Southern California band Linkin Park, which has already made a name for itself with the debut album "Hybrid Theory," will help cement the group's growing popularity with its first-ever headlining tour.

The band - Chester Bennington (vocals), Mike Shinoda (vocals), Brad Delson (guitar), Joseph Hahn (DJ/samples) and Rob Bourdon (drums) - combines a hard rock foundation with hip-hop and electronic touches

Regarding the eclectic nature of the band's sound, Delson responds: "We told our manager, 'Pick a band and we can tour with them.' Our music reaches out in so many directions that there's pretty much an unlimited amount of cool bands with which we could play."

As for the group's origins, Delson and Shinoda went to the same high school together, where Delson also met Bourdon. Shinoda found Hahn while studying painting at the Pasadena Art Center, with Bennington eventually rounding out the quintet.

"Since I learned how to talk, I've been telling everybody I was gonna grow up to be a singer," recalls Bennington. "When I was two, I used to run around singing Foreigner songs - there's tapes of me doing that." - Chester Bennington.

While we wait for those tapes to land on Napster, fans can hear the band on their current tour, which also features Taproot.

"I've wanted to do this my whole life, and I feel really blessed to be here," says Bennington. "A lot of hard work and dedication and faith can get you through anything and make it happen."