Justin

Yeah I'm not saying she's lying or that she's wrong for speaking out. I'm questioning what path the band has forward in order to even navigate all of this. I'm not sure that issuing a statement, even a scathing one claiming that she has left Scientology and regrets ever being affiliated, would do anything but throw gasoline on the fire and make it even worse. We've reached the point where anything they do is now going to be received as "too little, too late".

Do you think she, or the people who have latched on to this, would accept any type of statement or action from Emily and the band right now? I feel like no matter what, they'd just say "This is more damage control and manipulation from the cult. I don't believe that it's sincere."

Mike said that they didn't talk about that conversation in public before because they weren't sure how it was going to work out. Piecing it together from other things the band has said about the last 5-6 years, it seems like Rob was not as into meeting up to hang out/work on music as the other guys. There may have been a conversation where Rob said he didn't want to attend the sessions they were occasionally having, before there were any serious thoughts of an LP reunion. That would've led to the need for a real, definitive answer once it became clear that the songs being written were LP songs, and that an LP album/tour was on the horizon. That's where I think Rob's departure would've been finalized and made official.

Really sad to see Rob leave, but I'm glad we at least have closure. Rob's status was legitimately a question mark for years among the fanbase that would come up every time LP would reconvene for a release starting with HT20. This all reminds me a lot of John Deacon's story. He was Queen's bass player. When Freddie Mercury died, he only performed with the band at Freddie's tribute concert and a charity concert before leaving the music industry entirely. When Queen decided to continue with a new vocalist, Deacon declined. He just didn't want to do it anymore without Freddie. The difference is that I hope Rob is present when LP goes into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

If we get anything from Rob, it'd probably be a written letter sent out to the band's mailing list. I don't think he's ever used social media. He has an Instagram profile with 0 posts lol. It always felt like the label insisted that he has to have social media, but his compromise was making the pages and then never using them.

Mike has also directly criticized Scientology in the past and called them "really dark" for trying to indoctrinate children at a young age who are just learning how to read. So it really wouldn't make sense to say that, and then say it's important to be a good person to join the band, and then bring in a proud Scientologist. Something doesn't add up, and I'm aware that it's probably my own bias that's allowing me to give them all the benefit of the doubt. So hopefully there will be some kind of clarification made? There's no way Emily won't be asked about her status at this point, especially with mainstream music media currently making it a huge deal and the fact that they'll be doing a lot of promo work between now and November leading up to the album's release date. So I suppose it's a matter of time before she's asked directly and we'll see her response at that point. I'm not expecting her to denounce them, but it'll be telling to see how she does react. If she reacts like Elisabeth Moss does, by saying Scientology is full of love and understanding and is a really great thing, then we'll be having a different conversation.

You mention that there is a branch of the church specifically designed to target dissidents, and then you say "it is a difficult and dangerous process to get out", but you can't get on board with it if she doesn't address her status with Scientology? Seems to me that part of the reason she may not address it is specifically to avoid being targeted and having this organization's vast resources dedicated to harming her. Also, I wouldn't mind ever having to see Danny Masterson's name ever again. Everyone knew who she meant. She unequivocally denounced him, but now it's not enough because she didn't actually say his name? Is there another rapist she was accused of supporting and being an apologist for? I thought part of the consequences for pieces of shit like him would be that his name fades from memory as he fades into obscurity as a disgrace rotting in prison.

Setting aside the Scientology and Masterson (I hate how much I've had to think about that piece of shit over the last couple of days) controversies, the people who get to me the most are the ones who are like "How could you replace Chester? How could you cast him aside like nothing?" Jaime doesn't help that, either, saying things like "My father has been erased by his colleagues of 17+ years". So basically there are a lot of people who had stopped listening to LP in 2003, who got back into the band's first 2 albums after Chester died, who are now acting like they have some say in how the band proceeds from this point. Like go back to wherever you were for the 14 years between Meteora and Chester's death. The band does not need that type of disingenuous, bad faith negativity.

It'd be nice, but also Rob has always been the most private and withdrawn person outside of official band duties. So it's not like I feel offended or anything by his lack of communication.

Brad's stage presence will be missed, but since he's still very much in the band in every other way besides touring, I have to believe this decision was made out of concern for his physical well-being. Touring is a hard lifestyle, and with Brad being 46 now after 7 years off the road, I can understand his decision.

I'm not a mod so definitely don't take my word as anything official, but I wouldn't think there'd be a problem with sharing the audio from the stream since it is freely available on YouTube and not anything that needs to be paid for.

Wow she literally said almost verbatim what I said I’d hoped she say in the shoutbox lol. With that said, most will move on but the vocal crowd online will almost definitely not lol. I am glad she addressed it, at least.

I think of this way: Obviously since 2017 we’d all prepared for the possibility of a new vocalist should LP ever return. So Emily’s presence was exciting and I think opens up so many possibilities for what the music in this new era can sound like. With Rob, Mike was right when he said that fans had noticed Rob’s absence for the last few years. So many of us had also accepted that it’s possible Rob wouldn’t be there. It’s sad that we won’t see him and he’s out of the band, but I’m also happy that he made what he felt was the best decision for him and I hope he finds happiness and success in anything he does from here on. With Brad, I get the feeling that his choice to not tour is one made out of concern for his physical well-being. He is still very much a member of the band. He still is one of the principal songwriters in the band as well as a co-producer. He is performing on new studio material, and he’s part of the promotion for this new era. He is present in every aspect of the band except touring, and that’s alright. His talent and his creative influence is as present as ever in Linkin Park. So while it will absolutely take some getting used to, and I’ll miss seeing Brad and his iconic headphones on stage, I am absolutely going to see this new iteration of the band performing live as soon as I can, and I’m taking solace in the reality of the situation which is that 4 of the original 6 members of the band are still in the band, and Linkin Park is an active band again in 2024.

I think we need to face the likely possibility that it’ll just never be addressed by her or the band or the label and, eventually, we will all need to decide whether or not we’re ok with it being an unspoken and unseen thing. It’ll be up to the individual fans. Eventually, the people who are not ok with it will stop keeping up with the band and will no longer be a voice in the community, and a point will come where nobody really cares anymore. Coizu summed up perfectly why it’s not likely she’ll come out as a proud Scientologist OR as a former Scientologist condemning the organization. I can see her denouncing Masterson, and I can also see her supporting LP’s views towards mental healthcare. It’ll probably get to a point where we’ll have to read between the lines on whether or not her words and actions in 2024 align with those of an active Scientologist.

I didn’t get that impression. I got more of a John Deacon from Queen vibe. The band started becoming more active and writing more, and Rob was just not into it. Chester’s passing was traumatic, and years had passed at that point of them all doing their own thing. Seems like Rob chose to start a new chapter in his life outside of Linkin Park, and that’s his prerogative.

Amazing post! I’m excited and ready to see what tomorrow brings!

It could be a good way to spend a 3/20.

Notice they did prohibit professional grade cameras, though. Those type of cameras are reserved for the crew they’ll probably have to document it all for LPTV.

I'm fucking ready too lol At this point, anyone who says that it's wrong or disrespectful for LP to move forward with a new lead vocalist will never come around anyway. If they can't understand that it's not replacing Chester, but rather about honoring him by continuing on, there's nothing that can make them realize that at this point. It's been over 7 years now. There's no reason that the 5 other members of the band shouldn't be able to play together again as Linkin Park in front of the huge crowds that they've earned throughout their career. The reality of that means that there must be a new vocalist, since someone needs to sing Chester's parts. Chester's time with the band will never be forgotten, ever, but I'm also excited to see what a new vocalist could bring to the table creatively in future music! I'm just really excited to see what this new era brings.

This is exactly what happened with Game of Thrones. They saw people predicting exactly how the series would go, so they decided they wanted to "subvert expectations" by doing something that nobody would've ever predicted. That sounds good on paper, but in reality it just meant taking the plot in nonsensical directions and having characters make dumb decisions.

Was it you that also said this on Reddit? Why would it matter if she's big in Europe or not? She's not that big in America, either. If she is joining the band, that might have been the idea. You asked this as if it's known that a prerequisite for joining LP is that you must be well known in Europe lol

Not sure if it's Geki, but I don't believe their implications that they know something more than the rest of us. If they really did have inside info, they wouldn't be on Reddit saying things like "I have sources but I don't want to spoil anything" lol. Anybody privileged enough to be in a circle like that, with real info, would be trusted enough to not be throwing it around on the LP subreddit.

I remember these conversations years ago lol, time flies. I'm speculating wildly, which I know we shouldn't do, but I personally can see a scenario where there is both new material and a tour. I think Rob and Joe will be involved in the studio but may elect to not actually go out on tour. So live performances may be Mike, Brad, Dave, new vocalist, and touring drummer. DJ could be a touring DJ or they'd just use playback for Joe's parts. So long as we're still talking about multiple original members performing on any new songs, I still don't think that creating new music under the LP name is ruining or disrespecting the legacy that the band built with Chester. I understand the logic, I just personally don't agree with it.

Let’s not give that person the satisfaction of actually going there. It’s not worth it.

This comment was the best thing I've read in a while. Good to see your name in an LPL thread again!