History Music / LinkinPark

* RefrainFromAssuming / NonAppearingTitle: A good third of their songs.
** All the ones on ''Hybrid Theory'' feature the title as part of the chorus except for "Papercut", "Points of Authority", and "Cure for the Itch". This was not coincidental, it is a proven method of making music catchy and appealing to radio listeners.

The band was originated by members Mike Shinoda, Rob Bourdon and Brad Delson, all high school friends. After graduating, the three then recruited the other current members of the band, with the exception of their lead vocalist, who was originally Mark Wakefield. Wakefield eventually left in the wake of tension among the band from their lack of success; Chester Bennington was chosen as his replacement, and his vocal chemistry with Shinoda revitalized the band.

Linkin Park achieved mainstream success come the TurnOfTheMillennium as one of the most popular bands in NuMetal, with their debut album ''Music/HybridTheory'' and its follow-up ''Music/{{Meteora}}'' receiving some of the biggest success the genre has ever seen. Nearing the end of the decade, as the genre started [[DeadHorseGenre falling out of public favor]], the band eschewed the sound in favor of genres like AlternativeRock and ElectronicMusic from ''Music/MinutesToMidnight'' onward (though they did return to their metal roots with ''The Hunting Party''). Their fanbase has been [[BrokenBase continuously split]] [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks as a result of this]], but it hasn't deterred the band from continuing to [[NewSoundAlbum do what they want]] with their music, leading to reactions that are more predictable in their hysteria than whatever they choose to put out next.

While their music has been featured in dozens of films, Linkin Park has a particularly strong association with the ''[[Film/TransformersFilmSeries Transformers]]'' series. In addition to providing singles for the first three movies and the video game ''[[VideoGame/TransformersRiseOfTheDarkSpark Rise of the Dark Spark]]'', they collaborated with Music/SteveJablonsky and Music/HansZimmer on the score for ''[[Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen Revenge of the Fallen]]''. They are also a [[http://www.animemusicvideos.org/lists/usedmusic.php popular music source]] for [[FanVid anime music videos]], inevitably featuring {{shonen|Demographic}} series like ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' (and occasionally ''not''-so-shonen series, namely ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'').

By [[WordOfGod Mike Shinoda's own confession]], [[http://www.nme.com/news/music/linkin-park-after-chester-bennington-2230565 he has intentions on continuing with Linkin Park, though he also noted that it will take time.]] He has begun leaning into solo music in the interim, with an EP-turned-album[[note]]Originally released as a 3-song EP in January 2018; those 3 songs then became the first 3 of an equivalently named album in June of that year[[/note]] named ''Music/PostTraumatic'' and three instrumental hip hop albums under his belt thus far. According to him, he published ''Post Traumatic'', his first main solo project, under his own name because of the personal subject matter of the album, since it dealt with his grief and coping with the death of Chester.

* NotChristianRock: While some of their lyrics vaguely hint at a higher power and others directly reference God, only a few members of Linkin Park are UsefulNotes/{{Christian|ity}}.

By [[WordOfGod Mike Shinoda's own confession]], [[http://www.nme.com/news/music/linkin-park-after-chester-bennington-2230565 he has intentions on continuing with Linkin Park, though he also noted that it will take time.]] He has begun leaning into solo music in the interim, with an EP-turned-album[[note]]Originally released as a 3-song EP in January 2018; those 3 songs then became the first 3 of an equivalently named album in June of that year[[/note]] named ''Post Traumatic'' and three instrumental hip hop albums under his belt thus far. According to him, he published ''Post Traumatic'', his first main solo project, under his own name because of the personal subject matter of the album, since it dealt with his grief and coping with the death of Chester.

While their music has been featured in dozens of films, Linkin Park has a particularly strong association with the ''[[Film/TransformersFilmSeries Transformers]]'' series. In addition to providing singles for the first three movies and the video game ''[[VideoGame/TransformersRiseOfTheDarkSpark Rise of the Dark Spark]]'', they collaborated with Music/SteveJablonsky and Music/HansZimmer on the score for ''[[Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen Revenge of the Fallen]]''. They are also a [[http://www.animemusicvideos.org/lists/usedmusic.php popular music source]] for [[FanVid anime music videos]], inevitably featuring {{shonen|Demographic}} series like ''Manga/DragonBall Z'' (and occasionally ''not''-so-shonen series, namely ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'').

Linkin Park[[note]]The name was chosen as a nod to Santa Monica's Lincoln Park, originally spelled "Lincoln Park" but modified to secure the domain "linkinpark.com". Prior band names were Xero and Hybrid Theory; their label told them that the latter name would cause confusion with the British {{electronic music}} group Hybrid.[[/note]] is a rock band from [[UsefulNotes/LosAngeles Agoura Hills]], {{UsefulNotes/California}}. Since their formation in 1996, the band has sold more than fifty million albums and won two Grammy Awards.

The band was originated by members Mike Shinoda, Rob Bourdon and Brad Delson, all high school friends. After graduating, the three then recruited the other current members of the band, with the exception of their original lead vocalist being Mark Wakefield. Wakefield eventually left in the wake of tension among the band from their lack of success; Chester Bennington was chosen as his replacement, and his vocal chemistry with Shinoda revitalized the band.

Linkin Park achieved mainstream success come the TurnOfTheMillennium as one of the most popular bands in NuMetal, with their debut album ''Music/HybridTheory'' and its follow-up ''Music/{{Meteora}}'' receiving some of the biggest success the genre has ever seen. Nearing the end of the decade, as the genre started [[DeadHorseGenre falling out of public favor]], the band eschewed the sound in favor of genres like AlternativeRock and ElectronicMusic from ''Music/MinutesToMidnight'' onward (though they did return to their metal roots with ''The Hunting Party''). [[BrokenBase Their fanbase has been continuously split]] [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks as a result of this]], but it hasn't deterred the band from continuing to [[NewSoundAlbum do what they want]] with their music, leading to reactions that are more predictable in their hysteria than whatever they choose to put out next.

While their music has been featured in dozens of films, Linkin Park has a particularly strong association with the ''[[Film/TransformersFilmSeries Transformers]]'' series. In addition to providing singles for the first three movies and the video game ''[[VideoGame/TransformersRiseOfTheDarkSpark Rise of the Dark Spark]]'', they collaborated with Music/SteveJablonsky and Music/HansZimmer on the score for ''[[Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen Revenge of the Fallen]]''. They are also a [[http://www.animemusicvideos.org/lists/usedmusic.php popular music source]] for [[FanVid anime music videos]], inevitably featuring {{shonen|Demographic}} series like ''Manga/DragonBall Z'' (and occasionally ''not''-so-shonen series, namely ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion''). They've also sampled Music/BasilPoledouris' score for 1987's ''No Man's Land'' for "Frgt/10" on ''[=ReAnimation=]''.

On July 20, 2017, Chester Bennington committed suicide [[DiedDuringProduction shortly before the band was to start the North American leg of the tour]] promoting their then-latest album ''One More Light''. Following his death, the tour was cancelled, and the remaining members of Linkin Park did their first performance without Bennington at a tribute concert for him on October 27, with guest performances and guest vocals from members of Music/{{Yellowcard}}, Music/Blink182, Music/{{Korn}}, Music/AvengedSevenfold, Music/SystemOfADown, Music/{{Echosmith}}, Bush, Music/NoDoubt, Music/ADayToRemember, Music/BringMeTheHorizon and Music/Sum41, as well as Kiiara, Julia Michaels, Music/{{Zedd}}, Music/AlanisMorissette, Machine Gun Kelly, Steve Aoki, Music/BebeRexha... [[AudienceParticipationSong and, of course, the fans.]]

The band was originated by members Mike Shinoda, Rob Bourdon and Brad Delson, all high school friends. After graduating, the three then recruited the other current members of the band, with the exception of their original vocalist being Mark Wakefield. Wakefield eventually left in the wake of tension among the band from their lack of success; Chester Bennington was chosen as his replacement, and his vocal chemistry with Shinoda revitalized the band.

They achieved mainstream success come the TurnOfTheMillennium as one of the most popular bands in NuMetal, with their debut album ''Music/HybridTheory'' and its follow-up ''Music/{{Meteora}}'' receiving some of the biggest success the genre has ever seen. Nearing the end of the decade, as the genre started [[DeadHorseGenre falling out of public favor]], the band eschewed the sound in favor of genres like AlternativeRock and ElectronicMusic from ''Music/MinutesToMidnight'' onward (though they did return to their metal roots with ''The Hunting Party''). [[BrokenBase Their fanbase has been continuously split]] [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks as a result of this]], but it hasn't deterred the band any from continuing to [[GenreBusting do what they want]] with their music, leading to reactions that are more predictable in their hysteria than whatever they choose to put out next.

On July 20, 2017, lead singer Chester Bennington committed suicide [[DiedDuringProduction shortly before the band was to start the North American leg of the tour]] promoting their then-latest album ''One More Light''. Following his death, the tour was cancelled, and the remaining members of Linkin Park did their first performance without Bennington at a tribute concert for him on October 27, with guest performances and guest vocals from members of Music/{{Yellowcard}}, Music/Blink182, Music/{{Korn}}, Music/AvengedSevenfold, Music/SystemOfADown, Music/{{Echosmith}}, Bush, Music/NoDoubt, Music/ADayToRemember, Music/BringMeTheHorizon and Music/Sum41, as well as Kiiara, Julia Michaels, Music/{{Zedd}}, Music/AlanisMorissette, Machine Gun Kelly, Steve Aoki, Music/BebeRexha... [[AudienceParticipationSong and, of course, the fans.]]

By [[WordOfGod Mike Shinoda's own confession]], [[http://www.nme.com/news/music/linkin-park-after-chester-bennington-2230565 he has intentions on continuing with Linkin Park, though he also noted that it will take time.]] He has begun leaning into solo music in the meantime, with an EP-turned-album[[note]]Originally released as a 3-song EP in January 2018; those 3 songs then became the first 3 of an equivalently named album in June of that year[[/note]] named ''Post Traumatic'' and three instrumental hip hop albums under his belt thus far. According to him, he published ''Post Traumatic'', his first main solo project, under his own name because of the personal subject matter of the album, since it dealt with his grief and coping with the death of his bandmate and friend.

After that, in April 2020, Dave Farrell confirmed that the band had reunited and were working on new music, bringing the hiatus to a close. That said, however, it's unknown if they will find a new member or stay the way they are now following Chester's passing. However, in 2022, Mike has stated that they are not in fact working on anything and are still on hiatus.

After that, in April 2020, Dave Farrell confirmed that the band had reunited and were working on new music, bringing the hiatus to a close. That said, however, it's unknown if they will find a new member or stay the way they are now following Chester's passing.

** When playing "A Place for My Head" live, Chester almost always ends it with a big "'''MOTHERFUCKER!'''"
* AudienceParticipationSong: During live performances of "Bleed It Out", there's a chance of Chester and Mike initiating a singing contest between each other with the audience's help, such as on ''Road to Revolution''. The audience is also encouraged to sing with Chester on "In the End."

** That being said, however, even during the cycles for the first two albums, Mike and Chester practically became SirSwearsALot on tour. Special mention goes to "A Place for My Head" in which Chester almost always end the song screaming a ''[[AtomicFBomb big]]'' '''''"MOTHERFUCKER!"'''''

* FadingIntoTheNextSong: All albums except ''One More Light'' uses this, with ''Meteora'', ''A Thousand Suns'' and ''The Hunting Party'' as the biggest examples. The exact count[[note]]Not counting the remix albums or LPU-exclusive extended plays[[/note]]:

* GenreShift: Originally started as NuMetal outfit, before gradually shifting to the more experimental side of AlternativeRock.

** Chester's scream on "Given Up" lasts for 17 seconds. It's no wonder he almost always splits it in half when he sang it live.

* LeParkour: The "FRGT/10" music video features the protagonist being chased in rooftops doing this.

* NeoclassicalPunkZydecoRockabilly: Their music has pretty much always been a mix of rock, hip-hop, and electronica. Which of these ingredients takes prominence depends on the song.

* AdultFear: The music video for "Lost in the Echo" heavily implies the reuniting with loved ones who disappeared for many years.

On July 20, 2017, lead singer Chester Bennington [[DiedDuringProduction committed suicide]] shortly before the band was to start the North American leg of the tour promoting their then-latest album ''One More Light''. Following his death, the tour was cancelled, and the remaining members of Linkin Park did their first performance without Bennington at a tribute concert for him on October 27, with guest performances and guest vocals from members of Music/{{Yellowcard}}, Music/Blink182, Music/{{Korn}}, Music/AvengedSevenfold, Music/SystemOfADown, Music/{{Echosmith}}, Bush, Music/NoDoubt, Music/ADayToRemember, Music/BringMeTheHorizon and Music/Sum41, as well as Kiiara, Julia Michaels, Music/{{Zedd}}, Music/AlanisMorissette, Machine Gun Kelly, Steve Aoki, Music/BebeRexha... [[AudienceParticipationSong and, of course, the fans.]]

They achieved mainstream success come the TurnOfTheMillennium as one of the most popular bands in NuMetal, with their debut album ''Music/HybridTheory'' and its follow-up ''Music/{{Meteora}}'' receiving some of the biggest success the genre has ever seen.

Nearing the end of the decade, as the genre started [[DeadHorseGenre falling out of public favor]], the band eschewed the sound in favor of genres like AlternativeRock and ElectronicMusic from ''Music/MinutesToMidnight'' onward (though they did return to their metal roots with ''The Hunting Party''). [[BrokenBase Their fanbase has been continuously split]] [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks as a result of this]], but it hasn't deterred the band any from continuing to [[GenreBusting do what they want]] with their music, leading to reactions that are more predictable in their hysteria than whatever they choose to put out next.

* DeadArtistsAreBetter: After Chester's death, many music publications began re-evaluating the band's music more positively. Stereogum praised them as the last big rock band to make a huge debut, concluding that the constant {{Genre Shift}}ing is what helped them maintain their relevance before the major changes in the music industry made it next to impossible for a rock band to ever reach those kinds of heights. Others put a more positive spin on their unflattering "emo" label by saying that the unambiguous angst of their music was hugely cathartic for people with depression, with droves of millennials coming out on social media to back this claim up.

* DigitalPiracyIsEvil: Warner's philosophy. Every time a copy of ''A Thousand Suns'' was sent to a music journalist for reviewing purposes, a cop was shipped along with it to make sure nothing leaked (not that it stopped the album from being leaked anyway). More recently, they took down all the videos of specific songs from Chester's memorial concert which were ripped from LP's official full video.

* PissTakeRap:
** Chester's vocals in the verses of "Blackout" strongly resemble rapping.
** [[PissTakeRap Piss-Take Reggae]]: Mike's toasted vocals in "Waiting for the End"; Chester's half-screamed, half-toasted vocals in "Wretches and Kings".

* RealSongThemeTune:
** Two of their songs have been used in three video games: "The Catalyst" in ''[[VideoGame/GundamVsSeries Gundam Extreme Vs.]]'' and The 2010 ContinuityReboot of ''VideoGame/MedalOfHonor''; and "Castle of Glass" in ''VideoGame/MedalOfHonorWarfighter''. One of the latter game's multiplayer trailers also used "Lies Greed Misery".
** The instrumental riff from "Somewhere I Belong" is the theme music to ''The Mark Levin Show'', one of the most popular conservative talk radio programs in the U.S.

* TheyAlsoDid: Chester was in a grunge band called Grey Daze during much of the 90s. They were quite popular in Arizona and were actually briefly signed to a major label (though dropped before the album could be released). There were planned reunion gigs on a few occasions but they never came to fruition, and whilst there were reissues of the albums, they didn't stay in print very long. The ex-members are currently working on a modern mix of their unreleased major label album, however, which was the subject of a Kerrang! cover story in 2020, probably the most mainstream exposure the group has ever gotten.

Linkin Park is a rock band from [[UsefulNotes/LosAngeles Agoura Hills]], {{UsefulNotes/California}}. Since their formation in 1996, the band has sold more than fifty million albums and won two Grammy Awards.

[[caption-width-right:350:Left to right: Brad Delson, Mike Shinoda, Mr. Hahn, Chester Bennington, Rob Bourdon, Phoenix]]

They achieved mainstream success come the TurnOfTheMillennium as one of the most popular bands in NuMetal, with their debut album ''Music/HybridTheory'' and its follow-up ''Music/{{Meteora}}'' receiving some of the biggest success the genre has ever seen. Nearing the end of the decade, as the genre started [[DeadHorseGenre falling out of public favor]], the band eschewed the sound in favor of genres like AlternativeRock and ElectronicMusic from ''Music/MinutesToMidnight'' onward (though they did return to their metal roots with ''The Hunting Party'').

[[BrokenBase Their fanbase has been continuously split]] [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks as a result of this]], but it hasn't deterred the band any from continuing to [[GenreBusting do what they want]] with their music, leading to reactions that are more predictable in their hysteria than whatever they choose to put out next.

While they were immensely popular, a sizable group grew that wasn't keen on all the screaming and sadness, leading to the [[NeverLiveItDown common stereotype]] of Linkin Park being the band ''du jour'' of "[[{{Wangst}} whiny, angsty teenagers with no good reason to be]]" the world over.

On July 20, 2017, lead singer Chester Bennington [[DiedDuringProduction committed suicide]], shortly before the band was to start the North American leg of the tour promoting their then-latest album ''One More Light''. Following his death, the tour was cancelled, and the remaining members of Linkin Park did their first performance without Bennington at a tribute concert for him on October 27, with guest performances and guest vocals from members of Music/{{Yellowcard}}, Music/Blink182, Music/{{Korn}}, Music/AvengedSevenfold, Music/SystemOfADown, Music/{{Echosmith}}, Bush, Music/NoDoubt, Music/ADayToRemember, Music/BringMeTheHorizon and Music/Sum41, as well as Kiiara, Julia Michaels, Music/{{Zedd}}, Music/AlanisMorissette, Machine Gun Kelly, Steve Aoki, Music/BebeRexha... [[AudienceParticipationSong and, of course, the fans.]]

By [[WordOfGod Mike Shinoda's own confession]], [[http://www.nme.com/news/music/linkin-park-after-chester-bennington-2230565 he has intentions on continuing with Linkin Park, though he also noted that it will take time.]] He has begun leaning into solo music in the meantime, with an EP-turned-album[[note]]Originally released as a 3-song EP in January 2018; those 3 songs then became the first 3 of an equivalently named album in June of that year[[/note]] named ''Post Traumatic'' and three instrumental hip hop albums under his belt thus far. According to him, he published ''Post Traumatic'', his first main solo project, under his own name because of the personal subject matter of the album, since it dealt with his grief and coping with the death of his bandmate and friend. After that, in April 2020, Dave Farrell confirmed that the band had reunited and were working on new music, bringing the hiatus to a close. That said however, it's unknown if they will find a new member or stay the way they are now following Chester's passing.

[[AC:Members:]]

[[AC:Former Members:]]

[[AC:Discography:]]

* MohsScaleOfRockAndMetalHardness: Due to their eclectic nature, they go all over the scale. Their nu metal material (from ''Hybrid Theory'', ''Meteora'' and ''The Hunting Party'') is generally 6-8, with the softer songs from those albums dropping to 4-5. ''Minutes to Midnight'' and ''Living Things'' are mostly 3-5 (with the heavier songs being 6-8). ''A Thousand Suns'' averages at 2-4. ''One More Light'' resides at 1-3.

* DigitalPiracyIsOkay: By contrast, members of the band have gone on record saying they really don't care if their songs are downloaded. When ''Minutes to Midnight'' was leaked, their only response was to advise people to listen to the tracks in order and ask that they buy the album anyway for all the non-musical stuff they put into it. Especially notable considering the actions of their label. The band themselves downloaded the Xero demo tape from a fansite so that they could relearn "Reading My Eyes" and play it live. In addition Shinoda acknowledged that "She Couldn't" leaked back in 2009 and whilst he said he couldn't legally talk about it (at the time), 'didn't' try to take the links down.

* RockersSmashGuitars: Brad threw one of his guitars during the ''Live in Texas'' concert DVD after performing "A Place for My Head", but didn't actually break it like usual, so Chester went ahead and finished it.

** The king of them all must be Chester's rendition of the Series/{{Weeds}} theme "Little Boxes," which is even softer sounding than "Leave Out All the Rest." Probably for this reason it remains soundtrack only.

! TROPING IN MY SKIN!

** The instrumental riff from "Somewhere I Belong" is the theme music to ''The Creator/MarkLevin Show'', one of the most popular conservative talk radio programs in the U.S.

* NotSoDifferent: Referenced in ''Numb'':

While their music has been featured in dozens of films, Linkin Park has a particularly strong association with the ''[[Film/TransformersFilmSeries Transformers]]'' series. In addition to providing singles for the first three movies and the video game ''[[VideoGame/TransformersRiseOfTheDarkSpark Rise of the Dark Spark]]'', they collaborated with Music/SteveJablonsky and Music/HansZimmer on the score for ''[[Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen Revenge of the Fallen]]''. They are also a [[http://www.animemusicvideos.org/lists/usedmusic.php popular music source]] for [[FanVid anime music videos]], inevitably featuring {{shonen|Demographic}} series like ''Manga/DragonBall Z'' (and occasionally ''not''-so-shonen series, namely ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'').

Linkin Park is a rock band from [[UsefulNotes/LosAngeles Agoura Hills]], UsefulNotes/California. Since their formation in 1996, the band has sold more than fifty million albums and won two Grammy Awards.

Linkin Park is a rock band from Agoura Hills, California. Since their formation in 1996, the band has sold more than fifty million albums and won two Grammy Awards.

By [[WordOfGod Mike Shinoda's own confession]], [[http://www.nme.com/news/music/linkin-park-after-chester-bennington-2230565 he has intentions on continuing with Linkin Park, though he also noted that it will take time.]] He has begun leaning into solo music in the meantime, with an EP-turned-album[[note]]Originally released as a 3-song EP in January 2018; those 3 songs then became the first 3 of an equivalently named album in June of that year[[/note]] named ''Post Traumatic'' and three instrumental hip hop albums under his belt thus far. According to him, he published ''Post Traumatic'', his first main solo project, under his own name because of the personal subject matter of the album, since it dealt with his grief and coping with the death of his bandmate and friend. After that, in April 2020, Dave Farrell confirmed that the band had reunited and were working on new music, bringing the hiatus to a close.

* AmbiguouslyJewish: While not presenting any obvious identifiers as being so, drummer Rob Bourdon is in fact UsefulNotes/{{J|udaism}}ewish. Lead guitarist Brad Delson, however, not so ambiguous…

* AsianAndNerdy: Mike and Joe.[[note]] [[ComicallyMissingThePoint Though Mike is technically only Asian on his father's side.]][[/note]]

* AwesomeMcCoolname: Mike Shinoda. Just SOUNDS badass.

* BerserkButton:
** Never, ''ever'' tell a single member of the band that you want them to go back to their "old" style or do any new ones. Chester infamously told these critics to "stab [themselves] in the face" in one of his last interviews. "When They Come for Me" makes this perfectly clear.
** Mike doesn't like the rumors that the band was fabricated by the record label. The Music/FortMinor song "Get Me Gone" goes into detail about how he and the band had to fight tooth and nail to keep him in, and that rumor that the label started was the last straw.

* ClusterFBomb: Mike and especially Chester swear like children out of their parents' earshot. Early in their career, the band made a point to avoid swearing on the first two albums, but with ''Minutes to Midnight'' and ''A Thousand Suns'', they resigned themselves to getting parental advisory labels. However, ''Living Things'' stood out for not having profanity for the first time since ''Meteora''.

* CoolHat:
** Not a hat per se, but Delson's headphones count for being both unique and [[IconicOutfit one of his most recognizable features]], aside from his Jewfro.
** More traditionally, Phoenix likes to rock a sweet fedora during concerts.
** Chester took to wearing either a beanie or a porkpie hat in media appearances in his later years.
* CosmicPlaything: It was an achievement for Chester to go a whole year without a major injury while on tour – he'd got bitten by a recluse spider, broke his wrist in the middle of a show, broke his ankle while playing basketball, injured his back, had surgeries because of mysterious illnesses, became allergic to ''his own sweat'', had a tennis racquet go through his lip after he hit himself in the face with it while playing, ''and'' he ripped off one of his nipples just by getting in the shower. He got injured/ill so frequently he once wished to be put in a bubble.
-->'''Chester:''' Another tour… another trip to the emergency room.

* {{Determinator}}: Chester once insisted on finishing a show after mis-timing a jump and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vrlf4SVSt8 breaking his wrist]] three songs in. During a tour several years later, he [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TM_-iOMlaE broke his ankle]] playing basketball; despite his attempts to keep performing, the injury was severe enough that the band was forced to cancel the rest of the tour. On top of all that, he struggled with drug addiction until 2006, bouts of alcoholism, and severe depression, and still kept going – until the latter [[DrivenToSuicide got the better of him]] in 2017.
** Bassist Phoenix played an entire show even after breaking his hand earlier in the tour.

* TheEndingChangesEverything: Chester's death brings ([[ItWasWithYouAllAlong or evidences]]) a lot of new meaning to LP's work.

* {{Fanservice}}: Chester was known for being shirtless about 40% of the time, performing or otherwise. The behind-the-scenes video for ''Minutes To Midnight'' features him in nothing but his underwear, covered in sweat, after spending hours in a hot recording booth. He's about as clothed for the first half of the "Shadow of the Day" music video. As for the rest of the band, fans will have to scour the behind-the-scenes videos on the group's website for even a ''hint'' of fanservice from the other five members.
* FieryRedhead: Mike, but only in the cover for ''Hybrid Theory''. He reverted to black hair by 2001.
* FiveManBand:
** TheLeader: Mike
** TheLancer: Brad
** TheSmartGuy: Joe
** TheBigGuy: Rob
** [[SixthRanger Fifth Ranger]]: Dave

* HeterosexualLifePartners: Mike Shinoda has called his bandmates as his "five best friends". Bassist Phoenix has referred to them as his "brothers". Special mention goes to Mike and co-lead singer Chester Bennington.

* Irony: The sample that stopped "She Couldn't" getting released or even being legally mentioned by the band until ''Hybrid Theory''[='=]s 20th Anniversary Edition goes "Won't be long till everybody knows" - which describes accurately the way fans shared it widely.

* KaleidoscopeHair: Mike Shinoda was known for dyeing his hair red, blue, or occasionally bright yellow during the early ''Hybrid Theory'' period.
* {{Keet}}: Despite being most famous for his unapologetically angsty lyrics, Chester Bennington was widely considered to be the funnyman of the group, prone to jumping on things, shouting at random intervals, and performing strange rituals with the stage crew.

* LargeHam: Chester all the time, whether onstage or on tape. However, Mike isn't that far behind him.

* LetsSeeYOUDoBetter:
** As a response to the typical criticism from fans over "Issho ni", Mike challenged everyone to remix the song as they saw fit (although he didn't provide the stems).
** The theme of "Step Up" and "When They Come For Me".

* LighterAndSofter:
** Image-wise, they came off as the least offensive of all the NuMetal bands at the time of their debut. They had made it a point to not swear on ''Hybrid Theory'' and ''Meteora'', maintained a professional work ethic with a reputation as {{Nice Guy}}s, and [[http://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/linkin-parks-compassionate-thrash-20010329 rarely indulged]] in typical rock-star hedonism (especially given Chester's DarkAndTroubledPast). That doesn't mean their music wasn't just as dark and heavy as the others.
** The music on ''One More Light'' is far poppier and lighter than their earlier work, but their lyrical themes remain just as heavy.

* LoonyFan[=/=]StalkerWithACrush: Chester and his wife Talinda had one of these for about a year, who managed to [[TheCracker hack their emails]] and steal / taunt them with personal information after Chester inadvertently published his personal email address. The hacker, Devon Townsend, happened to be employed by a subcontractor for the US Department of Energy's nuclear security and research program, with [[OhCrap access to nuclear materials]] – and spent most of her work days messing with the Benningtons' data from an unmonitored workstation. The breach exposed massive gaps in her employer's security standards, resulting in [[https://www.wired.com/2007/05/ff-linkinpark-2/amp a federal investigation]]. Townsend was eventually caught and jailed for two years.

* ManlyTears: On several occasions, when they attempted to play "Breaking the Habit" live, he broke down and cried. However, while the song's subject matter fits with Chester's past, the lyrics were penned by Mike without Chester's input.
** Happened again during a [[https://youtu.be/CgwL14IDDJY live performance]] of "One More Light" in May 2017, the morning of Music/ChrisCornell's suicide. Chester, who was close friends with Cornell, almost didn't finish the song. He eventually committed suicide himself on Cornell's birthday two months later, although no one has officially said the events were related.

* OncePerEpisode: Their first two albums each featured turntablist Joe Hahn on a solo track.

* PreppyName: Chester Charles Bennington, though he grew up poor.

* RagsToRiches: Chester was so poor before he joined the band, he and his first wife tattooed wedding rings on their fingers instead of buying them.

* RearrangeTheSong: Just over half the songs on Hybrid Theory were rewritten compared to its original demo. The Xero-era tracks "Rhinestone" (heard on Xero's demo tape) and "Esaul" (heard on LPU11) had substantially different lyrics to their final versions "Forgotten" and "A Place For My Head" respectively. The lyrics to "In The End" were almost completely rewritten compared to its demo "Untitled". Some of the lyrics in "Super Xero" (a leaked 1999 demo of "By Myself") were changed too. Entire sections were removed from "Points Of Authority" and "Crawling".

* RedOniBlueOni: Chester and Mike's vocal roles. Chester provided the aggression, passion and sensitivity while Mike provides reflectiveness and observations.
** Occasionally Mike provides the aggression, such as on "When They Come for Me."
** This was also true of Mike and Chester in real life - as can be seen in any of the band's [[DVDCommentary Making Of documentaries]], Mike is hard working and focused on the music, but friendly. On the other hand, Chester is always clowning around, cracking jokes and generally making the sessions entertaining.

* SadClown: Chester Bennington. As noted above, he was known to be the jokester of the group, but dealt with depression his whole life, not to mention the trauma of childhood sexual abuse, which led to alcoholism and drug dependency. [[DrivenToSuicide It all eventually got the better of him.]]
* {{Sampling}}: The band has sampled High and Mighty, Brand Nubian, Lamont Dozier, Music/{{UNKLE}} and the first ''Pokemon'' movie, mostly on ''Reanimation''. Conversely, they've been sampled by [[Music/BoneThugsNHarmony Krayzie Bone]] and [[Music/ThreeSixMafia Juicy J]].

* ScaryMusicianHarmlessMusic: An inversion. They looked like normal guys who occasionally experimented with their hairstyles (and heavily tattooed themselves in some cases), but played heavy music with themes rooted in alienation, depression, and emotional turmoil.

* SpikyHair: The band, particularly Chester, Mike and Joe, had their hair literally up during the early-mid 2000s.

* {{Surprisingly Gentle Song}}s:

* TokenWhite: Chester during the band's guesting on ''[[Series/TheLateLateShow Carpool Karaoke]]'' days before his death, being accompanied only by Mike (a Japanese-American) and Joe (a Korean-American), as well as that segment's host Ken Jeong (a South Korean).

On July 20, 2017, lead singer Chester Bennington [[DiedDuringProduction committed suicide]], shortly before the band was to start a North American tour promoting their then-latest album ''One More Light''. Following his death, the remaining members of Linkin Park did their first performance without Bennington at a tribute concert for him on October 27, with guest performances and guest vocals from members of Music/{{Yellowcard}}, Music/Blink182, Music/{{Korn}}, Music/AvengedSevenfold, Music/SystemOfADown, Music/{{Echosmith}}, Bush, Music/NoDoubt, Music/ADayToRemember, Music/BringMeTheHorizon and Music/Sum41, as well as Kiiara, Julia Michaels, Music/{{Zedd}}, Music/AlanisMorissette, Machine Gun Kelly, Steve Aoki, Music/BebeRexha... [[AudienceParticipationSong and, of course, the fans.]]

On July 20, 2017, lead singer Chester Bennington [[AuthorExistenceFailure committed suicide]], shortly before the band was to start a North American tour promoting their then-latest album ''One More Light''. Following his death, the remaining members of Linkin Park did their first performance without Bennington at a tribute concert for him on October 27, with guest performances and guest vocals from members of Music/{{Yellowcard}}, Music/Blink182, Music/{{Korn}}, Music/AvengedSevenfold, Music/SystemOfADown, Music/{{Echosmith}}, Bush, Music/NoDoubt, Music/ADayToRemember, Music/BringMeTheHorizon and Music/Sum41, as well as Kiiara, Julia Michaels, Music/{{Zedd}}, Music/AlanisMorissette, Machine Gun Kelly, Steve Aoki, Music/BebeRexha... [[AudienceParticipationSong and, of course, the fans.]]

By [[WordOfGod Mike Shinoda's own confession]], [[http://www.nme.com/news/music/linkin-park-after-chester-bennington-2230565 he has intentions on continuing with Linkin Park, though he also noted that it will take time.]] He has begun leaning into solo music in the meantime, with an EP-turned-album[[note]]Originally released as a 3-song EP in January 2018; those 3 songs then became the first 3 of an equivalently named album in June of that year[[/note]] named ''Post Traumatic'' and several instrumental hip hop albums under his belt thus far. According to him, he published ''Post Traumatic'', his first main solo project, under his own name because of the personal subject matter of the album, since it dealt with his grief and coping with the death of his bandmate and friend. After that, in April 2020, Dave Farrell confirmed that the band had reunited and were working on new music, bringing the hiatus to a close.

[[BrokenBase Their fanbase has been continuously split]] as a result of this, but it hasn't deterred the band any from continuing to [[NeoclassicalPunkZydecoRockabilly do what they want]] with their music, leading to reactions that are more predictable in their hysteria than whatever they choose to put out next.