Saturday, October 28, 2017

Linkin Park 2017-10-28 Mashable, 'F*ck depression': Linkin Park tribute concert celebrates Chester Bennington's life

http://mashable.com/2017/10/28/linkin-park-and-friends-chester-bennington-concert-hollywood-bowl/?utm_cid=hp-h-2#YObU_kdDFmqM

'F*ck depression': Linkin Park tribute concert celebrates Chester Bennington's life


Musicians from Linkin Park; Dave Farrell, Joe Hahn, Brad Delsen, Rob Bourdon and Mike Shinoda perform during the "Linkin Park And Friends Celebrate Life In Honor Of Chester Bennington" event at the Hollywood Bowl on October 27, 2017 in Hollywood, California.


Musicians from Linkin Park; Dave Farrell, Joe Hahn, Brad Delsen, Rob Bourdon and Mike Shinoda perform during the "Linkin Park And Friends Celebrate Life In Honor Of Chester Bennington" event at the Hollywood Bowl on October 27, 2017 in Hollywood, California.



"I don't have the words and I don't think any of us do," Linkin Park's pianist and vocalist Mike Shinoda told the sold out crowd at the Hollywood Bowl on Friday night.

He didn't need them. The band, joined by a laundry list of famous friends, orchestrated a truly beautiful and cathartic tribute concert that was much more powerful than words. They celebrated the life of the band's singer, Chester Bennington, who died by suicide in July.

Helping fill the stage were members of popular bands who had their heyday around the turn of the century like Blink182, Sum 41, Yellowcard, Bush, System of a Down, Avenged Sevenfold, No Doubt, and many, many more. Limited by no specific genre or style, it felt like the entire industry came together to support the band and honor the life of their friend. The musicians helped sing some of Bennington's parts or filled in on guitar in Linkin Park's songs, while others performed their own tributes.

Fans' countless crying faces were projected onto screens surrounding the stage, but the event didn't feel like a funeral — this was a celebration. Linkin Park's songs are dark and emotionally driven, adding a deep layer of intimacy between the band and its fans. It was hard not to choke up hearing the crowd sing powerful lyrics like "In the end, it doesn't even matter," and "Who cares if one more light goes out in the sky of a million stars?"

Every song, in some way, felt related to Bennington's tragic death and that much more meaningful.

HOLLYWOOD, CA - OCTOBER 27: Musicians from Linkin Park; Mike Shinoda and Joe Hahn perform with Steve Aoki during the "Linkin Park And Friends Celebrate Life In Honor Of Chester Bennington" concert at the Hollywood Bowl.

Image: Christopher Polk/Getty Images

Shinoda had once shared the role of band frontman with Bennington — on this night the responsibility was his alone. He proved he was up to the task, acting with professionalism and genuine love for both the music and Linkin Park's fans. A band performing without a lead singer may sound impossible — Shinoda called the concert one of the "hardest things I think we've ever decided to do." In honor of Bennington, though, Linkin Park made it work.

After a few songs to kick things off, the stage went dark and a single microphone stand covered in greenery was illuminated at the center of the stage. No one sang into the mic as the band performed "Numb," one of Linkin Park's most popular songs off the band's 2003 album Meteora.

After a few bars, the crowd came to the realization that nobody was going to step out from the back of the stage to sing this one for Bennington. It was on the fans to fill the void. The audience became a little closer with that knowledge, tension eased. Those who knew the words sang a little bit louder. The emotional moment appears in the video below, complete with chants of "Chester! Chester! Chester!" to close out the song.



While the music alone spoke volumes, musicians also used the stage to advocate for mental health awareness, which received praise and cheers from the crowd of over 18,000.

"There's been a lot of vilification of people with depression, and addiction, and being troubled, and being in the public eye, and being made fun of for the challenges that we as a huge community of people with notoriety have gone through. And it's an extremely, isolating, challenging journey to go through," Alanis Morissette said to the crowd as she introduced the song "Rest" off her upcoming album. "And so, for me, I just want to offer empathy to all people in the public eye. To all of you here tonight, to everyone around the planet who's grieving."

The crowd roared for Morissette, who's probably one of the last people you'd expect to perform at a Linkin Park concert. There was no ego that night. Nobody scoffed at the mix of genres or musical backgrounds the diverse lineup presented. The crowd may have been filled with rockers, but none of that seemed to matter.

Later in the evening, Bennington's microphone made another appearance as Talinda Ann Bentley, Chester's wife, took the stage to thank the Linkin Park family, the performers, and crowd. She introduced a new mental health resource, called 320 in collaboration with Change Direction, in honor of her husband.


Talinda Ann Bentley speaks during the Linkin Park and Friends Celebrate Life in Honor of Chester Bennington at the Hollywood Bowl, in Los Angeles, California.


Talinda Ann Bentley speaks during the Linkin Park and Friends Celebrate Life in Honor of Chester Bennington at the Hollywood Bowl, in Los Angeles, California.

Image: Invision/AP/REX/Shutterstock


"It is time to recognize that mental health is as important as our physical health," Bentley said to the crowd. "It is my mission to make it easier to have access to mental health resources ... Together we will build a recourse, not only for those suffering emotionally, but also for friends, and family members, and medical practitioners, who are seeking answers to questions about mental health, illness, and addiction, so they can best support people in their lives."

Bentley announced there were mental health professionals from Change Direction available at the show for anyone seeking help.

"Fuck depression, let's make Chester proud," Bentley said before exiting the stage.

While the show could have been somber, it was packed with energetic and uplifting performances, including one from Bennington himself. Using footage and audio from a performance from Linkin Park at the Hollywood Bowl in September 2014, the band played "New Divide" with Bennington at the helm. If I closed my eyes, it felt like Bennington was on stage, singing along with the crowd packed with devoted fans. The song, for a brief moment, brought Bennington back to life to perform one last time.

As the masses exited the venue they were greeted with a memorial wall, where they wrote tributes and messages to Bennington. The vibe was positive and people were in good spirits despite being stuck in an endless line of people slowly trying to exit the massive venue.


Fans write messages on memorial wall for Chester Bennington of Linkin Park, located outside the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California.


Fans write messages on memorial wall for Chester Bennington of Linkin Park, located outside the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California.

Image: Mashable/Brian Koerber


"I thought it was wonderful. I thought it was beautiful," longtime fan Angela Schippers, 35, of Moreno Valley, California, said about the concert after signing the wall.

"I just thanked Chester for all the beautiful music that inspired everyone," she said.


Longtime Linkin Park fan Angela Schippers signs a memorial for Chester Bennington.


Longtime Linkin Park fan Angela Schippers signs a memorial for Chester Bennington.
 
Image: Mashable/Brian Koerber


"It was so good, so fun. I go to a lot of concerts [and this was] one of the best concerts I've ever been to. And the thing is, I don't know all their music," Jason Wisch, a Los Angeles native, admitted. "It was poetic."

Before ending the show, Shinoda touched on a topic that was on every fan's mind: What will happen to the beloved band now that its lead singer is gone?

"You guys, we don't know where we're going from here, we certainly appreciate your support as we get there ... most importantly, keep Chester in your hearts and make Chester proud," he said.

This was so much more than a concert, or a memorial for a dear friend — it was proof that music can heal and bring people together for good. There's no doubt: Bennington would have been proud of what he saw on stage on Friday. Proud of his friends, proud of his bandmates, proud of his family, and most importantly, proud of his fans.

Linkin Park 2017-10-28 Forbes, Linkin Park Make Chester Bennington Proud With Heartfelt And Powerful Tribute

https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevebaltin/2017/10/28/linkin-park-make-chester-bennington-proud-with-heartfelt-and-powerful-tribute/#66f5fa145ed8


Linkin Park Make Chester Bennington Proud With Heartfelt And Powerful Tribute



I write about music and the business of music

Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.

HOLLYWOOD, CA - OCTOBER 27: Musicians from Linkin Park; Brad Delson, Mike Shinoda, Joe Hahn and Dave Farrell perform during the 'Linkin Park And Friends Celebrate Life In Honor Of Chester Bennington' event at the Hollywood Bowl on October 27, 2017 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Christopher Polk/Getty Images)

Early in the three-hour tribute Linkin Park paid to late lead singer Chester Bennington, Friday night, October 27 at the Hollywood Bowl, the band showed a video clip that made the rounds recently. Part of the group’s effort to showcase the lighter, fun side of Bennington, the clip saw him singing a song called “Lollipops And Unicorns,” an absurd, if catchy little ditty.

After the clip LP producer/emcee Mike Shinoda quipped, “Did you really just sing along to a You Tube clip? If that’s the case you don’t even need us here tonight.” Yes, they did sing along to the clip, as they did to everything during the epic show. And the 18,000 fans needed the band there as much the band needed the fans there.

Back in 2004, I received a call from a publicist explaining that Linkin Park were on the road in support of their second album, Meteora, and they had been traveling with a great rock photographer Greg Watermann. It was near the end of the tour that they realized they might have a coffee table book, but they needed someone to write the copy to go with the photos. Would I be interested?

Other than the fact the band’s debut, Hybrid Theory, had been a monster success I really did not know much about them. But they were, at the time, the biggest-selling rock band in the world and to be asked was a tremendous honor. So I said I was interested, I got the gig to my surprise, and two days later I was on a plane to somewhere in Florida to meet them for the end of the tour.

Because they wanted to tell the true story of the band and in particular Meteora, the album that followed Hybrid Theory, I was given unparalleled access, including even sleeping on their tour bus.

One of the things I was also given was a bag of fan art and letters. This was intended to show me the relationship between the band, who did meet and greets after every show, and their diehard fans. Thirteen years later, Shinoda mentioned that connection numerous times at the Hollywood Bowl, saying that in the trying times since Bennington’s shocking suicide this past July the fans had lifted them up time and again.

That connection is deep and profound. Reading through the art and letters at the time I saw fans who said time and again LP had saved their lives or helped them through dark times. After the massive commercial breakthrough of Hybrid Theory, a rap/rock record, I had numerous music industry friends ask me if I really liked Linkin Park. The answer was yes and I cited the relationship they had with their fans as proof the band was much more than the novelty of rap/rock detractors wanted to label them.

So this Hollywood Bowl tribute to Chester Bennington was necessary for both fans and band. The fans needed the chance to celebrate a musical hero and the band needed to see if they could get back on stage as a five-piece and to say goodbye through music.

The night promised to be intense and emotional, which it was. At one point Shinoda called it a roller coaster of emotions and added no one was sure what would come next. It proved true throughout the incredibly powerful 31-song set.

When a mike was placed under the spotlight during the front of “Numb” at the beginning of the show and the 18,000 strong sang the entire song it was spine-tingling, moving and heartbreaking, words that came up again and again.

I considered Bennington a friend and as such I was dreading this show for the emotional toll. I spoke to another friend after the show who had also worked with LP and she used the words, “Angry, sad and joyous.” We both concurred that during the epic singalong of “In The End,” which Shinoda introduced by saying, “You are our favorite guests,” to the crowd, it was impossible to get through singing the song without sobbing.

In spite of the tremendous heaviness of the occasion, Linkin Park accomplished wondrous things in making this an often joyous celebration. The presence of artists like Blink-182, Alanis Morissette, Bush’s Gavin Rossdale, Machine Gun Kelly, Steve Aoki, Avenged Sevenfold, members of System Of A Down and more, as well as video tributes from Paul McCartney and Metallica, among others, added an incredible amount of star power and lifted the crowd every time.

But Shinoda was not wrong in calling the crowd their favorite guests. This show was about the bond between Linkin Park and their fans, all of whom were mourning the loss of someone they considered a family member, whether they knew him or not.

After Bennington’s death I read countless comments from people who said they’d never felt this way over the death of a celebrity. I read those comments in part to help me understand my grief. I knew Bennington, when we saw each other we were friends, we would talk, catch up, point out how good it was to see each other. But he wasn’t an everyday presence in my life so I wasn’t sure why the pain was so strong.

I’m still not, but I do know this show was something I needed as both a fan and a friend. And it was something that was necessary for the LP community. At the end of the night Bennington’s widow Talinda came out and spoke about how happy Chester would have been to see everybody brought together like this and lifting each other up.

She referenced, as Shinoda did numerous times as well, the hashtag that had emerged, “Make Chester Proud.” And that this night would have done so. Both Linkin Park and their fans have every right to be proud of what they did tonight. It wasn’t about a night of great music, though there were countless highlights and memorable moments, especially a devastating new song, “Looking For An Answer,” Shinoda played.

They billed this night as a celebration of Bennington’s life. But it was clearly as much about figuring out how to go on in the face of tragedy and coming to grips with the fact there will never be answers. Tonight, more than 18,000 people who loved Chester Bennington gathered to celebrate his life and legacy. It wasn’t a perfect night. One song the band flubbed the beginning and Shinoda said, “F**k that, we’re starting over. Chester wouldn’t take that s**t.” But it was a night of beauty, of power, of love, of incredible sorrow and of joy. So yeah, Linkin Park definitely made both Chester and their fans proud.

Thursday, October 12, 2017

Linkin Park & Ken Jeong - Carpool Karaoke

A special Apple Music Carpool Karaoke video.
Today: Linkin Park time.
Funny stuff like always in the Carpool Karaoke videos.

Linkin Park - Carpool Karaoke ft. Ken Jeong FULL HD
Published on Oct 12, 2017
With the blessing of Chester's family and his bandmates, we share this episode, and dedicate it to the memory of Chester.

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

Miley Cyrus & James Corden - Carpool Karaoke

New Carpool Karaoke video by James Corden.
Today: Miley Cyrus time.
Funny stuff like always in the Carpool Karaoke videos.

Miley Cyrus Carpool Karaoke
Published on Oct 10, 2017
James and Miley Cyrus drive to work while singing her biggest hits, playing High or Not High, and trying to make themselves cry.