Rob Bourdon

American drummer

Alternative rock
alternative metal
electronic rock
nu metal

Occupation(s)DrummerYears active1996–presentMember ofLinkin ParkFormerly ofRelative DegreeWebsitelinkinpark.com

Musical artist

Robert Gregory Bourdon (born January 20, 1979)^[1]^[2] is an American musician, best known as the drummer and co-founding member of the rock band Linkin Park.^[3]

Early life

Bourdon was born in Calabasas, California.^[1] He received classical piano lessons at a young age.^[4] He was inspired to play the drums after attending an Aerosmith concert, where he was personally introduced to drummer Joey Kramer.^[4]^[5] He also cites Tower of Power and Earth, Wind and Fire as his early influences.^[5] Bourdon attended Agoura High School in Agoura Hills where he met future bandmates Brad Delson and Mike Shinoda, in the high school's jazz band.^[5] Bourdon waited tables at a restaurant and worked as a party coordinator at a bowling alley prior to becoming a full-time musician.^[6] He attended Santa Monica College where he studied accounting.^[6]

Career

Bourdon and Brad Delson formed their own band, Relative Degree.^[5] The band played a sell-out concert at the Roxy Theatre before breaking up.^[5]

Bourdon later joined Delson and Mike Shinoda to form Linkin Park, then known as Xero, in 1996.^[6] The band enjoyed mainstream success with their debut album Hybrid Theory (2000), which would later go on to become 12× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.^[6] Bourdon served as Linkin Park's drummer for seven studio albums and many international tours.^[6] Beyond drums and percussion, he also handled the band's business operations with Delson and Dave Farrell.^[4] Bourdon injured his back during the production of the band's sixth studio album, The Hunting Party, after playing for 10 hours a day for 7 consecutive days but later recovered.^[7] He remained with Linkin Park through 2017, when the band went on hiatus following the death of front man and vocalist Chester Bennington.^[8]

Musical influences

Bourdon's musical influences include Led Zeppelin, Tower of Power, Aerosmith, The Police, Bad Religion, Steely Dan, System of a Down, Incubus, and Dave Matthews Band.^[9]

Personal life

Bourdon resides in Los Angeles.^[10] He is Jewish.^[11]

Discography

With Linkin Park

Hybrid Theory (2000)
Meteora (2003)
Minutes to Midnight (2007)
A Thousand Suns (2010)
Living Things (2012)
The Hunting Party (2014)
One More Light (2017)

References

^ ^a ^b Quirarte, Xavier (October 24, 2020). "'Hybrid Theory': 20 años de un disco explosivo de Linkin Park". Milenio (in Spanish). Retrieved December 5, 2022.
^ Spatu, Madan Gupta. "The year ahead". The Tribune (Chandigarh). Retrieved December 11, 2020.
^ "Rob Bourdon Injured Back During Recording Marathon". World Entertainment News Network. Contactmusic.com. April 30, 2014. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c Young, Simon (October 23, 2015). "Linkin Park, you're a nu metal boy band. Discuss". Metal Hammer. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Rob Bourdon". Remo.com. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e David, Fricke (March 14, 2002). "Linkin Park: David Fricke Talks to Chester Bennington About 'Hybrid Theory' Success". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
^ Keeble, Edward (May 1, 2014). "Rob Bourdan Injured After Rocking Too Hard". Gigwise. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
^ Linzinmeir, Taylor (April 23, 2022). "Mike Shinoda — Linkin Park Have 'No Plans' for New Music". Loudwire. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
^ Micallef, Ken (September 2014). "Rob Bourdon" (PDF). Modern Drummer. p. 48. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
^ Micallef, Ken (May 18, 2007). "Rob Bourdon: Midnight Confessions". ModernDrummer.com. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
^ Chessler, Suzanne (June 18, 2009). "Rothbury Redux". The Detroit Jewish News. University of Michigan. Retrieved December 5, 2022.