Last week, Linkin Park officially announced their return with a new vocalist, Emily Armstrong. The former Dead Sara singer joins classic members Mike Shinoda (co-vocalist, multi-instrumentalist), Joe Hahn (turntablist), Brad Delson (guitar), and Phoenix (bass), along with new drummer Colin Brittain (original drummer Rob Bourdon is not involved in the reunion). Together, they're releasing a new album called From Zero on November 15 and will be heading out on a worldwide tour later this month, playing the United States, Germany, England, South Korea, and Colombia.

Feedback from fans and peers in the music industry was primarily positive when the news broke; however, things soured over the weekend when Armstrong's ties to Scientology and convicted rapist Danny Masterson came to light. The singer addressed the backlash on her Instagram story. “I wanted to clear the air about something that happened a while back. Several years ago, I was asked to support someone I considered a friend at a court appearance, and went to one early hearing as an observer. Soon after, I realized I shouldn’t have,” she wrote. “I always try to see the good in people, and I misjudged him. I have never spoken with him since. Unimaginable details emerged and he was later found guilty. To say it as clearly as possible: I do not condone abuse or violence against women, and I empathize with the victims of these crimes.”

Now Jaime Bennington, the son of late Linkin Park vocalist Chester Bennington, has broken his silence about the band teaming up with Armstrong, and he is not happy about it. Jaime shared his thoughts in a series of Instagram stories. He started with a screenshot from Mike Shinoda about how he understands it will take time for some fans to "wrap their heads around" the new lineup, and then slammed him in the next slide, writing: “People aren’t having a difficult time wrapping their head around the prospect of Linkin Park reinventing itself. They are having a hard time wrapping their head around how you: Hired your friend of many years @emilyarmstrong to replace @chesterbe knowing Emily’s history in the church and her history as an ally to @dannymasterson.”

He went on to accuse the Linkin Park founder for “Quietly eras[ing] my father’s life and legacy in real time […] during international suicide prevention month” and “refus[ing] to acknowledge the impact of hiring someone like Emily, without so much as a clarifying statement on the variety of victims that make up your core fan base.”

“It's not a shock that people are just going to have to take time [to] process and understand," Jaime continued in another slide. “You have betrayed the trust loaned to you by decades of fans and supporting human beings including myself. We trusted you to be the bigger better person. To be the change. Because you promised us that was your intention. Now you’re just senile and tone deaf,”

After pointing out more things that made him feel uneasy with Shinoda's decisions after his father took his own life in 2017, Jaime ended his statement with the words "I DO NOT SUPPORT."

See all of Jaime's stories below.

The Cold War Kids

Gothic Theatre

February 9 and 10, 2024