The rock community is alive with speculation that Deryck Whibley, the lead singer of Sum 41, might be stepping into one of modern rock’s most iconic roles as Linkin Park’s new lead vocalist.
The rumor has gained major traction this week following cryptic social media posts from both bands, setting fans on high alert.
Sum 41 lit the fuse on Aug. 25, teasing a “Deryck Whibley announcement” scheduled for Wednesday morning (Aug. 28) PST.
Intriguingly, Linkin Park had launched a 100-hour countdown on their website just a day earlier, set to conclude simultaneously with Sum 41’s reveal. The highly coincidental timing has, of course, fueled intense speculation about a possible connection.
Linkin Park is one of the most successful rock groups from the 2000s, having sold more than 29.4 million albums in the United States, according to Luminate. The band has charted 24 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, including three top 10 hits: “In the End” in 2003, “What I’ve Done” in 2007 and “New Divide” in 2009.
However, since Chester Bennington’s tragic death in 2017, the band has been without a full-time lead vocalist.
Earlier this year, Billboard reported that the band was eyeing a 2025 reunion tour, with sources hinting at the possibility of a female vocalist taking the helm.
Orgy’s Jay Gordon fueled the whispers earlier this year when he mentioned hearing that the band might be bringing on a female singer. However, Gordon later clarified that his comments had been taken out of context, saying, “With regards to this Linkin Park singer thing. I know nothing about any of that.”
Whibley’s connection to Linkin Park runs deep. He performed at Bennington’s tribute concert in October 2017 and later, Mike Shinoda joined Sum 41 on stage at the 2018 Reading Festival for a cover of Linkin Park’s “Faint.”
However, when asked in 2022 about potentially filling Bennington’s shoes, Whibley was hesitant.
On The Jasta Show, he remarked, “I think that’s an impossible task… I think those are impossible shoes to fill. I don’t know if [Linkin Park is] ever gonna do anything. I have no idea what that’s gonna look like, or who that could be.”
Asked if he would join the band if the opportunity arose, he added, “That is such a non-possibility that it’s too weird to even, like, sort of joke-think about it.”
“I don’t know how someone could fill those shoes,” he added “I think it would be tough.”
Fan reactions to the possibility of Whibley joining Linkin Park have been mixed. On Reddit, one fan expressed concern: “I just worry he’ll be too similar to Chester that he’ll fall short.” Another offered a more optimistic view: “He couldn’t do the super screaming songs but could handle most of the setlist.”
However, there’s also optimism among fans, with one user noting, “Deryck honestly sounds pretty good on [Faint]… interesting.”
Whibley’s life and career are at a pivotal moment, not just due to the speculation about Linkin Park but also because of his recently announced memoir, Walking Disaster: My Life Through Heaven and Hell, set to be released on Oct. 8 via Gallery Books.
The memoir chronicles the rocker’s journey through the highs and lows of his life, both personally and with Sum 41.
“Ten years ago, I found myself on the brink of death in a hospital bed,” Whibley said in a statement about the book’s release.
“Surviving that moment, I made a promise to myself: I would fight harder than ever for this band and strive to become the best version of myself. Today, I’m proud to say that Sum 41 is experiencing the greatest success in our career, with our biggest hits on the radio and performing at the largest shows of our lives.”
He continued, “This book is the story of that journey—through the good, the bad, and the really fucking ugly. It’s about how I fought my way back, the battles I faced along the way, and how I turned those struggles into the fuel that powers everything I do now.”
To promote the memoir, Whibley will embark on a U.S. book tour in October, making stops in cities like Jersey City, Boston, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas.
In addition to his memoir, Whibley and Sum 41 are currently on their final tour, Tour of the Setting Sum, which kicked off earlier this year. The band will perform their largest show to date in Paris this November, followed by their final hometown shows in Toronto in January 2025.
Their latest and final double album, Heaven :x: Hell, has been a commercial success, featuring singles like “Landmines,” which topped Billboard’s Alternative Airplay chart, marking the band’s first No. 1 single since “Fat Lip” in 2001.
As the clock ticks down to the anticipated announcements, the rock community is on edge. Whether Whibley is about to join Linkin Park or something entirely different is in the works, fans are ready for the reveal.
See Linkin Park’s countdown post on YouTube here.
