Chester Bennington’s suicide has shocked everyone. His passing is terrible and I can only wish peace for his family and friends. He left behind many people.

I saw Linkin Park once. The 2004 Projekt Revolution Tour. One of the best shows I’ve ever seen, the sold out crowd of something like 12,000 people were in a trance for the entire thing. Their fan base adored (and still adores) them and the band played in kind. A feedback loop of energy that’s impossible to forget. Chester was a major part of that and he positively affected countless people.

From the outside, you think success is all you need in life to be happy. Fame couldn’t hurt either, an acknowledgment that people dig what you do. Since 2000, Linkin Park has gone strong and remained incredibly popular so it’s easy to assume they’re all perfectly happy people. It’s never that simple. Chester survived abuse as a child and that followed him his entire life. Drug abuse and depression were a part of his life, unfortunately. He wore his heart on his sleeve in his songwriting but I guess he hid his deepest scars from everyone as long as he could.

If anything, this is another reminder that we need each other. Don’t keep it all to yourself, talk and others can and will listen and help.