History

Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. Formed in 1996, The band rose to international fame with their debut album, Hybrid Theory, which was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2005 andmulti-platinum in several other countries.  Its following studio album, Meteora, continued the band's success, topping the Billboard album chart in 2003, and was followed by extensive touring and charity work around the world.  In 2003,MTV2 named Linkin Park the sixth-greatest band of the music video era and the third-best of the new millennium behind Oasis and Coldplay.  Billboardranked Linkin Park No. 19 on the Best Artists of the Decade chart. Having adapted the nu metal and rap metal genres to a radio-friendly yet densely layered style in Hybrid Theory and Meteora, the band explored other genres in their next studio album, Minutes to Midnight, which was released in 2007. The album topped theBillboard charts and had the third-best debut week of any album that year. The band has collaborated with several other artists, most notably with rapper Jay-Z in their mashup EP Collision Course, and many others included on Reanimation. The band's most recent work, Living Things, was released on June 26, 2012. Linkin Park has sold over 50 million albums worldwide and has won two Grammy Awards. Dave was taught how to play guitar by his mother, and also cites his older brother as an inspiration to pick up the instrument. He grew up in Plymouth but later moved to Mission Viejo, California at the age of 5. While attending high school, Dave joined a punk group named 'Tasty Snax', who would later rename themselves to 'The Snax'. What the band sorely needed was a bass guitarist, so Phoenix opted to make the transition from the electric guitar, and has played bass ever since.

Mike Shinoda

Michael Kenji “Mike Shinoda” was born in Agoura Hils, California, U.S. in 11, February 1977. He is best known as the rapper, keyboardist, songwriter, visual artist, vocalist of the rock band linkin park. His father is Japanese American and mother European. He has a younger brother. His name is Jason Shinoda. Mike Shinoda has been married to children's author Anna Hillinger since May 10, 2003. The couple have two children, the eldest, a son named Otis Akio Shinoda. According to Shinoda, the Fort Minor song "Where'd You Go" was written about Hillinger. High school graduation, Mike Shinoda's rap interests found a source of encouragement in Brad Delson, with whom he started to write and record songs in a makeshift studio set up in his bedroom. By the end of high school, Bourdon had become involved in their musical ventures. The trio formed the band Xero, and began to make a more serious attempt to pursue a career in the music industry. After high school, Shinoda enrolled in the Art Center College of Design to study graphic design and illustration. Mike was the youngest of his graduating class from Art Center College of Design of Pasadena in 1998, with a Bachelor of Arts in Illustration. He has had a hand in most artistic facets of Linkin Park's imagery, including album artwork, band merchandise, web design, and on-stage production art. In 2003 he did a collaborative remix shoe for DC shoes. In 2004, Shinoda created a series of ten paintings which became the basis of the Fort Minor album The Rising Tied. That series became the backbone for the packaging of the album, and was featured in Shinoda's first public art show "Diamonds Spades Hearts & Clubs. In October 2008 Mike and Mark Wakefield, former vocalist of Linkin Park back when they were named Xero, recorded and released the song "Barack Your World" under the name White Pegacorn.

Chester Bennington

His full name Chester Charles Bennington. He was born March 20, 1976. Chester Bennington has two children from a previous relationship with Elka Brand; Jamie and Isaiah. Bennington married his first wife, Samantha Marie Olit, on October 31, 1996. They had one child together, Draven Sebastian Bennington, who was born on April 19, 2002. He is best known as the lead vocalist , song writer of linkin park. Bennington became known as a vocalist with Linkin Park's. Bennington took interest in music at a young age, citing Depeche Mode andStone Temple Pilots as early inspirations. Bennington's parents separated in the late 1980s. He later struggled with cocaine and methamphetamine addictions. Bennington eventually overcame his drug addiction, and would go on to denounce drug use in future interviews. He worked at a fast food restaurant before starting his career as a professional musician. Before joining Linkin Park , Bennington was a vocalist in Grey Daze.

 Bennington later described the songwriting experience toRolling Stone magazine in early 2002:

  "It's easy to fall into that thing— 'poor, poor me', that's where songs like 'Crawling' come from: I can't take myself. But that song is about taking responsibility for your actions. I don't say 'you' at any point. It's about how I'm the reason that I feel this way. There's something inside me that pulls me down."

Bands

§  Grey Daze – lead vocals, rhythm guitar (1992–1998)

§  Linkin Park – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, percussion (1999–present)

§  Dead by Sunrise – lead vocals, guitar, keyboard (2005–2010 or present)

§  Julien-K – production (Teamed up with them for some songs, but is not in the band)

Rob Bourdon

His full name is Robert Gregory Bourdon. Rob was born in Calabasas, California in January 20, 1979. Now he live in Los Angeles. He is the drummer and youngest member of the rock band Linkin Park. In his early teen years, Bourdon played in a few bands with his friends. He once dated actress Shiri Appleby. He dated actress Vanessa Lee Evigan, starting in 2001 but has been single since at least early 2008.

His birthday was featured on an episode of iTunes' LPTV. On January 20, 2004, Linkin Park played a show in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and the band can be seen joking around backstage and saying that it is Rob's twentieth Rob and Brad didn't have any tattoos for religious reasons. Both are actively of the Jewish faith.

Rob's favorite songs to play are "In the End" and "The Little Things Give You Away".

Joe Hahn

His full name is Joseph "Joe" Hahn. He was born in Dallas, Texas, USA in March 15, 1977. He is best known as the DJ and sampler for the American rock band Linkin Park. Joseph "Joe" Hahn was born the youngest of three children. He has two older sisters. Hahn graduated from Herbert Hoover High School in Glendale in 1995. He then studied at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena but did not graduate.  In college, he metMike Shinoda, and joined his band Xero, which later became known asLinkin Park. Hahn and Shinoda guested in The X-Ecutioners' hit single "It's Going Down". Hahn also guested in Shinoda's Fort Minor album The Rising Tied. Hahn was called Chairman Hahn on the back cover of Linkin Park's Remix album Reanimation next to the songs "With You" and "Cure For The Itch". Hahn directed the trailer for the video game Medal of Honor, featuring Linkin Park's single "The Catalyst". Hahn also directed the music video for "The Catalyst", which premiered on August 26, 2010, as well as the music video for Linkin Park's "Waiting for the End" and "Burning in the Skies". Hahn became the first Korean American to receive a Grammy when the band won the 2002 award for Best Hard Rock Performance. In November 2011 Hahn designed a helmet of Formula 1 driver Kamui Kobayashi. February 15, 2005, Hahn married Karen Benedit; the couple divorced in 2009.

Dave Farrell

His full name is David Michael Farrell. He was born in  Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA in  February 8, 1977. He also known as Phoenix, is Linkin Park’s bassist and backup vocalist. when he was five he moved to Mission Viejo, California where he attended Mission Viejo High School. Dave was taught how to play guitar by his mother, and also cites his older brother as an inspiration to pick up the instrument. He grew up in Plymouth but later moved to Mission Viejo, California at the age of 5. While attending high school, Dave joined a punk group named 'Tasty Snax', who would later rename themselves to 'The Snax'. What the band sorely needed was a bass guitarist, so Phoenix opted to make the transition from the electric guitar, and has played bass ever since.He graduated in 1999at the University of California, Los Angeles. He can playbass guitar, electric guitar,cello and violin. Farrell was a member of a Christian punk/ska band calledTasty Snax. He had to go in tour with the Tasty Snax so he could not play with Delson and his band. Then, Farrell left his band to play bass with Linkin Park. Farrell's fellow band mate Mark Fiore became Linkin Park's videographer.

Brad Delson

His Full name is Bradford Phillip Delson. He was bron in Agoura, Calfornia, U.S. in December 1, 1977. He is best known as the lead guitaristand one of the founding members of the Grammy Award winning rock bandLinkin Park. Brad Delson attendedAgoura High School with childhood friend and Linkin Park band mate Mike Shinoda. He played in various bands throughout his high school career. After graduating in 1995, Delson, Shinoda, and Bourdon formed Xero, which would eventually become the starting point for Linkin Park. He was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and shared a dorm room with future Linkin Park band mate Dave Farrell for three out of his four years at school. After graduating summa cum laude in 1999, Delson decided to forgo law school in order to pursue a musical career with Linkin Park. Delson's style is sometimes criticized as being too simplistic, lacking complexity, and largely limited to non-solo, non-instrumental sections, particularly during the Hybrid Theory andMeteora eras.  Delson married Elisa Boren in September 2003 in a Jewish wedding at theSkirball Cultural Center. Elisa gave birth to their first child, a boy named Jonah Taylor Delson, on March 25, 2008. He has two younger brothers. Delson also handles many of the business aspects of Linkin Park along with his father Donn Delson. Together, the two created BandMerch, which handles the merchandising affairs for Linkin Park and others. In 1991, Delson was an extra in the movie Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey.