Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. The band's current lineup comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, bassist Dave Farrell, DJ/keyboardist Joe Hahn, and drummer Rob Bourdon, all of whom are founding members. Former members include bassist Kyle Christner and vocalists Mark Wakefield and Chester Bennington, the latter being a member until his passing in 2017.
Formed in 1996, Linkin Park rose to international fame with their debut studio album, Hybrid Theory (2000), which was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2005, and multi-platinum in several other countries. Their second album, Meteora (2003), continued the band's success, topping the Billboard 200 album chart in 2003, and was followed by extensive touring and charity work. Having adapted nu metal and rap metal to a radio-friendly yet densely layered style in its first two albums, the band explored other genres on their third album, Minutes to Midnight (2007). The album topped the Billboard 200 and had the third-best debut week of any album that year.Linkin Park continued to explore a wider variation of musical types in their fourth album, A Thousand Suns (2010), layering their music with more electronic sounds. The band's fifth album, Living Things (2012), combined musical elements from all of its previous records. their sixth album, The Hunting Party (2014), returned to a heavier rock sound, and their seventh album, One More Light (2017), was a more electronic and pop-oriented record. Linkin Park went into an indefinite hiatus after longtime lead vocalist Bennington died from suicide by hanging on July 20, 2017. The other members of the band have yet to decide whether to continue with a new vocalist.
Linkin Park are the best-selling band of the 21st century and one of the worlds best-selling music artists, having sold over 100 million records worldwide. They have won two Grammy Awards, six American Music Awards, four MTV Video Music Awards and three World Music Awards. In 2003, MTV2 named Linkin Park the sixth-greatest band of the music video era and the third-best of the new millennium. Billboard ranked Linkin Park No. 19 on the Best Artists of the Decade chart. In 2012, the band was voted as the greatest artist of the 2000s in a Bracket Madness poll on VH1. In 2014, the band was declared as the Biggest Rock Band in the World Right Now by Kerrang!.
