Mike Shinoda pays emotional tribute to Chester Bennington at Reading Festival

"I want you guys to sing it so loud that Chester can hear you."

Mike Shinoda has paid an emotional tribute to his former bandmate Chester Bennington before performing "In The End" at this year's Reading Festival. It has been just over a year since the Linkin Park lead singer was tragically found dead at his home in California, on July 20th, 2017. Linkin Park were one of those bands that really helped their fans through a lot of tough times – anyone who was a teenager in the early 2000s definitely had a moment screaming along to “One Step Closer” or “Numb”. His death came as a shock to his family, friends, bandmates, and fans, and in October the band played an emotional tribute show dedicated to Bennington. Co-vocalist and guitarist Mike Shinoda – best known for his rapid-fire raps that companied Bennington’s searing vocals – played the Reading Festival this weekend. He played a mixture Linkin Park songs and his solo material in an emotional set, but it was his performance of “In The End” that really gave us goosebumps. Before opening with the familiar keyboard riff, Shinoda told the crowd: “I want you guys to sing it so loud that Chester can hear you. Are you ready to do that?” The crowd duly obliged, knowing every word to the chorus as Shinoda rapped the verses, creating a hauntingly stripped back version of the anthemic 2000 original track. https://www.facebook.com/bbcradio1/videos/232819947413129/ He also spoke openly to the crowd about getting over Bennington's death, and continuing to perform music. “Getting up here and doing this for me is really fulfilling, and it’s really an accomplishment just to kind of get over my own anxiety about doing it again”. https://www.facebook.com/bbcradio1/videos/1234106106714407/ Shinoda would also join Sum 41 on-stage as they covered “Faint”, another Linkin Park hit. https://twitter.com/bbcmusic/status/1033382690106601472 In January, Mike Shinoda confirmed that Linkin Park would continue, saying in a tweet: "I have every intention on continuing with LP, and the guys feel the same. We have a lot of rebuilding to do, and questions to answer, so it’ll take time." https://twitter.com/mikeshinoda/status/956601196290064384