Chester Bennington's 21-year-old son Draven has released his debut single, F w/ Me, in collaboration with producer Manny the Drummer, under the project name RVRND.
In addition to hitting streaming platforms, the song can be heard in the opening episode of new Paramount+ series Family Legacy, in which the children of iconic musical artists offer personal reflections and unique perspectives on the lives, influence and impact of their celebrated parents.
In an exclusive interview on HollywoodLife.com, Bennington states that he hopes to “change the narrative” about how his father, Linkin Park's late vocalist, is remembered.
“I think that we focus too much sometimes on the very end of everything," he says, "when there was his whole life and he had so many amazing things happen.”
“What he did and his creative outlet had such an impact on so many different people, and it was able to just save so many people,” the young musician adds. “I think that is the number one thing that I want people to remember him for, and then also just the amount of good times. I kind of want to change the narrative… I think that we focus too much sometimes on the very end of everything when there was his whole life and he had so many amazing things happen.
“The text messages that I get of people saying, 'I was backstage and we had the best conversation with your dad and he was so sweet.' That’s the stuff that I want people to remember. I don’t want people to sit and focus on the end all the time. Although I do think it’s a good conversation to have. I think it’s a necessary conversation to have, but shouldn’t be the thing we remember him as.”
Listen to F w/ Me below:
The musician posted on Instagram about his participation in the TV series, and made a similar point in regards to his father, who passed away in July 2017.
He writes: “Everyone was so sweet and genuine, and getting to see all the vaulted videos of my dad was amazing! It was so nice to get to share what I’m doing as well as talk about all of the amazing things that my dad did without focusing on the end! Lets talk about the happy memories instead of soaking in sad ones! Thank you all again from the bottom of my heart!”
