Jacoby Shaddix of Papa Roach Weighs in on Linkin Park Reunion
Jacoby Shaddix of Papa Roach shared his thoughts on the Linkin Park reunion, stating that it’s awesome that their music can be celebrated. During his appearance on The Bailey Show, following the announcement of the band’s comeback featuring Emily Armstrong as their co-vocalist, Shaddix was asked for his opinion on the band’s return by host Jason Bailey.
“I really like that new song [‘The Emptiness Machine’],” he said, via Blabbermouth. “I really like that new song they put out, man. I put that thing on repeat I was, like, I’m vibing.
“It’s trippy ’cause one of our producers, Colin Brittain, who I’ve been working with now for probably the last six [to] eight years, he’s playing drums in Linkin Park [now],” he continued. “He’s tripping. He’s just, like, ‘Dude, I got an opportunity that I can’t pass up.’ I’m, like, ‘Yeah, go do that, dude. People wanna hear this.’ And so it’s awesome that their music can be celebrated.”
Addressing the controversy surrounding Armstrong’s reception, which emerged after fans discovered her alleged connections to Scientology and her association with convicted r**ist Danny Masterson, Shaddix commented that he knew people are very polarized about this.
In response to the significant backlash, Armstrong has released a statement regarding her past support of Masterson. However, fans remain divided over her role in the band, with Chester Bennington’s mother recently expressing feelings of “betrayal” regarding the new line-up.
He continued to say the late singer “stepped in to carry that flag for rock and roll”, and “it makes sense why somebody would step in in his place and in his absence to carry that flag and to bring that message to the people, because it’s a hopeful message”.
The ‘Last Resort’ singer was asked if that was “the overall consensus” in the music world – that a band should continue with a revised line-up if a member is unable to continue – and Shaddix said: “It’s interesting, because as I saw them coming back with a new singer, it really kind of stirred some odd emotions in me, to be honest.
“I was just thinking about my own band and, like, ‘F*ck, man. If I die, do I want my band to continue this thing?’ And honestly, I’m torn. I don’t have a straight-up answer for it. I think it’s a bit different ’cause Linkin Park has two singers.
“And I don’t know, man. I don’t really have a straight answer for you on that. I don’t know. But I’ve got plans on sticking around. I don’t plan on going out anytime soon. Hopefully I outlive everybody. I’m a cockroach. I ain’t going nowhere.”
In other Linkin Park news, the band premiered a new track titled ‘Heavy Is The Crown’ in Hamburg earlier this week and performed on 24th September at London’s O2.
—Silviya.Y
