Fans gather in LA to pay tribute to Chester Bennington

Thousands of fans gathered in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday night in memory of late Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington.

Fans joined together at the city’s Grand Park and sang along to the band’s songs and held aloft phones and flameless candles in tribute to the vocalist who died by suicide in July.

One fan told CBS Los Angeles: “You hear this music a lot and you think you’re alone – and then when you come to concerts or even stuff like this, you see all these people and you realise you’re not really alone.”

The rally was organised by Ashlee Kelly and Maribel Del Villar Pérez, with Kelly telling the LA Times that she had originally planned the event to be a candlelight vigil at the Guitar Center on Sunset Boulevard – but it grew thanks to a social media drive.

She reports: “Bennington was the voice of my youth, and now I’m 30 and he’s still relevant to my life and feelings and experiences.”

An estimated 2200 people attended the memorial which featured performances from artists including Signs Of Saturn, Memento, Dean Schulz, Andrew Cool and the Gatsby Affair.

Bennington’s Widow Talinda later tweeted: “Wow! My kids and I feel your love. Thank you LA.”

Last month, Linkin Park set up a tribute site to the late singer, which features posts from fans from all over the world.

Linkin Park pay tribute to Chester Bennington

Scott has spent 37 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in 2014 before moving into e-commerce in 2020. Scott maintains Louder’s buyer’s guides, highlights deals, and reviews headphones, speakers, earplugs and more. Over the last 12 years, Scott has written more than 11,500 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog. He's previously written for publications including IGN, Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from news and features, to tech reviews, video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, Marillion and Rush.