Person
Chester Bennington
Arts, Music & MediaWho is Chester Bennington in the Agency editorial?
Chester Bennington (1976-2017) was an American singer, lead vocalist of the band Linkin Park. Issue.14, the edition about music, gives him its passage on Linkin Park: the author calls him a messiah, quotes a report of his death from The New Yorker and argues that the fans' rejection of the album One More Light came before it.
In short
Chester Bennington (1976-2017) was an American singer, lead vocalist of Linkin Park. In the Agency editorial he is named only in Issue.14, in the passage on Linkin Park. The author writes that he was a true messiah to him and to many people, and adds: "Perhaps it is my value judgment." The edition quotes The New Yorker on his death on July 20th, 2017, says he struggled with depression and found in making music a medicine for his pain, and recalls the songs he wrote with Mike Shinoda. The author then argues that fans and critics rejected the album One More Light (2017) and missed what he was saying in the lyrics, and that he died two months after its release. The passage closes with a quotation credited to him.
Key facts
- Who was Chester Bennington?
- An American singer, born in 1976, lead vocalist of the band Linkin Park. He died in 2017.
- Where does the Agency editorial name Chester Bennington?
- In Issue.14, in the passage on Linkin Park, which follows the passages on Led Zeppelin and Oasis. The author uses both his full name and the first name Chester.
- What does the author say about him in Issue.14?
- That he was a messiah to him and to many people, that he was known to "sing like an angel and scream like a demon", and that the fans rejected the album One More Light without hearing what he was saying in its lyrics.
Who was Chester Bennington?
Chester Bennington was an American singer born in 1976, lead vocalist of the band Linkin Park. One More Light (2017) was the last album the band released with him. He died in July 2017. The dates and the nationality come from outside the edition and are marked for verification; the date and circumstances of his death are also given by the edition, in a quotation from The New Yorker.
How does Chester Bennington appear in Issue.14?
Issue.14 is about music, and its passage on Linkin Park carries the subtitle about the death of a contemporary messiah. The author writes that Chester Bennington was a true messiah to him and to many people, and then: "Perhaps it is my value judgment." He quotes The New Yorker's report that Bennington was found dead on July 20th, 2017, at forty-one. He writes that Chester struggled with depression, that he was known to "sing like an angel and scream like a demon", and that with Mike Shinoda he wrote songs whose lyrics helped people make peace with their own pain.
The author then gives his own reading of the death. He recalls that the album One More Light, released in 2017 with a new musical style, was met with disapproval from fans and critics, and says that those who rejected it missed what Chester was saying in the lyrics; the edition shows the songs Nobody Can Save Me and One More Light. He writes that Chester died two months after the album was released and concludes: "Chester is a messiah because he was killed by his own followers." This is the author's view, stated as his own. The passage ends with a quotation credited to Chester Bennington: "When life leaves us blind, love keeps us kind."
Source editions
Where this entry comes from in the Agency editorial.