Emily Armstrong, Linkin Park‘s new singer, has spoken about the late Chester Bennington’s legacy, saying she would “love to do him proud”.

On Friday, (September 6), Linkin Park announced their comeback through a livestream event, where they debuted Armstrong, formerly of Dead Sara, as their new singer.

The announcement followed weeks of speculation from fans after the band shared a mysterious countdown teasing potential news. Their surprise return saw them perform a new song, ‘The Emptiness Machine’, a few Linkin Park classics, and announce a new album ‘From Zero’ along with a short supporting world tour with six shows across the globe.

Now, Armstrong has spoken about the process of joining the band and what it means to follow in the footsteps of Bennington, who died in 2017.

Speaking to Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1, Armstrong said she was initially apprehensive about taking on the role. “I mean, there was a lot of feeling,” she said. “I definitely didn’t want to go there and be like, oh, I’m the singer, or I could be the singer. It was just like, what is good for this band as a fan? What would be the ideal voice or energy or what is that fit?

“I took myself out of the equation and I just looked at it as what could be a good fit? And I held onto that question for a bit as I was going in and singing and stuff,” she said. “That’s when the thoughts would trickle being like, ‘I mean, this would be really fun. This could work’. And then it’s like, oh my God, holy shit. When you start to have that moment, it’s like, whoa…”

The singer also shared her experiences as a fan of Linkin Park, saying that their 2000 debut album ‘Hybrid Theory’ was her “favourite”, during a period when she was starting to play in bands. “That was the moment where I was like, I want to sing and scream ‘One Step Closer’.

“I was like, I could do that. And at the time, I wasn’t even a good singer. I was a guitar player in a band, and I just loved being in a band and I was like, I could do that. So of course it gets to this point and just being like, this is crazy.”

She went on to say she “would’ve never imagined” becoming the new singer.

Lowe then asked her what role Bennington’s legacy plays in her rendition of the band’s older songs, to which she responded: “In the side of the feelings and the emotions of it, I would love to do him proud.”