Chester Bennington, the lead vocalist of rock band Linkin Park, has died in an apparent suicide. Law enforcement sources told TMZ that Bennington hanged himself at a Palos Verdes Estates residence in Los Angeles County. Bennington's body was found Thursday morning. Shortly after the initial report, the Los Angeles County coroner's office confirmed Bennington's death in a statement to the Associated Press. He was 41.
As the lead vocalist of Linkin Park, Bennington released seven massively successful studio albums. The band's 2000 debut, Hybrid Theory, was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America in 2005, denoting more than 10 million copies sold. Prior to news of Bennington's death Thursday, the band released the new video for "Talking to Myself," a track off their most recent album One More Light.
In 2004, Bennington and Linkin Park released the collaborative Collision Course EP with Jay Z. Each of the EP's six tracks serves as a mashup of two songs, one from each artist. The "Numb/Encore" pairing ultimately won the Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.
During a recent performance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Bennington dedicated the album's title track to his friend Chris Cornell. Cornell committed suicide in May.
![Chester Bennington](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 203 115"%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Linkin Park was scheduled to perform a pair of special shows with their friends in Blink 182 later this month. The shows, billed as Blinkin Park, were set to take place July 28 at Citi Field in New York City and July 30 at Hershey Park Stadium in Hershey, Pennsylvania.
Bennington's Linkin Park bandmate Mike Shinoda said in a tweet shortly after the news broke that he was "shocked and heartbroken." Shinoda added that a formal statement from the band would be released shortly.
Bennington was married and had six children. RIP.
If you or someone you know is in crisis and needs help, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.