Linkin Park

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Linkin Park is a rock band from Agoura Hills, California. Since their formation in 1996, the band has sold more than fifty million albums and won two Grammy Awards. They achieved mainstream success with their debut album, Hybrid Theory, which was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2005. Their following studio album, Meteora, continued the band's success, topping the Billboard 200’s album charts in 2003, and was followed by extensive touring and charity work around the world.

Recognized for their adaptation of the nu metal genre into a radio-friendly yet densely-layered style in Hybrid Theory and Meteora,the band moved away from this and explored a variety of other genres in their latest studio album, Minutes to Midnight. The album topped the Billboard Charts and had the third best debut week of any album that year. They are also known for their several collaborations, most notably with rapper Jay-Z in their mash-up album Collision Course, and many other artists on Reanimation.

Mike Shinoda was raised in the Los Angeles suburb of Agoura Hills.[1]

He first wanted to play music during his middle and high school years, he has started to play on different music tools like piano and took lessons on them. He attended Parkman Elementary and Lindero Canyon Middle School. After that, he began taking piano lessons, studying classical pianist techniques, and later moved on to jazz and hip hop. It was during this period that he added the guitar and, eventually, rap-style vocals to his repertoire. [4]

After his teens, Mike Shinoda's rap interests found a source of encouragement in friend Brad Delson, with whom he started to write and record songs in a makeshift studio set up in his basement. Shinoda attended Agoura High School with Linkin Park bandmate Brad Delson, as well as with members of the band Hoobastank. By the end of high school, drummer Rob 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. It was here that he made the acquaintance of DJ and turntablist Joseph Hahn, who, along with Delson's college-mate Phoenix, was soon added to Xero's line-up. Shinoda eventually graduated from college with a degree in illustration, securing himself a job as a graphic designer right after graduation.With his background as a graphic artist, Shinoda has taken it upon himself in designing all of Linkin Park's artwork with Hahn, and has even designed the album cover for Styles of Beyond's debut album, 2000 Fold. In later years he would go on to showcase his art skills;[citation needed] he had his debut art showcase at Gallery 1988 in Los Angeles in the time leading up to Linkin Park's album Minutes To Midnight.

Early years Bennington was born in Phoenix, Arizona. He took interest in music at a young age, citing Depeche Mode and Stone Temple Pilots as early inspirations Bennington's parents separated in the late 1980s, while he was still a child. He was sexually abused during his youth, and 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 Burger King restaurant before starting his career as a professional musician.

[edit] Professional music career Before joining Linkin Park, Bennington was a vocalist in Grey Daze, a now-defunct post-grunge band from Phoenix, Arizona. He left Grey Daze in 1998, but struggled to find another band to play in. After nearly quitting his musical career altogether, Jeff Blue, then the vice president of A&R at Zomba Music in Los Angeles, offered Bennington an audition with the future members of Linkin Park.Bennington quit his day job, and took his family to California, where he had a successful audition with Linkin Park, who were then called "Hybrid Theory." Bennington and Mike Shinoda, the band’s other vocalist, made significant progress together, but failed to find a record deal.[3] After facing numerous rejections, Jeff Blue, now a vice president of A&R at Warner Bros., intervened again to help the band sign with Warner Bros. Records.[3]

Despite having prodigious success in the early 2000s, Bennington has had medical issues outside of the limelight. He suffered a severe bite from a recluse spider while touring with the OzzFest in 2001, which caused his arm to swell.[4] Bennington was plagued with poor health during the making of Meteora, and struggled to attend some of the album’s record sessions. He fell ill during the summer of 2003, and eventually underwent surgery.Bennington sustained a wrist injury in October 2007 while attempting to jump off a platform during a show in Melbourne, Australia. Despite the injury, he continued to perform, and went to the emergency room after the show.

[edit] Personal life Bennington married his first wife, Samantha, on October 31, 1996. They had one child, named Draven Sebastian, who was born on April 19, 2002. Bennington’s relationship with Samantha declined during his years with Linkin Park, leading to their divorce in 2005.After divorcing his first wife, Bennington married Talinda Bentley, a former Playboy model, with whom he has since had a child, Tyler Lee. [8] He and his family live in a 6,000-square-foot house in Newport Beach Orange County when he is not on tour. Bennington made a cameo in the film Crank. He is also an avid tattoo enthusiast. In addition to sporting many tattoos and piercings all over his body, he has done work with Club Tattoo, a tattoo parlor in Tempe, Arizona. The parlor has received recognition from many magazines such as College Affair and Skateboard Mag, while also spawning an art show in New York City.

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