Brad Delson is the popular lead guitarist of Linkin Park. Born on December 1, 1977, in California, Delson is an alumnus of the University of California, Los Angeles.
He will not join Linkin Park's upcoming world tour. On September 7, 2024, he took to Instagram and released a statement saying he would continue working with the band behind the scenes. He thanked Linkin Park fans for their support and love.
The band has recently added two new members, vocalist Emily Armstrong and drummer Colin Brittain, during their September 5 global livestream concert in Los Angeles. One of the band’s founding members, Rob Bourdon, reportedly departed.
Brad Delson wrote on Instagram;
“I’ve always felt deeply connected to and proud of our live performances. Over the years I’ve realized I thrive most when I’m actively working with my bandmates behind the scenes––in the studio, collaborating on our new music, and helping build our live show.”
The post continued;
“I am so proud of everything we continue to create together. While I will not be performing on tour in this new chapter, I am super excited to introduce Alex—my handsome deputy on the road. Alex is a world-class musician, a kind and thoughtful friend, and we are truly fortunate he’ll be contributing his unique talent to our LP universe.”
Brad Delson also announced that guitarist Alex Feder, who joined Linkin Park recently, will be taking on his role in the band’s performances in the future. Linkin Park has also released a new single, The Emptiness Machine, in which the new members have performed.
Brad Delson said Chester Bennington used to idolize Depeche Mode
In April 2023, band members Mike Shinoda, Dave Farell, and Brad Delson got into a conversation with Apple Music about Meteora’s 20th anniversary and to honor former band member Chester Bennington (former lead vocalist). The lead guitarist said he loved Depeche Mode, and Chester would too.
“Chester idolized Depeche Mode. I mean I feel like he would probably have said like this is my favourite band about maybe multiple bands. I mean I love Depeche Mode. I feel Depeche Mode has this particularly strong influence on Lost. I hear that influence,” Brad Delson said.
He recalled hearing Chester’s voice on the demo without vocals, and on the same song, it sounded almost like a girl singing, adding a vulnerable and delicate quality to it. At the same time, the chorus had a guttural scream. Brad said both these elements were present in the song Lost. While talking about Meteora, he said,
“I think what’s like remarkable about Meteora looking back on it now is it really was a good problem to have and yet it was a problem that Hybrid Theory did become the biggest album in the world and we were like ten years old.”
Linkin Park’s upcoming album From Zero will be out on November 15 via Warner Bros. It will be the band's first full-length album since their 2017 One More Light, the last release before lead vocalist Chester Bennington passed away. The band is reportedly ready to kick off a six-date arena tour, with performances in Los Angeles, New York, Hamburg, London, Seoul, and Bogotá.
