Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda says the band's lead vocalist Emily Armstrong faced a backlash from some people simply because "she wasn't a guy."
Armstrong was introduced as the band's new singer when they confirmed their reunion last year. She replaced the late Chester Bennington, who died in 2017 at the age of 41.
Armstrong's introduction has been a notable success, with the band playing sold-out arena shows around the world and releasing their first album featuring her vocals – From Zero – to great reviews. Metal Hammer described the record as a "genuinely great album worthy of their canon."
But it was not an easy start to life in the band, as they faced criticism for daring to try and replace Bennington at all. She also came under fire for her links to Scientology and previous support for now convicted rapist Danny Masterton.
Shinoda says in a new interview that he believes the backlash was mostly to do with Armstrong's gender.
He tells the Guardian: “There were people who lashed out at Emily and it was really because she wasn’t a guy.”
He adda that fans were “used to Linkin Park being six guys and the voice of a guy leading this song. They were just so uncomfortable with what it was that they chose a ton of things to complain about. They’re pointing in 10 different directions saying "this is why I’m mad, this is why the band sucks.'"
Armstrong herself admits she was taken aback by the reaction to her appointment. She says: "I was a little bit naive about it, to be honest."
Linkin Park have a number of world tour dates still to come in 2025.
Linkin Park 2025 remaining world tour dates
Jul 29: Brooklyn Barclays Center, NY
Aug 01: Boston TD Garden, MA
Aug 03: Newark Prudential Center, NJ
Aug 06: Montreal Bell Centre, Canada
Aug 08: Toronto Scotiabank Arena, Canada
Aug 11: Chicago United Center, IL
Aug 14: Detroit Little Caesars Arena, MI
Aug 16: Philadelphia Wells Fargo Center, PA
Aug 19: Pittsburgh PPG Paints Arena, PA
Aug 21: Nashville Bridgestone Arena, TN
Aug 23: St Louis Enterprise Center, MO
Aug 25: Milwaukee Fiserv Forum, WI
Aug 27: Minneapolis Target Center, MN
Aug 29: Omaha CHI Health Center, NE
Aug 31: Kansas City T-Movile Center, MO
Sep 03: Denver Ball Arena, CO
Sep 06: Phoenix Footprint Center, AZ
Sep 13: Los Angeles Dodger Stadium, CA
Sep 15: San Josa SAP Ceter, CA
Sep 17: Sacramento Golden 1 Center, CA
Sep 19: Portland Moda Center, OR
Sep 21: Vancouver Rogers Arena, Canada
Sep 24: Seattle Climate Pledge Arena, WA
Oct 26: Bogota TBA, Colombia
Oct 29: Lima TBA, Peru
Nov 01: Buenos Aires TBA, Argentina
Nov 05: Santiago TBA, Chile
Nov 08: Rio De Janeiro TBA, Brazil
Nov 10: São Paulo TVA, Brazil
Nov 13: Brasilia TBA, Brazil
Nov 15: Porto Alegre TVA, Brazil
