It comes as no surprise, but Linkin Park has cancelled its upcoming tour in the wake of lead singer Chester Bennington’s apparent suicide last week. The band, which was to go out on its “One More Light World Tour” beginning on Thursday in Massachusetts, announced the cancellation on Friday. Bennington was found dead of what has been reported as a suicide the day before.
“We are incredibly saddened to hear about the passing of Chester Bennington,” the tour promoter said in a statement to Billboard, adding that “refunds are available at point of purchase. Our thoughts go out to all those affected.”
Bennington, who had fronted the band since its inception and briefly headed Stone Temple Pilots, was friends with late Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell, who was found dead – also in an apparent suicide – earlier this year. Thursday would have been Cornell’s 53rd birthday. The Phoenix native had been open about struggles with drugs and alcohol in his life, and revealed in interviews having been sexually abused for several years as a child and young teenager. He was married and the father of six children.
The future of Linkin Park, which has been together since the early 2000s and won a pair of grammys, is uncertain. Their tour was to cover the United States through the summer and early fall, then head to Japan. Co-headlining dates with Blink-182 were also cancelled.
