Driver's 911 Call for Chester Bennington Released

As many of Linkin Park's fans are still mourning the loss of frontman Chester Bennington, [...]

By John Connor Coulston

As many of Linkin Park's fans are still mourning the loss of frontman Chester Bennington, authorites have released the audio from the 911 call reporting the death.

The call was made by Bennington's driver, who was picking the late singer for a photo shoot, reports TMZ. He tells the operator he arrived at Bennington's home and found his housekeeper frantic, still reeling from finding Bennington's body.

Up Next: Linkin Park Shares Gripping Letter to Late Frontman Chester Bennington

He says in the audio, "I just got to the location and his housekeeper came out and said he killed himself ... he hung himself."

The 911 operator asks if the unnamed driver can get the housekeeper to answer any questions about his condition, in the hopes that Bennington wasn't dead. She can be heard loudly crying and extremely upset, but the driver was able to get some details before placing the 911 call.

More: Korn Guitarist Clarifies Chester Bennington 'Cowardly' Comments

Asked if his body is cold, he says, "I asked, 'Is he cold? Is he warm?' and she said, 'No. He's dead from hanging.' She's talking to his wife right now."

The housekeeper can continue to be heard throughout the remainder of the call as the operator directs units to their location. She informs the driver to keep everyone out of the room until paramedics arrive.

Bennington's death was officially ruled a suicide by the coroner on Monday.

Listen to the audio below and scroll down to see how Bennington's Linkin Park bandmates have honored his memory.

Linkin Park Shares Gripping Letter to Late Frontman Chester Bennington

Chester Bennington's death sent shockwaves through the music community as well as multiple decades' worth of Linkin Park's fan base. On Monday, Linkin Park shared an open letter to the late singer that addressed the loss head-on.

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(Photo: Linkin Park)

The letter, which they posted to their website and published on Twitter, begins with a simple "Dear Chester" before going on to share with the late musician meant to them.

More: Linkin Park Honors Chester Bennington with Tribute Website

Bennington died of suicide by hanging last week.

The letter, in its entirety, appears below.

Up Next: Linkin Park Members Speak Out About Chester Bennington's Death

Dear Chester,

Our hearts are broken. The shockwaves of grief and denial are still sweeping through our family as we come to grips with what has happened.

You touched so many lives, maybe even more than you realized. In the past few days, we've seen an outpouring of love and support, both public and private, from around the world. Talinda and the family appreciate it, and want the world to know that you were the best husband, son, and father; the family will never be whole without you.

Talking with you about the years ahead together, your excitement was infectious. Your absence leaves a void that can never be filled—a boisterous, funny, ambitious, creative, kind, generous voice in the room is missing. We're trying to remind ourselves that the demons who took you away from us were always part of the deal. After all, it was the way you sang about those demons that made everyone fall in love with you in the first place. You fearlessly put them on display, and in doing so, brought us together and taught us to be more human. You had the biggest heart, and managed to wear it on your sleeve.

Our love for making and performing music is inextinguishable. While we don't know what path our future may take, we know that each of our lives was made better by you. Thank you for that gift. We love you, and miss you so much.

Until we see you again,

LP

The letter moved the fans who had already been reeling from Bennington's unexpected death, prompting them to share thoughts of their own about the singer and his impact.

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Linkin Park Members Speak Out About Chester Bennington's Death

Chester Bennington's death has shaken the music world since the news broke on Thursday. Now, his Linkin Park bandmates are speaking out about the tragedy.

The band has posted several updates as a group, and Mike Shinoda confirmed the news to fans after it broke. Now, two more members have shared their feelings about the loss.

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Bassist Dave Ferrell spoke out with a tweet with simply one word: "Heartbroken." He also retweeted a message from Shinoda urging fans to connect with various online fan communities during this difficult time.

More: Linkin Park Lead Singer Chester Bennington Has Died by Suicide at 41

Joe Hahn, the band's DJ, also spoke out and shared a touching photo of Bennigton performing live.

"Always shining," he wrote. "I miss my friend."

As mentioned, Shinoda had previously reached out to fans to confirm the news and shared his brief thoughts.

Scroll through to see his response and more news surrounding Bennington's passing.

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Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda Reacts to Bandmate Chester Bennington's Death

Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington was found dead in his California home Thursday morning as a result of what coroners are ruling a suicide, CNN reports.

Since the news broke, Bennington's friends and fans alike have been reacting to his death on social media, including bandmate Mike Shinoda, who tweeted that he was "shocked and heartbroken."

Up Next: Hollywood Reacts to Linkin Park Frontman Chester Bennington's Death

"Shocked and heartbroken, but it's true," he wrote, confirming Bennington's death. "An official statement will come out as soon as we have one."

More: Linkin Park Lead Singer Chester Bennington Has Reportedly Died by Suicide at 41

Shinoda was an original founder of the band in 1996 and produced and co-wrote much of the group's music.

Linkin Park was set to begin a tour next week, and their latest album, One More Light, was released in May.

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Chester Bennington's Son Told Him to 'Love Life' in Note Weeks Before Singer's Death

Following the tragic suicide of Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington this week, it's been revealed that more than a month before his death, his son wrote him a sweet note telling him to "love life."

Up Next: Blink-182 Cancels Tour With Linkin Park After Chester Bennington's Death

In an old post from Bennington's wife Thalinda's Twitter account that was shared by Uproxx, Chester's son Tyler wrote him a note and placed it on his coffee mug.

The note read, "Dad. Enjoy your rehearsal or whatever your doing today. Love life because it's a '[Castle] of Glass' - Tyler."

"Castle of Glass" is the title of a Linkin Park song from their 2012 album Living Things.

In addition to this newly discovered post, Bennington's friend, actor and 30 Seconds to Mars vocalist Jared Leto, has penned a beautiful tribute to the fallen rock star.

Along with a photo of Bennington, Leto wrote, "When I think of Chester I remember his smile... His laughter, intelligence, kindness and talent. That absolutely unforgettable voice that was at once - delicate, ferocious and always full of emotion."

He continued, "Witnessing his life taught me a lot. Especially about commitment, about kindness, about hard work, about the pursuit and achievement of dreams and mostly, about love. I know that both his family and his band were a massive source of inspiration and pride for him.

Finally, he said, "It was clear to me that he was deeply grateful for both the people that surrounded him and the life that he had. My heart goes out to his family, friends, band and fans. A tragic loss of an absolute legend. We will miss you."

More: Linkin Park Filmed 'Carpool Karaoke' a Week Before Chester Bennington's Death

It was reported Thursday that Bennington had died after taking his own life in his Los Angeles home.

He had previously dealt with depression and substance abuse issues and even spoke about them in interviews.

In a 2015 interview with Rock Sound, Bennington spoke about his dark times, saying, "I literally hated life and I was like, 'I don't want to have feelings. I want to be a sociopath. I don't want to do anything. I don't want to care what other people feel like. I want to feel nothing.' "

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Blink-182 Cancels Tour With Linkin Park After Chester Bennington's Death

After the news that their singer, Chester Bennington had passed away, Linkin Park canceled their upcoming tour dates, and now Blink 182 has canceled their tour with the band as well.

Up Next: Jared Leto Pens Tribute to 'Absolute Legend' Chester Bennington

The two bands were scheduled to embark on the Welcome to Blinkin Park tour, but in the wake of Bennington's tragic suicide, the band has decided to forego the tour.

In a statement, the pop-punk band said, "Blink-182 is wrecked by the loss of our friend and amazing musician Chester Bennington. We could never imagine playing blinkin park without his incredible talent and voice. It just would not be possible."

The message continued, "We send our deepest sympathies to his family, bandmates, friends and fans. Refunds will be available at the point of purchase."

In addition to this canceled tour, the day after Bennington's death, Linkin Park decided to cancel the North American leg of their upcoming headlining tour.

Live Nation released a statement saying, "We are incredibly saddened to hear about the passing of Chester Bennington. The Linkin Park One More Light North American Tour has been canceled and refunds are available at point of purchase. Our thoughts go out to all those affected."

More: Linkin Park Filmed 'Carpool Karaoke' a Week Before Chester Bennington's Death

The One More Light tour was set to kick-off in Mansfield, Massachusetts on July 27th, and special guests would have included Machine Gun Kelly, One OK Rock and Snoop Dogg, according to E! News.

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Jared Leto Pens Tribute to 'Absolute Legend' Chester Bennington

Following the tragic death of Linkin Park singer Chester Bennington, actor and 30 Seconds to Mars vocalist Jared Leto has penned a beautiful tribute to the fallen rock star.

Along with a photo of Bennington, Leto wrote, "When I think of Chester I remember his smile... His laughter, intelligence, kindness and talent. That absolutely unforgettable voice that was at once - delicate, ferocious and always full of emotion."

Up Next: Linkin Park Filmed 'Carpool Karaoke' a Week Before Chester Bennington's Death

He continued, "Witnessing his life taught me a lot. Especially about commitment, about kindness, about hard work, about the pursuit and achievement of dreams and mostly, about love. I know that both his family and his band were a massive source of inspiration and pride for him.

Finally, he said, "It was clear to me that he was deeply grateful for both the people that surrounded him and the life that he had. My heart goes out to his family, friends, band and fans. A tragic loss of an absolute legend. We will miss you."

Leto's message is a far-cry for the one written about Bennington from Korn guitarist Brian "Head" Welch.

Welch took to Facebook after Bennington's suicide to write, "Honestly, Chester's an old friend who we've hung with many times, and I have friends who are extremely close to him, but this is truly pissing me off! How can these guys send this message to their kids and fans?!"

"I'm sick of this suicide s--t! I've battled depression/mental illness, and I'm trying to be sympathetic, but it's hard when you're pissed! Enough is enough! Giving up on your kids, fans, and life is the cowardly way out!!!" his message continued.

More: Linkin Park Cancels Tour After Chester Bennington's Death

He finished, writing, "I'm sorry, I know meds and/or alcohol may have been involved, I'm just processing like all of us and I know we are all having some of the same thoughts/feelings."

Many people did not take kindly to his seemingly harsh tone, as one commenter wrote, "I have lost whatever respect I had for you," and another said, "Calling it 'cowardly' shows a lack of empathy, understanding and love."

Eventually, Welch half-backtracked on his statement and posted a separate message, saying, "I didn't mean to sound insensitive about Chester. Just dealing with a range of emotions today. Love you Chester. I'm pissed that you did this, but I know this could have been me back in the day after getting wasted one night."

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