Linkin Park made history at Download Festival 2026 by closing the event as the first female-fronted band to headline the festival. For labels, publishers, and rights holders, the set was also a reminder of how legacy acts can still drive major live attention around a band’s catalog, lineup changes, and future releases.
A landmark night at Donington Park
Mike Shinoda, Emily Armstrong and the rest of Linkin Park headlined the final night of Download at Donington Park on Sunday, June 14, marking a UK exclusive for the band. It was their first performance at the event since 2014, when they last played Donington Park with Chester Bennington fronting the group.
Armstrong’s addition made her the first woman to headline Download, a moment some fans described as “breaking barriers.” Shinoda acknowledged the milestone from the stage, joking that Armstrong “hates this kind of attention,” before inviting the crowd to form a women-only mosh pit for “Two Faced.”
The comeback line-up stayed at the center
The headline set came after a divisive comeback in 2024, seven years after Bennington’s death. Shinoda previously described the culture of the new line-up as the “best we’ve had,” while also saying this version of Linkin Park was “not about erasing the past.”
Alongside Armstrong, drummer Colin Brittain has joined the band following the departure of founding member Rob Bourdon. Founding guitarist Brad Delson is absent from the comeback tour, but is still working with the group on new music.
The setlist mixed eras and pointed to what’s next
The band played a long set that included “The Emptiness Machine,” “In the End,” “Numb,” “Faint,” and “One Step Closer,” along with “Where’d You Go” as a Fort Minor cover. A short teaser trailer for their forthcoming film Unshatter also played during the show, with Shinoda saying in it that “the hardest part of ending is starting up again.”
Linkin Park’s Download 2026 setlist was:
“The Emptiness Machine,” “Lying From You,” “Crawling,” “Up From the Bottom,” “Somewhere I Belong,” “The Catalyst,” “Burn It Down,” “Where’d You Go” (Fort Minor cover), “Waiting for the End,” “Two Faced,” “A Place for My Head,” “IGYEIH,” “One Step Closer,” “Lost,” “Breaking the Habit,” “Overflow,” “What I’ve Done,” “Numb,” “Heavy Is the Crown,” “Bleed It Out,” “Papercut,” “In the End,” and “Faint.”
What to watch next: the band’s forthcoming film Unshatter, plus any new music tied to the comeback line-up and Delson’s ongoing work with the group.
For editorial consideration and industry coverage inquiries, contact [email protected]
