Linkin Park

Delson, Shinoda and Bourdon effectively started Linkin Park at High School in Southern California, but the band wasn't completed until Shinoda met Joe Hahn at art school and Chester Bennington was brought in to replace original singer Mark Wakefield. For a long time they struggled for recognition, changing their name from Xero to Hybrid Theory to Linkin Park - a play on Lincoln Park in Santa Monica - but a gig at LA's famous Whiskey club persuaded the Warners label to sign them. Their enlightened combination of driving hard rock, samples and electronica made a big impact and their 2000 debut album Hybrid Theory, produced by Don Gilmore, featured in the movies Dracula 2000, Little Nicky and Valentine sold nearly 5 million copies in its first year, produced three hit singles and got them nominated for three Grammies. Subsequent albums were equally successful and their spectacular stage show made them one of the world's biggest bands.