Linkin Park would have been an entirely different band in a different reality. Mike Shinoda and Chester Bennington would not interact because the former would not even be a member of the band. This would be a rather bad arrangement for the band, to be fair.

Mike Shinoda disclosed that this reality nearly materialized during an interview on the Mythical Kitchens’ Last Meals podcast. The band concept did not pique the interest of Linkin Park’s label:

“Record labels do their hardest to sell records when you’re young and new to the company. They seek to acquire the popular item. As they were developing ‘Hybrid Theory,’ they were not considering it. We were certain that it was good, so I can’t explain that. More significantly, we believed that this record accurately represented who we are.

“They took Chester to the studio by himself and said, ‘Look, man, this is all about you!'” Here, you are the star! Since we don’t understand what you people are producing, let’s just center this endeavor around you.”

The band’s newest member, Bennington, was already on board. As recalled by Shinoda:

As a member of a band, Chester had entered the group with that knowledge. What he wanted, in my opinion, was to be a member of the band because he liked them and was far more loyal to us than to them.

Bennington wasn’t holding back. Shinoda remembered his friend’s precise reaction to the label:

“He returned to us right away after that conversation and said, ‘This is what just happened.'” “Oh no,” we said, “thanks for letting us know.” “What did you say to them?” “I told them to screw themselves.”