Back in the spring, Orgy frontman Jay Gordon addressed a rumour that Linkin Park were making a comeback after mostly being on hiatus since the tragic 2017 death of vocalist Chester Bennington. Gordon said on the radio that he had heard the band were regrouping with a "girl singer" — words he quickly took back when his commentary went viral, claiming his remarks were "taken out of context."
Later that month, someone asked Amy Lee if she was Linkin Park's new singer, and although she wasn't, she seemed kind of down despite concerns about her ability to commit the necessary time, given her Evanescence duties. Billboard subsequently reported that the band really were considering a 2025 reunion tour, with their booking agency WME weighing offers.
This weekend, Linkin Park launched a countdown clock for 100 hours on their website, which they shared across social media channels. That timer is set to run out tomorrow (August 28) — which just so happens to be when Sum 41's Deryck Whibley is set to make an announcement. Coincidence? Maybe! But also, maybe not!
UPDATE (08/27): A statement in response to the conjecture shared by Sum 41 via X, ostensibly authored by Whibley, reads, "I am not joining Oasis... or Linkin Park. Or any other band for that matter. I have my own 'tour and book' announcement that I will now move to the end of the week, ahead of our US tour."
As we all know, Sum 41 are coming to an end, having released their final album Heaven :x: Hell in March — a year after they announced they would be disbanding after one last LP. They're scheduled to finish an extensive international farewell tour in Canada next January.
Whibley is also scheduled to release his memoir, Walking Disaster, in November, so many are suspicious that he might just be announcing a book tour tomorrow. But despite not being a woman, his joining forces with Linkin Park wouldn't be completely out of left field: the Scarborough-hailing musician performed at Bennington's tribute concert in October 2017, and the band's Mike Shinoda linked up with Sum 41 to cover "Faint" from 2003's Meteora at Reading Festival in 2018.