Linkin Park

Linkin Park is an American rock band formed in Agoura Hills, California, in 1996. Emerging from the late-1990s alternative rock and metal milieu, the group became widely associated with a hybrid approach that drew on heavy guitar music and hip-hop-influenced elements, a blend often described through genres such as alternative metal, nu metal, rap metal, and post-grunge.

The band’s current lineup consists of Mike Shinoda (vocalist, rhythm guitarist, keyboardist), Brad Delson (lead guitarist), Joe Hahn (DJ/turntablist), Dave Farrell (bassist), Emily Armstrong (vocalist), and Colin Brittain (drummer). Linkin Park’s best-known long-running configuration, which recorded the band’s first seven studio albums, included lead vocalist Chester Bennington and drummer Rob Bourdon alongside Shinoda, Delson, Hahn, and Farrell. Bennington’s death by suicide in July 2017 brought the group’s activities to a halt, initiating a prolonged period of inactivity.

Following Bennington’s death, Linkin Park entered a seven-year hiatus. During that time, Bourdon chose to depart from the band. In September 2024, Linkin Park publicly announced its reformation and confirmed the additions of Armstrong and Brittain, marking the first formal change in the band’s front-line vocal role since Bennington’s tenure and a significant shift in its rhythm section after Bourdon’s exit.

Across its career, Linkin Park has also been known by several alternate names and stylizations, including “LP,” “Lincoln Park,” “Link In Park,” and “Linkin’ Park,” as well as non-Latin renderings such as リンキン・パーク and 林肯公园. Early in its history, the group used names including Xero and Hybrid Theory, which remain associated with its formative period and are often referenced in discussions of the band’s origins.