John Mayer has stated on Twitter that he supports Justin Bieber canceling the remainder of his North American tour, especially in light of the recent deaths of musicians like Linkin Park and Stone Temple Pilots frontman Chester Bennington and Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell.
“When someone pulls remaining dates of a tour, it means they would have done real damage to themselves if they kept going.”
He added, “We’ve lost so many great artists lately. I give Justin ???? for realizing it was time to call it. You should too.”
Mayer wrote in May, “Thinking about Chris Cornell today. An incredibly talented and inventive singer. RIP. ?”
See another touching tribute from a Linkin Park confidante below the tweets.
When someone pulls remaining dates of a tour, it means they would have done real damage to themselves if they kept going. 1/2
— John Mayer (@JohnMayer) July 24, 2017
We've lost so many great artists lately. I give Justin ???? for realizing it was time to call it. You should too. 2/2
— John Mayer (@JohnMayer) July 24, 2017
Thinking about Chris Cornell today. An incredibly talented and inventive singer. RIP. ?
— John Mayer (@JohnMayer) May 18, 2017
Former Warner Bros. A&R Exec Jeff Blue rembered Chester Bennington and Linkin Park’s early days in a new Billboard article.
“In 1999, attorney Scott Harrington suggested Chester from a band called Grey Daze in Phoenix as a possible new lead singer to complement Mike Shinoda. We called Chester and asked him if he wanted to make history by being the next big vocalist in a band that no one had heard of… yet.
Into my office walked a kid with Coke-bottle glasses; a glittery, button-down black shirt two sizes too big; spiked black hair; and an unstoppable smile from ear to ear that lit up the room. I couldn’t believe the voice I heard on the demo came out of the shy kid sitting before me.
It took a couple of months for the band to jell, but the magic was there. Chester embraced his vulnerability and inner conflict, and his image soon reflected his powerful voice that would reach so many.
The band, which was now going by Hybrid Theory, rehearsed out of a room with broken water pipes on Sunset Boulevard. I invited label reps, all of whom had previously passed on the band, to see the new version. Although he was performing in a small, leaky room in front of an audience of only one person, Chester treated it as a stadium filled with 50,000 fervent fans. While screaming his signature lungs out, he would sing within inches of the A&R executive’s nose. You could feel his breath on your cheeks. He had the confidence to put his soul out there, telling his story the only way he could: in your face. You either got it or you didn’t.
And still, every label passed. But the rejection only served to fuel the band’s determination. For some reason, the labels didn’t hear Mike’s exceptional writing, Chester’s soaring melodies, the band’s well-crafted dynamics and the undeniable chemistry between Chester and Mike. But the fans soon would.
Several labels pursued me to do A&R after I secured a deal for Macy Gray, whom I developed at Zomba. I insisted that I bring Hybrid Theory under my new contract as my first signing. The one label executive who was truly interested in Hybrid Theory was Warner Bros.’ Joe McEwen. Despite being the smallest offer, I knew the label provided the perfect environment for the band to thrive.”
