Chester Bennington's mother feels "betrayed" by new Linkin Park line-up

20 September 2024, 11:42

Susan Eubanks says she's "very upset" to not learn in advance of the addition of Emily Armstrong on vocals.

Chester Bennington's mother says that she felt "betrayed" by the announcement of a new Linkin Park line-up, claiming that the band promised her they'd keep her informed of any plans.

In a piece in Rolling Stone magazine, Susan Eubanks said she was "very upset" to hear the news that the band would be reconvening with Emily Armstrong on vocals and Colin Brittain on drums in place of Rob Bourdon.

Eubanks said she was "very upset", revealing the band had always promised to keep her informed about anything they planned to do after her son took his own life in 2017.

She wrote: “I feel betrayed. They told me that if they were ever going to do something, they would let me know. They didn’t let me know, and they probably knew that I [wasn’t] going to be very happy. I’m very upset about it.”

She added: “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.

“They said they would let the family know if they were going to reunite. They did not. [Chester's first wife] Samantha and [son] Draven didn’t know until it was told to the world. It was the same for me and it hurt.”

The Emptiness Machine (Official Music Video) - Linkin Park

Sarah claimed Mike Shinoda had often wanted to replace Chester with a female vocalist.

She wrote: “Mike told Chester one time that he thought singing these songs would be better with a girl, because he often put Chester down. And 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.

"The fact is that now they did it. So, of course, all that comes right back into my mind. I had a talk with my son about this. I didn’t think they’d probably do it.”

Eubanks insisted she "would've been OK" with the group reuniting and having Shinoda as the only singer, but aded: "I’m not OK with this. To have somebody replace him and try to do what he did. I don’t think that there’s anybody in the world that has the same voice. And when I heard that, I was just so repelled that no, they’re trying to do exactly what Chester did, but they’re not succeeding at it.”

Susan urged the band not to use any material left by her son in their new era.

She concluded: “If I could tell the band members anything it’s that I feel betrayed. You made a promise to me that you would let us know and you didn’t. If you were going to do this, this is the wrong way to do it.

"Don’t put [Emily Armstrong] out there to sing Chester’s songs and then act like this was always the way it should have been. It’s like making him go away, erasing the past.

"You don’t have to worry about going through the old songs and finding new ones, new Chester songs to put out. Now you can just put out new songs. But don’t bother to put out Chester’s songs with Emily singing them.”

Linkin Park perform on Fallon

The new-look Linkin Park will play The O2 Arena in London on 24th September 2024. Their next show is at the Barclays Arena in Hamburg, Germany, followed by shows in Seoul on 28th September and Bogota on 11th November. A new album, From Zero, is to be released on 15th November.

Who's in Linkin Park now?

Following an announcement on Thursday 5th September, Linkin Park’s new line-up consists of Mike Shinoda, Brad Delson, Phoenix, Joe Hahn, alongside new members Emily Armstrong (from critically acclaimed band Dead Sara) as co-vocalist and Colin Brittain (songwriter/producer for G Flip, Illenium, One OK Rock) as their new drummer.