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Linkin Park's Early Success Sparked Rumours That They Were A 'Manufactured Boy Band'

Neil Griffiths

"Those guys didn't, like, grow up at junior high school together making music... and we were!"

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The global success of Linkin Park's 2000 debut album, Hybrid Theory, sparked rumours that the now-legendary group were in fact a "manufactured boy band".

Appearing on the latest episode of The Green Room with Neil Griffiths podcast to promote his latest solo album, Dropped Frames, founding member Mike Shinoda recalled the California-founded outfit wanting to prove themselves with follow-up effort, Meteora, released in 2003.

"We were just putting our heads down and making our second record... there was a rumour going around that we were a manufactured boy band," Shinoda told host Neil Griffiths.

"Like Backstreet Boys, or NSYNC, or New Kids On The Block or whatever. And no knock on those guys, but that was an industry created phenomenon and group.

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"Those guys didn't, like, grow up at junior high school together making music... and we were!"

He continued, "[Hybrid Theory] is huge and we're starting to write our next record and we realise, like, 'These people think that we were manufactured. We need to do it again to prove that we were the ones that did it in the first place.'"

Shinoda said the band would often field questions during print interviews on the rumour, which he said, "I think it was all from the UK".

"The question that they'd start the interview with was, 'It's been said that your band has been manufactured...' They would say, 'it's been said' and they were the ones who said it. They were the only ones who said it!


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"I was like, 'I don't believe it has been said and I don't believe that's a thing and I also don't appreciate that you're making a thing up or perpetuating this lie which is obviously hurtful to the band.'"

Linkin Park will celebrate the 20th anniversary of Hybrid Theory next month.

Check out the full The Green Room episode with Shinoda on Spotify, Apple Podcasts (below) or wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts.