From the executive director of music at Billboard an extensive look inside the 20+ year
career of mega-selling rock band Linkin Park featuring new interviews exclusive quotes and
insights from the band’s associates and collaborators Linkin Park is one of the 21st
Century’s biggest and most important rock bands. All it takes is one quick glance at the
numbers— 11 Top 40 hits on the Hot 100 and six No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200 over a dozen
massive tours 27 major award wins 100+ million records sold worldwide over 30 million
monthly Spotify listeners —to realize that when it comes to the metrics of music consumption
and fandom there’s no bigger group in recent memory. And yet despite their enduring legacy
within rock there’s never been a full comprehensive biography of Linkin Park—until now.
In IT STARTS WITH ONE: The Legend and Legacy of Linkin Park Billboard' s executive
director of music Jason Lipshutz chronicles the innovation and influence of this legendary
band from their early childhoods to the moment their paths crossed to the genesis of their
iconic first album Hybrid Theory and all that followed. Not only were they able to
synthesize trends in pop and hip-hop amidst the post-grunge era and nu metal boom then
constantly reinvent their sound over multiple albums Linkin Park’s radically vulnerable lyrics
also helped usher in a new era of artists (and fans) more open to discussing mental health and
prioritizing inclusivity. Led by their front men Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda who
balanced each other out artistically Linkin Park never shied away from songs that put their
issues front and center for the world to see and feel. Tragically Chester succumbed to his
demons and passed away in 2017 but the music endures—and in order to truly appreciate the
band’s singular power to bring people together we need to take a closer look at how exactly
Linkin Park changed popular music. Through in-depth reporting and interviews as well as
new reflections from their collaborators and contemporaries IT STARTS WITH ONE explores how
one band made such a big impact on modern music effectively cementing Linkin Park’s long
overdue place in music history.
