Mike Shinoda Talks About Working With Chester Bennington: "He Could Bring Ideas To Life Like Nobody Else"

Photo: Chester Bennington, Mike Shinoda/Instagram 

Mike Shinoda, co-founder of Linkin Park, recently reflected on what it was like working with the late Chester Bennington. 

Speaking in an official podcast episode with new band vocalist Emily Armstrong, Shinoda shared memories of how natural it felt to create music with Bennington, describing him as someone who could bring musical ideas to life in a way few others could.

"I could feed him ideas, and he could bring them to life like nobody else," Shinoda said. "It was amazing. I didn’t know anything different because I hadn't worked with many others at that time. I just thought, 'This is what it’s like to have a really good singer.' We’d throw ideas back and forth, and it always felt right."

Photo: Chester Bennington, Mike Shinoda/Instagram

As Shinoda began collaborating with other musicians after Bennington's passing, he realized just how unique that connection had been. He described how with other singers, the result was sometimes just "good, fine… a B+." He noted that while everyone was skilled, there was often something missing in the final product.

"There’s something else, an unknown thing you can’t measure or plan for. It’s either there, or it’s not," Shinoda explained. He said that with Bennington, that “something else” was always there, giving their music an unmistakable spark. Source: Ultimate Guitar 

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