Linkin Park Reveal the Song They Won't Play Following Chester Bennington's Death

Though Linkin Park have revisited many of their hits since the band reformed and returned to the stage last year, there's one song that will continue to remain out of the setlist. Co-vocalist Mike Shinoda confirmed that "One More Light" from their final album with Chester Bennington remains off limits.

The members of Linkin Park went on hiatus after a star-studded tribute show honoring the legacy of Bennington in 2017. While Mike Shinoda launched a solo career, the band largely stayed out of the spotlight following Bennington's death save for the promotion of their Hybrid Theory and Meteora reissues.

Then, in the latter portion of 2024, the band made their return to the stage with Dead Sara's Emily Armstrong taking over as co-vocalist, Colin Brittain now handling drums from Rob Bourdon and Alex Feder becoming the touring guitarist while Brad Delson remains involved on the recording and creative front.

Why Linkin Park Won't Play "One More Light" At Shows

Linkin Park have revisited many of their hits since returning to the stage and have managed to navigate the balance between honoring the legacy of what they did with Bennington and kicking off a new era with Armstrong in the fold.

But understanding that there are strong emotions from the fanbase tied to their return, the group has taken great consideration into how they approach things.

“I think we all wanted our show to be really good vibes,” Shinoda told The Guardian. “I want you walking away feeling like, this was such a wonderful, special, fun night.”

Admittedly, Shinoda says there are certain songs that the band would "feel weird playing" in light of Bennington's death. Tops among them is the song "One More Light," an extremely personal song about death that was strongly highlighted by Bennington's vocals and became the last song released from the One More Light album following Bennington's death.

Shinoda confirms that the song was originally written for a woman who worked at the band's label who has passed. But, as he explains, "After Chester passed, the world decided that it was about him. And so that’s just too sad to play.”

Linkin Park in 2025

Linkin Park have opened up their touring in 2025 after only playing select dates last fall to promote their From Zero album. Since that time, they've released a deluxe version that features more song including the current single "Up From the Bottom."

The band's 2025 touring will continue later this month when the band kicks off a North American tour leg in Brooklyn on July 29. Dates will continue through Sept. 24 in Seattle, after which the band will to South American for a run of shows in October and November to close out their touring year. Dates are also on the books for 2026 in Europe as well. You can check the band's website for all tour dates and ticketing information.