The news shocked everyone. Linkin Park's Chester Bennington was dead at the age of 41 from suicide, with the musician taking his life on the birthday of his close friend Chris Cornell who had passed just a few months earlier, also from suicide. As the day continued, a wealth of comments came in from grief-stricken peers including one from Korn guitarist Brian "Head" Welch who offered an emotional reaction to suicide, stating that "giving up on your kids, fans and life is the cowardly way out." The guitarist received some backlash for his comments, which led him to later shoot a video to explain his reaction. With some separation from that day, the guitarist has addressed those comments with Detroit radio station WRIF, as heard in the player above.

Head states that he "meant no disrespect," and with the benefit of hindsight, he would have worded his message differently. "It was unfortunate. I spoke from a broken heart, a shattered heart, devastation and grief. And I would have worded it different," explained Head. "But when in the history of rock music, or even the music business, have we ever seen anything like that? [Both guys with] monster voices, such inspirations to so many. Chris Cornell ended his life [and I was] heartbroken. I wasn't close to him, but it was just like… [You would expect that from] people that are messed up in their lives — not this guy who has a family and is doing so well. And we heard stories, maybe it was the Ativan [a medication used to ease symptoms of anxiety] that did it. So tragic, right? So I started feeling okay after that, 'cause a couple of months passed, or whatever. We wake up and we all see this [news of] Chester [hanging himself] all over TMZ. I'm, like, 'This has gotta be a hoax. It's gotta be a hoax. It just can't be real.' Then I find out that it's actually true. And we were all devastated; you should have seen our faces. Just like the whole world, I bet, that knew of this guy. We were in shock. The whole band was talking about it."

The guitarist added, "What happened was I started grieving. I went and got alone. I went to my hotel room and just kind of was just in shock, thinking about reading everything. 'Are they sure? Are they sure they got it right?' And I was just over it. I'm, like, 'No more, man. Stop!' Two guys are dead now. They took their lives. And I hear that Chester took it on Chris Cornell's birthday. I freaked out. I'm, like, 'It's gotta stop.'"

Head stated that he will take the blame for his comments after Bennington's death. "It's my fault. But I would have worded it differently. 'Cause I'm honored to [have known Chester], and the Linkin Park guys are so amazing; they're so cool, man."

He adds, "Slash said it best. As I was tweeting, he said… he tweeted, 'An avalanche of emotions and feelings: sadness, anger, confusion, loss, heartbreak.' He says, 'I can go on, but loss and heartbreak reign here.' And I think I was going through all that stuff, and I did it online. So I learned not to process grief online. And apologies to any of his fans — I meant no disrespect. I was shattered, I was heartbroken and so sorry for my good friends that have been so close to him. But it's been over a week now. It's just a sad thing all around." Hear Head's full chat with Detroit's WRIF in the player above.

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