Getty Images Emily Armstrong was announced as the new co-lead singer of Linkin Park last week

Last week, the rock band Linkin Park announced their return, seven years after frontman Chester Bennington died by suicide.

They were one of the most successful acts of the 2000s, with hits like Numb and In The End, that fused aggressive metal riffs to hip-hop beats.

For their return, they were joined by two new members – drummer Colin Brittain and singer Emily Armstrong, who had shared lead vocals with existing bandmate Mike Shinoda.

But no sooner had the announcement been made than a a torrent of criticism emerged over Armstrong’s alleged ties to the Church of Scientology and her past support of convicted rapist Danny Masterson.

She later issued a statement distancing herself from Masterton, stressing that she did not condone any “abuse or violence against women”.

Here’s how the story unfolded.

 

Who is Emily Armstrong?

Getty Images The singer has been part of the LA rock scene for more than 20 years

Born in 1986, LA native Emily Armstrong is best known as the lead singer of hard rock band Dead Sara.

She first got into music at the age of 12 after being given a guitar as a birthday present. She later dropped out of school to pursue music, with the support of her parents.

Armstrong quickly formed Dead Sara with her childhood friend Siouxsie Medley, making their debut in 2002.

Inspired by bands like L7 and Hole, they broke out with the scorching 2011 single Weatherman.

Armstrong’s fiery onstage persona and raspy voice earned her a lot of famous fans: Courtney Love asked her to sing on Hole’s 2010 album Nobody’s Daughter, and Dave Grohl once said, “Dead Sara should be the next biggest rock band in the world.”

That never quite happened. The band signed to Epic Records after the success of Weatherman, but the relationship was short-lived and they had to crowd-fund the release of their next album.

But they persevered – releasing their most recent album, Ain’t It Tragic, in 2021, and touring with Demi Lovato the following year, after working on her rock album Holy Fvck.

 

Why did Linkin Park add a new singer?

Getty Images Chester Bennington’s impassioned lyrics and throat-shredding vocals were key to Linkin Park’s success

After the death of Chester Bennington, Linkin Park went on hiatus – only performing publicly at a tribute concert for their former singer in 2017.

In the years that followed, the band were uncertain about their future.

“The relationship in the band is still intact between all the guys and we’re still in communication, but everybody is always in different kind of spaces,” bassist Dave “Phoenix” Farrell told a US radio station last year.

“And the amount of earth that needs to be moved to begin the construction project of Linkin Park… is a ton, and it’s not going anywhere fast.”

Along the way, Shinoda began wondering how the band would handle Bennington’s old parts.

“Am I going to be carrying a bunch of vocals?” he told Apple Music. “Are we going to have another vocalist? Are we going to have multiple vocalists onstage?”

They tried out several new singers to see who had the right chemistry. Armstrong was first invited to a three-day try-out in 2019; but it wasn’t until “this time last year” that she began recording with the band in earnest.

“When I started to hear Emily’s voice on things, my brain, it was like the first time that my brain would accept it as a Linkin Park song,” Shinoda said.

According to the band’s DJ, Joe Hahn, the first time he heard Armstrong scream, “for me, that did it.”

 

How did people respond to the new line-up?

James Minchin III The band announced their comeback last week

Linkin Park unveiled their new look on Thursday, 5 September, alongside a new single – The Emptiness Machine – and plans for a world tour.

Initial reactions were positive.

“Armstrong certainly has big shoes to fill,” wrote the New York Times’ pop critic Jon Pareles. “But, as she proves on this bombastic new track, Armstrong shares Bennington’s facility in pivoting between melodic belting and throat-shredding screams.”

Even the hardcore fans on Linkin Park’s Reddit page largely seemed pleased.