The rock neighborhood is alive with hypothesis that Deryck Whibley, the lead singer of Sum 41, is likely to be entering into one among fashionable rock’s most iconic roles as Linkin Park’s new lead vocalist.
The rumor has gained main traction this week following cryptic social media posts from each bands, setting followers on excessive alert.
Sum 41 lit the fuse on Aug. 25, teasing a “Deryck Whibley announcement” scheduled for Wednesday morning (Aug. 28) PST.
Intriguingly, Linkin Park had launched a 100-hour countdown on their web site only a day earlier, set to conclude concurrently with Sum 41’s reveal. The extremely coincidental timing has, in fact, fueled intense hypothesis a couple of doable connection.
Nonetheless, since Chester Bennington’s tragic demise in 2017, the band has been with no full-time lead vocalist.
Earlier this yr, Billboard reported that the band was eyeing a 2025 reunion tour, with sources hinting at the opportunity of a feminine vocalist taking the helm.
Orgy’s Jay Gordon fueled the whispers earlier this yr when he talked about listening to that the band is likely to be bringing on a feminine singer. Nonetheless, Gordon later clarified that his feedback had been taken out of context, saying, “Almost about this Linkin Park singer factor. I do know nothing about any of that.”
Whibley’s connection to Linkin Park runs deep. He carried out at Bennington’s tribute live performance in October 2017 and later, Mike Shinoda joined Sum 41 on stage on the 2018 Studying Pageant for a canopy of Linkin Park’s “Faint.”
Nonetheless, when requested in 2022 about probably filling Bennington’s footwear, Whibley was hesitant.
On The Jasta Present, he remarked, “I believe that’s an not possible activity… I believe these are not possible footwear to fill. I don’t know if [Linkin Park is] ever gonna do something. I don’t know what that’s gonna appear like, or who that may very well be.”
Requested if he would be a part of the band if the chance arose, he added, “That’s such a non-possibility that it’s too bizarre to even, like, type of joke-think about it.”
“I don’t understand how somebody may fill these footwear,” he added “I believe it will be powerful.”
Fan reactions to the opportunity of Whibley becoming a member of Linkin Park have been combined. On Reddit, one fan expressed concern: “I simply fear he’ll be too just like Chester that he’ll fall quick.” One other provided a extra optimistic view: “He couldn’t do the tremendous screaming songs however may deal with many of the setlist.”
Nonetheless, there’s additionally optimism amongst followers, with one person noting, “Deryck actually sounds fairly good on [Faint]… fascinating.”
Whibley’s life and profession are at a pivotal second, not simply because of the hypothesis about Linkin Park but additionally due to his lately introduced memoir, Strolling Catastrophe: My Life By way of Heaven and Hell, set to be launched on Oct. 8 by way of Gallery Books.
The memoir chronicles the rocker’s journey by means of the highs and lows of his life, each personally and with Sum 41.
“Ten years in the past, I discovered myself on the point of demise in a hospital mattress,” Whibley mentioned in a press release concerning the e-book’s launch.
“Surviving that second, I made a promise to myself: I’d combat tougher than ever for this band and attempt to develop into one of the best model of myself. At the moment, I’m proud to say that Sum 41 is experiencing the best success in our profession, with our greatest hits on the radio and performing on the largest reveals of our lives.”
He continued, “This e-book is the story of that journey—by means of the great, the unhealthy, and the actually fucking ugly. It’s about how I fought my means again, the battles I confronted alongside the best way, and the way I turned these struggles into the gasoline that powers the whole lot I do now.”
To advertise the memoir, Whibley will embark on a U.S. e-book tour in October, making stops in cities like Jersey Metropolis, Boston, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas.
Along with his memoir, Whibley and Sum 41 are at the moment on their remaining tour, Tour of the Setting Sum, which kicked off earlier this yr. The band will carry out their largest present to this point in Paris this November, adopted by their remaining hometown reveals in Toronto in January 2025.
Their newest and remaining double album, Heaven :x: Hell, has been a business success, that includes singles like “Landmines,” which topped Billboard’s Different Airplay chart, marking the band’s first No. 1 single since “Fats Lip” in 2001.
Because the clock ticks all the way down to the anticipated bulletins, the rock neighborhood is on edge. Whether or not Whibley is about to affix Linkin Park or one thing completely completely different is within the works, followers are prepared for the reveal.
See Linkin Park’s countdown submit on YouTube right here.
