Ex-Linkin Park Bassist Sues the Band Over Hybrid Theory Royalties
The surviving members of Linkin Park are being sued by a former band mate who claims that he didn’t receive any credit or royalties from the release of the band’s 1999 debut album Hybrid Theory even though he was apparently involved in its conception.
According to initial reports by Bloomberg Law and Rolling Stone regarding the lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California earlier this week, former bassist Kyle Christner alleged that he had “collaborated on and recorded numerous songs with the band” early on. And while he’s not credited in the final version of the album, he claims that with the release of the 20th anniversary of the album, he’s owed royalties and some credit for his efforts.
Apparently, Christner says the anniversary edition of Hybrid Theory includes “many tracks” that he contributed to, including a previously unreleased track called “Could Have Been.” That track alone has been streamed on Spotify more than two million times, while the official YouTube upload of the track has nearly another million views.
Despite all that, Christner alleges that he’s “never been paid a penny for his work with Linkin Park, nor has he been properly credited, even as [his former bandmates] have benefited from his creative efforts.” He also alleges that his name was removed from the Hybrid Theory EP that was reissued in 2001 for fan club members, which was also included in that 20th anniversary edition of the band’s debut album.
The lawsuit also suggests that the band may have kept Christner’s bass tracks all these years, even though he’s once again not credited in the box set at all:
“Though Christner was once under the misimpression that his bass parts were re-recorded on the EP after he left the band, he has, upon closer review, identified his bass playing on the edition of the EP included in the box set.”
All in all, the lawsuit alleges that Christner played on: “Could Have Been,” “She Couldn’t,” “Chair,” and “Step Up.” He also alleges that his bass tracks can be heard on tracks 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 of Forgotten Demos, tracks 1, 2, 7, 13, 14, 16, 17 of LPU Rarities, and track 7 of B-Side Rarities, as well as the Hybrid Theory EP.
The only mention Christner gets in the box set is apparently a single line on Forgotten Demos where he’s credited as “additional bass by Kyle Christner.”
Truth be told, there’s a whole lot going on in this lawsuit, including the allegation that Christner had been contacted by a member of the band’s management team around April 2023 to “discuss some royalties due from the Hybrid Theory 20th Anniversary release.” The contact was made in writing and the representative allegedly said Christner was due “mechanical royalties for 3 demos and the 6-song Hybrid Theory EP that you performed on.”
After suggesting he should be credited and should actually receive royalties on more tracks, the lawsuit alleges that the bassist was contacted by the band’s attorney. Shortly after that, the band’s management denied that Christner was found anywhere in the box set with the only “possible exception” being “Could Have Been.”
The lawsuit, naturally, takes issue with that apparent turn of events.
“In other words, after admitting that Christner played on at least some tracks included in the box set and admitting that Christner was entitled to at least some ‘mechanical’ royalties, which are royalties paid for compositions, Defendants repudiated Christner’s co-authorship and co-ownership of the works at issue.”
Ultimately, Christner wants the courts to determine who wrote and owns the songs in question, as well as an accounting of all the profits generated by those songs. Once that’s done, Christner is asking for back royalties, interest, and attorney’s fees.
