It's been a hard three months for not only the Linkin Park fanbase, but for the world of music, as well. It still isn't easy to grasp that Chester is gone, but as a community we've all united and become a stronger fanbase - and, more importantly, family - than ever before. On October 27, we will again unite as a family, this time in person, and all enjoy one of the things we all love so dearly: Linkin Park live. Linkin Park is playing their first show since Chester's death on October 27, 2017 at the esteemed Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California. Joining the band will be a whole load of guests: including members of Avenged Sevenfold, System Of A Down, No Doubt, and more - but we'll get into depth with that later. Linkin Park & Friends will be lighting up the night with a special show honoring Chester. Linkin Park has played Los Angeles countless times in the past - it's their hometown, after all. This will be their second time performing at the Hollywood Bowl, however. They performed there for the first time back in 2014 on the Carnivores Tour with Thirty Seconds To Mars - that show was streamed live on VyRT, and featured loads of surprises, like Daron Malakian performing on 'Rebellion' and Austin Carlile formerly of Of Mice & Men joining them for 'Faint.' The band would have ended this year's One More Light North American Tour at the Hollywood Bowl on October 22 (5 days before this event), as well, though it seems all paths ended up there.
Watch the full show from the Hollywood Bowl back in 2014.
Before we get into the details about this show, let's talk about watching it. Tickets sold out in minutes with a majority going to the LP Underground, and not every fan in the world could make it out to Los Angeles. The band will be livestreaming the event via YouTube, so no matter where in the world you are, you'll be able to watch the show right from home and we can all feel the emotions together, whether we're there or not. Click the spoiler tag below for more stream info, including time zone conversions and a countdown.
Link: http://lprk.co/YouTube Time Zone Conversions (Comment below if you need me to add your city/country) Countdown
For those who will be attending - come meet us! There will be a massive meet up outside the Hollywood Bowl at 4:00PM PST. If you want to come meet us all, RSVP for our Facebook event (or just show up - either works!). You can meet loads of staff members including myself, Hahninator, SasstielExperience, Jonas, Dmitry, and more! It's the family reunion we never had! Let's get into the details here. It's going to be an emotional night for sure, but it's also going to be a very unique one. Opening the night is an old friend of band, DJ Z-Trip, with whom Chester recorded the hit 'Walking Dead.' He promised a very special set for the event, so make sure you catch it! Linkin Park will be performing with loads of guests, both friends of Chester's, contemporaries, friends of Mike's, and so forth. First up is M. Shadows and Synyster Gates from Avenged Sevenfold. We have no clue what they'll be playing - in an interview, they claimed they were going to originally be playing a song that went to Jonathan Davis of Korn when he joined the lineup. It's possible they were talking about 'One Step Closer' as that's the song Davis performed with Linkin Park in the past. As for the A7X duo, it's very likely they play one of the band's heavier songs - 'A Place For My Head' or 'Guilty All The Same' are up there in contention. Also joining is 3/4 of System Of A Down: Daron Malakian, Shavo Odadjian, and John Dolmayan. Daron, of course has joined the band to play 'Rebellion' both in the studio and live, so that song's in obvious contention, but with the other members of SOAD, we can't say for certain. Blink-182 will be joining the band for a few songs, as well! Matt Skiba watching a video tutorial to learn 'What I've Done' on his Instagram, so it seems like they'll definitely be playing that one! The members of the band have joined Linkin Park before, Travis Barker playing drums on 'Bleed It Out' at the Concert For The Philippines in 2014 and 'A Light That Never Comes' with Mike, Chester and Steve Aoki at the Shrine Expo Hall in 2013; and Mark Hoppus playing bass on 'Numb' at the band's Relief Live! concert in 2015. Both bands were to play the special Blinkin Park shows this summer in Pennsylvania and New York, so it'll be good to see them share the stage for real. Adrian Young and Tom Dumont of No Doubt will also be joining the band. Young also played at the Relief Live! show in 2015, playing on 'Numb.' Yellowcard's Ryan Key will join the band as well. In 2014, Ryan Key joined the band for 'What I've Done' at their surprise performance at the Vans Warped Tour. While it's possible he joins on 'What I've Done' with Blink, it'd be great to see him perform 'Shadow Of The Day,' which he did an incredible cover of the day of Chester's passing.
Watch Mark Hoppus and Adrian Young perform 'Numb' with Linkin Park back in 2015 at Relief Live!
Linkin Park have several more familiar faces joining them, as well. Kiiara will be playing with them, and she'll obviously be singing 'Heavy' amongst others. She could join for any other song, too - don't forget she did a duet of 'Burn It Down' with Chester at the Facebook Live Event at the beginning of the year, too! Jon Green from The Bonfires is also on the lineup. He joined the band both live and in the studio for 'Nobody Can Save Me,' though whether or not the band will play that song is to be seen. That's a lot of emotion. Machine Gun Kelly is also on the lineup, and he's a very familiar face. He first joined the band on 'Bleed It Out' back in 2014 on the Vans Warped Tour show and rapped his song 'What I Do' over the extended bridge. He did the same this year on the band's One More Light European Tour at a few stops, and was scheduled to open for the band this entire summer on the North American Tour. He recently released an studio cover of 'Numb' which he dedicated to Chester. Then there are some curveballs. DJ and electronic musician Zedd will be performing drums on a song - and that could literally by any song. Nonetheless, that's a huge name to have on the lineup! Bring Me The Horizon's Oliver Sykes will be playing with the band as well. He's expressed time and time again that Linkin Park is one of his all-time favorite bands and inspired his music (his first concert was Linkin Park in 2001!). Footage exists of him singing 'Papercut' at an after party event, though we could also see him on 'Faint' as well. Pop rock band Echosmith will also be playing - they could also be on any of the band's poppier numbers, like 'Burn It Down.' That's everyone confirmed so far, but there could very likely be some surprises that have been kept under locks up until the day of the show. Do you think we'll see anyone else show up?
EDIT: Taka of One Ok Rock have confirmed his presence in the event. His band had been playing a cover of 'One More Light' during their recent US tour. Frank Zummo of Sum 41 was also seen rehearsing with Linkin Park and members of System Of A Down. He has been performing drum covers of 'Faint' and 'One Step Closer' at recent Sum 41 concerts. Besides that, Ryan Shuck of Julien-K was spotted at Thrid Encore, Linkin Park's rehearsal space. It was brought to our attention he had been listening to 'One Step Closer' on Spotify quite a lot in the last few days. Can we expect him to join the band at the show?
Watch Kiiara and Linkin Park debut 'Heavy' for the first time earlier this year on The Late Late Show With James Corden.
Setlist-wise, that's about all we can predict. There's no telling what the band can do with just a five-piece. There are for sure some songs we probably won't be hearing ever again, like 'Given Up.' But Mike Shinoda is a creative genius. The mashup-master can (and will) find a way to incorporate any of the band's songs into the setlist. Plus, there are loads of tracks he is in charge of - 'Invisible,' 'In Between,' and 'No Roads Left' are just a few of them. There's also a bunch of Fort Minor material he can pick and choose from, like 'Welcome' and 'Remember The Name.' And wouldn't we all love to see 'Sorry For Now' performed live! In the band's near-two decades of performing, this is undoubtedly one of the, if not the most important show they have played yet. It's many different things: proof that they aren't quitting any time soon, proof that they have the ability to continue, and, more importantly, a celebration of the incredible life of Chester Bennington. He'll be in our hearts and minds all night and for every day to come. Chester will always be with us, in our hearts, walking beside us as we climb the mountains his voice helped us overcome in the dark times before. A soul only dies when they are forgotten, and Chester's life burns powerfully in all of our hearts. We can't wait to watch this show with you whether you'll be in Los Angeles to see it or watching from home. It'll be a night of laughs, love, and tears. And that's what a Linkin Park show has always been. For updates on the show and for everything Linkin Park in the future, be sure to follow our social media: we're on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Linkin Park currently has no other touring plans, but they will return to the road once again some day. When that day comes, we'll all be here ready to have a great time and see our favorite band kill it on that stage (and to constantly nag for 'A Place For My Head,' just like the good ol' days). If you're still struggling with losing Chester or want to help Linkin Park fans who are hurting, join the LPLive Help Line Discord chat. Even if you just want to chat about the band - feel free to sign up! This isn't a goodbye. It's just the end of the chapter. Thank you, Linkin Park, for everything you've done. Thank you for the perseverance and the courage you've given us. Now it's our turn to help you. And thank you, Chester, for everything you've done. We know you're happy wherever you may be now. And we hope you're watching us, too. As we end this chapter, let's keep an open mind and most importantly, an open heart as we enter a new one. See you all on October 27.
I think the real thing we should be taking out of this is that Jon Green is a legend. Get this man as a touring member or even an official member. He could be like Morgan is to Muse.