a Female Singer for a Long Time
Shinoda had allegedly made feedback to Bennington prior to now suggesting that their songs would have sounded higher if a lady sang them, in accordance with Eubanks.
“Chester called me and said, ‘He thinks that they’re going to replace me with a girl.’ And I said, ‘What do you mean?’ And he said Mike told him at rehearsal that, ‘If you decide you’re leaving, we’re going to replace you with a girl.’ And Chester was dumbfounded and hurt,” Eubanks claimed.
READ MORE: Mike Shinoda Recalls Moment That Kickstarted New Linkin Park Music
She went on to defend Bennington’s voice, asserting that nobody might replicate how her son sounded. She reiterated that she feels they’re making an attempt to “erase the past” — a sentiment that Bennington’s eldest son Jaime has expressed because the livestream live performance befell — and concluded that Linkin Park should not have Armstrong sing Bennington’s songs.
Shinoda Says the Reunion Isn’t About ‘Erasing the Past’
During Linkin Park’s first full-scale reunion present at The Forum in Los Angeles on Sept. 11, Shinoda seemingly addressed the accusations that the band is making an attempt to erase their legacy with Bennington.
“It is not about erasing the past – it is about starting this new chapter into the future, and coming out here for each and every one of you,” the vocalist said.
Eight Bands That Carried on After Their Singer Died
These rock and steel bands carried on after their singer died, both with a brand new vocalist or an current member took the function.
Gallery Credit: Lauryn Schaffner