Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda Says 'Nobody Knew the Depths' of Chester Bennington's Mental Health Struggles

Mike Shinoda is opening up about how he felt after his Linkin Park bandmate Chester Bennington died by suicide in 2017.

During an appearance on SiriusXM's The Howard Stern Show on Tuesday, the Linkin Park co-founder opened up about what it was like losing Bennington.

"There were points where I felt that way … and that's natural," Shinoda, 46, said, explaining that he was angry. "There's different stages of grief and anger is in there."

Vivien Killilea Mike Shinoda

Shinoda then went on to detail what was going on behind the scenes with his former bandmate.

"Nobody knew the depths of it," the musician explained. "I've never met anybody with such a crazy childhood... just barely staying out of jail."

"It was hard, and in the midst of all that … he'd just go missing and come back obliterated, like you couldn't even talk to him," he remembered. "There was an element of Chester that was very fun sometimes when he was that way and then usually the next day it would be so dark. He's super hungover, he's angry at everybody, yelling at everybody."

RELATED: Linkin Park Will Release Previously Unheard Song That Includes Chester Bennington Vocals

TF-Images/Getty Linkin Park

After Bennington was gone, Shinoda wondered if he wanted to continue making music.

"For me, it just felt like too much," he told the host. "To get back on it and try to do some version of music and also be seen through the lens of what had happened … it was like being a member of a club that I didn't want to join."

RELATED VIDEO: Linkin Park Pays Tribute to 'Brother' Chester Bennington on First Anniversary of His Death

Earlier this month, the band dropped a previously unreleased single that included the voice of Bennington titled "Lost." The track also honored the 20th anniversary of the band's 2003 album Meteora.

"It's like an old photo," he said of the song during the interview. "It can be bittersweet but to have forgotten that it existed and then to hear it and be teleported back there, that's a gift."

Paul Archuleta/Getty Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda

Since then, they also announced a 20th anniversary of the album, which is set for release in April.

The band has mostly been on hiatus since October 2017's Linkin Park and Friends: Celebrate Life in Honor of Chester Bennington tribute concert.