LINKIN PARK's MIKE SHINODA Explains Why BRAD DELSON Isn't Touring With The Band

Guitarist Brad Delson is still a part of Linkin Park in the studio and behind the scenes, but you won't be seeing him out on tour with the band. Delson is being filled in for by guitarist Alex Feder, who already made his live debut with the group.

So why isn't Delson playing with Linkin Park live anymore? Linkin Park mastermind Mike Shinoda explained in an interview with Zach Sang Show that Delson's life doesn't quite jive with touring constantly anymore. Which is fair – people's priorities change, and it seems like that works just fine for Linkin Park.

"In case anybody doesn't understand the dynamic, our guitarist Brad is our guitarist — he's in the band — but he's realized that in terms of his… It's kind of a mental health thing. He doesn't love the touring and the live show lifestyle, and so he is our guitarist, but he's not playing live," said Shinoda.

"So he's chosen… he found a guy named Alex who's spectacular, a really good guitarist and they get along great, and Brad chose Alex to play his parts live. But at the time, we hadn't met Alex, and so we asked [drummer and producer Colin Brittain]. I was, like, 'Brad needs somebody to play guitar, and we need a drummer. You do both equally well. What would you wanna do?' And he was just like a kid in a candy store. I think he said, 'I can't believe what you're asking me right now.' He was so excited."

You'll have plenty of chances to see Linkin Park live in 2025, as they've recently announced a massive world tour. The tour features Linkin Park headlining with guests Queens Of The Stone Age, Spiritbox, AFI, Architects, grandson, Jean Dawson, JPEGMAFIA, and PVRIS on select dates. Tickets are available here.

1/31 Estadio GNP Seguros Mexico City, MX (+ AFI)
2/3 Estadio 3 de Marzo Guadalajara, MX (+ AFI)
2/5 Estadio Banorte Monterrey, MX (+ AFI)
2/11 Saitama Super Arena Tokyo, JP
2/12 Saitama Super Arena Tokyo, JP
2/16 Venue TBA Jakarta, ID
4/12 Sick New World Festival Las Vegas, NV
4/26 Moody Center Austin, TX (+ grandson)
4/28 BOK Center Tulsa, OK (+ grandson)
5/1 Van Andel Arena Grand Rapids, MI (+ grandson)
5/3 CFG Bank Arena Baltimore, MD (+ grandson)
5/6 Lenovo Center Raleigh, NC (+ grandson)
5/8 Bon Secours Wellness Arena Greenville, SC (+ grandson)
5/10 Sonic Temple Columbus, OH
5/17 Welcome to Rockville Daytona, FL
6/12 Novarock Festival -Nickelsdorf, AT
6/14 Rock for People Festival Hradec Kralove, CZ
6/16 Heinz-Von-Heiden Arena Hannover, DE (+ Architects)
6/18 Olympiastadion Berlin, DE (+ Architects)
6/20 Bernexpo Bern, CH
6/24 I-DAYS Festival Milan, IT
6/26 Gelredome Arnhem, NL (+ Spiritbox)
6/28 Wembley Stadium London, UK (+ Spiritbox & JPEGMAFIA)
7/1 Merkur Spiel Arena Dusseldorf, DE (+ Architects & JPEGMAFIA)
7/3 Rock Werchter Festival Werchter, BE
7/5 Open’er Festival Gdynia, PL
7/8 Deutsche Bank Park Frankfurt, DE (+ Architects & JPEGMAFIA)
7/11 Stade de France Paris, FR
7/29 Barclays Center Brooklyn, NY (+ PVRIS)
8/1 TD Garden Boston, MA (+ PVRIS)
8/3 Prudential Center Newark, NJ (+ PVRIS)
8/6 Bell Centre Montreal, QC (+ PVRIS)
8/8 Scotiabank Arena Toronto, ON (+ PVRIS)
8/11 United Center Chicago, IL (+ PVRIS)
8/14 Little Caesars Arena Detroit, MI (+ PVRIS)
8/16 Wells Fargo Center Philadelphia, PA (+ Jean Dawson)
8/19 PPG Paints Arena Pittsburgh, PA (+ Jean Dawson)
8/21 Bridgestone Arena Nashville, TN (+ Jean Dawson)
8/23 Enterprise Center St. Louis, MO (+ Jean Dawson)
8/25 Fiserv Forum Milwaukee, WI (+ Jean Dawson)
8/27 Target Center Minneapolis, MN (+ Jean Dawson)
8/29 CHI Health Center Omaha, NE (+ Jean Dawson)
8/31 T-Mobile Center Kansas City, MO (+ Jean Dawson)
9/3 Ball Arena Denver, CO (+ Jean Dawson)
9/6 Footprint Center Phoenix, AZ (+ Jean Dawson)
9/13 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles, CA (+ Queens Of The Stone Age & JPEGMAFIA)
9/15 SAP Center San Jose, CA (+ JPEGMAFIA)
9/17 Golden 1 Center Sacramento, CA (+ JPEGMAFIA)
9/19 Moda Center Portland, OR (+ JPEGMAFIA)
9/21 Rogers Arena Vancouver, BC (+ JPEGMAFIA)
9/24 Climate Pledge Arena Seattle, WA (+ JPEGMAFIA)
10/26 Venue TBA Bogota, CO
10/29 Venue TBA Lima, PE
11/1 Venue TBA Buenos Aires, AR
11/5 Venue TBA Santiago, CL
11/8 Venue TBA Rio de Janeiro, BR
11/10 Venue TBA São Paulo, BR
11/13 Venue TBA Brasilia, BR
11/15 Venue TBA Porto Alegre, BR