Linkin Park singer Chester Bennington found dead in Los Angeles

by Mike Usinger on July 20th, 2017 at 11:47 AM

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Chester Bennington, best known as the singer for multi-platinum ’90s icons Linkin Park, has died.

The body of the 41-year-old frontman was found at 9 a.m. this morning at a private home in Los Angeles. Bennington, who has struggled with drugs and alcohol for years, hanged himself.

The singer first rose to prominence as a member of Linkin Park, which blended rap-rock, metal, and industrial in hits like “In the End”.

In the following years Linkin Park would collaborate with the likes of Jay Z, the band staying relevant while former contemporaries like Korn and Limp Bizkit faded from the charts.

Bennington also spent time fronting the Stone Temple Pilots from 2013 to 2016. He eventually quit the band to spend more time with his family.

Bennington leaves behind six children from two wives.

Linkin Park was on a successful headlining tour for its latest album One More Light. The band had been scheduled to play Rogers Arena in Vancouver as part of the tour on October 15.

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One More Light was savaged by critics as the sound of a band selling out for monetary gain. Bennington seemed to take those criticisms personally, telling Spin that those who didn't like the record should "stab [themselves] in the face" and "move the fuck on" from the band's past sound."

Among Bennington's close friends was Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell, who hanged himself in May after a show in Detroit. Today would have been Cornell's 53rd birthday.

In an open letter to Cornell, posted on Bennington's Twitter account the day of Cornell's death, the Linkin Park frontman wrote: "I can't imagine a world without you in it. I pray you find peace in the next life."

Today Bennington's peers are taking to Twitter to express their sadness and shock.