In 2017, the rock music community lost one of its greatest singers, Chester Bennington, to suicide. Since that time until this year, Chester’s band, Linkin Park, was said to be on hiatus, rather than just break up completely. Finally, less than a week ago, we learned that the band had finally hired a new lead singer, Emily Armstrong.
WHO???
I’d never heard of her, at all. And it seems her sudden appearance was a shock to many others too, but not for the reasons you’d think were obvious.
So she was a Scientologist. Does that mean she should be condemned for her past? I am an ex-Baha’i and I would think it unfair for me to be condemned for being a Baha’i if I joined a famous rock band. I’d want to be known for what I am NOW, a Unitarian Universalist. Likewise, Armstrong should be known for what she is NOW. I mean, has she made any statements defending the Church of Scientology lately?
As for her singing for Linkin Park:
She does well enough to satisfy me, but she may not win over hardcore fans who still miss Chester Bennington. But the band Linkin Park will live on, just as AD/DC did after losing Bon Scott and Metallica did after losing bassist Cliff Burton and both bands became even more successful later. So let’s watch and see what happens.
Dale Husband's Intellectual Rants 
In terms of voice and showmanship, Ivo Rosario would be a better choice for Linkin Park to resonate with their fans: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bu0VIiCGEHw
Impressive! He even resembles Chester too!
I just hope some of the backlash at Emily Armstrong isn’t because she is a woman. Only idiots would claim that women can’t rock as hard as men. They can and have!
From what I read on forums and watched on YouTube, the backlash is generally about Chester being irreplaceable (regardless of gender) and that it’s disrespectful to his memory and the hardcore fans for Mike Shinoda (the band member) to do that.
They see Linkin Park’s voice is forever Chester’s, so in that case, even Ivo Rosario or anyone else may not cut it either.
I can understand that sentiment—it’s less severe than replacing another team member like Linkin Park’s drummer Rob Bourdon, who left the ban after Chester’s demise.
And now, even their guitarist Brad Delson has just left the band.
Chester’s son is also unhappy about the voice replacement; according to him, Mike Shinoda has blocked him from asking about it.
Hardcore fans would be okay with a vocal replacement if Mike had changed the band’s name and moved on with that.
They see it as Mike using Linkin Park’s name to stay relevant and profit from it.