Linkin Park’s drama rages on … with Chester Bennington’s son, Jaime, calling out band co-founder Mike Shinoda for appointing Emily Armstrong as the group’s new lead singer … making it clear she’s not Jaime’s pick to replace his dad 7 years after his death.
Jaime criticized Mike for betraying fans’ trust by hiring Emily … adding in a lengthy IG post Monday he had “quietly erased my father’s life and legacy in real time … during international suicide prevention month.” Chester died by suicide in 2017.
Jaime didn’t hold back … diving into Emily’s alleged ties to Scientology and her support for Danny Masterson. This all came to light following The Mars Volta’s Cedric Bixler-Zavala‘s resurfaced messages Emily had attended a 2020 preliminary hearing in support of Masterson, which hit fans hard … especially since Chester had openly discussed surviving sexual abuse.
Bixler-Zavala’s wife, Chrissie Carnell-Bixler was one of several women who accused Masterson of sexual assault. Last year, Masterson was convicted of 2 counts of forcible rape and sentenced to 30 years to life.
Since the backlash, Emily addressed the situation without naming Masterson directly … but did seem to reference him.
She mentioned she was asked to support someone she thought of as a friend during a hearing years ago … but afterward, she realized she shouldn’t have been there. She added she always tries to see the good in people — but misjudged this one.
Jaime highlighted the fan reaction to the new line-up bombshell announcement, saying they trusted Linkin Park to bring about change — but instead the decision makes Mike Shinoda “senile and tone deaf.”
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