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Mysterious Linkin Park Countdown Clock Ends, Starts Counting Up

Mary Varvaris

Some fans believe Linkin Park will release new music or make an official announcement next Thursday (5 September).

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After four days, Linkin Park’s mysterious countdown clock came to an end today (at approximately 4:15 am AEST), but instead of sharing a big reveal, it started counting upwards.

On Sunday (25 August), Linkin Park posted a countdown clock on their website and social media channels that started counting down from 100 hours.

Fans have eagerly waited and speculated that the countdown would lead to the band announcing a reunion tour with a new singer.

Yesterday (28 August), Sum 41 singer Deryck Whibley dispelled rumours that he might be the new singer of Linkin Park after he revealed he’d be making an announcement on the same day that Linkin Park were set to end the countdown.

Now, the clock is going up, and no one really knows what’s going on. We’re still three years away from the 20th anniversary of the band’s third album, Minutes To Midnight, so that’s ruled out.

However, towards the end of the countdown, the clock glitched, with fans noticing that a snippet posted on Linkin Park’s socials started at 00:00:05 and ended at 00:00:09. This led some to believe that new music or some official announcement would arrive next Thursday (5 September).

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Check out the video below and keep up with Linkin Park’s timer here.

Earlier this year, it was reported that Linkin Park were planning a 2025 tour and apparently looking to recruit a female vocalist. According to a recent Billboard report, the band’s booking agency, WME, was supposedly taking offers for concerts and festivals featuring band members Mike Shinoda, Brad Delson, and Dave Farrell.

Back in February, Linkin Park released an unreleased song called Friendly Fire featuring the vocals of Chester Bennington, who died by suicide in July 2017.

The song was recorded during Linkin Park’s One More Light sessions, their final album, which was released in 2017, just two months before Bennington’s passing. Like many songs on One More Light, Friendly Fire is driven by synth-pop influence and showcases the group’s—and Bennington’s—softer side. The band then released a greatest hits album called Papercuts.