Bennington’s And Cornell’s Deaths Fit Into Alarming Suicide Statistics


Linkin Park’s Chester Bennington was found dead from what appears to be a suicide. It appears the 41-year-old singer hanged himself at a Palos Verdes Estates private residence, which is in Los Angeles. The coroner confirmed that the death of Chester Bennington is being investigated as a suicide.

Bennington’s body was discovered around noon, just a few hours after the band released a new music video online, “Talking To Myself,” which can be seen below. The song is off their new album, One More Light.

Bennington’s suicide comes on the heels of another devastating suicide in the music industry; the suicide of Soundgarden singer and Bennington’s friend Chris Cornell back in May shook Bennington to his core. He penned a farewell letter to his friend Chris, one that really tore at the heartstrings of the music community.

According to an earlier article from the Inquisitr, Chester Bennington killed himself on Chris Cornell’s birthday, which is leaving a lot of people asking if this date was picked deliberately or if this is the day that the pain just got too much to bear for Bennington. Cornell also ended his life by hanging just an hour or so after he sang a “poignant final song” at a concert, reports The Sun.

The 52-year-old was found in his hotel room just an hour after a concert. His wife called a friend with the band and asked that they check on him. This is when they found him dead in his hotel room’s bathroom. At Chris’s funeral, Bennington sang Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.”

Both Chester and Chris died too young, and both were filled with enough despair to drive them to this very final action. Neither of the two musicians gave any indication that they were about to take their own lives, according to reports. Chris died after singing a song at a concert that did have some eerie lyrics about death, which is what many online appeared to read into the horrific event at the time, according to reports.

Chester’s band Linkin Park just released a new music video which featured clips of Chester singing. Both men were involved in their music up to the final hours of their deaths. Linkin Park was due to start a new tour next week.

When Cornell died, Bennington penned a letter that offered up some insights at how Bennington viewed death. He hoped Cornell would find peace “in his next life,” which would suggest Bennington believed when leaving this plane, it was not the end of existence.

It is not known in what capacity Bennington believed in a “next life,” so it remains unknown on just how Bennington saw what his death might bring him in a “next life.” The letter he penned to his friend is seen below.

Suicide by middle-aged men has seen a drastic increase in recent years, according to NBC News. The suicide statistics are alarming in this nation. The Centers for Disease Control reports that 121 Americans end their own lives each day. Ninety-three out of the 121 Americans are men. This means that both Bennington and Cornell were one of more than 100 people who chose to end their own lives on the same day that they did.

According to the statistics, seven out of 10 Americans who commit suicide are white, male, and between the ages of 45 and 65. Suicide by middle-aged men is considered a “silent crisis” in this nation. Their deaths often come as a total surprise to their loved ones because no signs of mental health issues were seen.

The fans of Chester Bennington took to the social media sites to share their grief, their shock, and their sorrow for the passing of a talented music man. The posts are vast and they include the fans, other musicians, and celebrities, all saying their goodbyes in their own way. Many had suggestions that there were underlying mental health issues and pain that were not seen, much like what the suicide statistics indicate.

If you or someone you know feels the need to speak with a mental health professional, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.

[Featured Image by Mooinblack/Shutterstock]

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