RIP Chester Bennington

Our thoughts are with Chester Bennington’s friends, family, and loved ones. Image by Chealse Vo

Music fans pay tribute to Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington, after the singer was found apparently hanged at his home

Linkin Park singer Chester Bennington has been found dead at his home in Los Angeles. The 41-year-old’s death is being investigated as a suicide, the coroner has reported. The news of the singer’s death broke on Thursday evening UK time, with the singer having, according to law enforcement officials, apparently hanged himself.

Bennington was close friends with the rock singer, songwriter and Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell, who took his own life two months ago. The official date given for the Linkin Park frontman’s death is 20 July, which would have been Cornell’s 53rd birthday.

A spokeswoman for the Palos Verdes Estates police confirmed that officers were called to a residential address just before 9am local time. In his final interview, the singer spoke about his battle with depression; it’s also an issue confronted in his lyrics, although it hasn’t yet been confirmed that depression was a contributing factor to the singer’s death.

Linkin Park formed in 1996, but it wasn’t until the release of the band’s debut album Hybrid Theory that the band found international fame. The album peaked at No 2 on the US Billboard 200, and was awarded Diamond status in the United States for sales of over 11 million copies. The band’s follow-up albums: Meteora (2003), Minutes To Midnight (2007), A Thousand Suns (2010), Living Things (2012), The Hunting Party (2014) and One More Light (2017), continued their success.

In 2005 Bennington formed the band Dead by Sunrise as a side project. The band released its one and only album Out Of Ashes in 2009. The singer went on to become frontman of The Stone Temple Pilots for two years between 2013–2015, stating that he grew up listening to the band and it was a “no-brainer” to join them. Bennington left the band due to his commitments with Linkin Park.

The singer was married to Samantha Olit from 1996 until 2005. Bennington then married Talinda Bentley in 2006. He has four children from those marriages. In 2006, he adopted the son of his then partner Elka Brand, with whom he has one other son.

Tributes have been pouring in from artists and fans all over the world. Linkin Park band member Mike Shinoda confirmed the news of Bennington’s death on Twitter, writing: “shocked and heartbroken, but it’s true. An official statement will come out as soon as we have one.” While other condolences came from the Recording Academy of America, Justin Timberlake, Stormzy and Muse.

Our thoughts are with Chester Bennington’s friends, family, and loved ones.

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