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Linkin Park's rapper, Mike Shinoda, parlayed his success in rock, and mixed music genres last year when he formed hip-hop group Fort Minor. And now, he’s moving to a whole new avenue of expression -- art.
As Shinoda and his Linkin Park cohorts put the finishing touches on their next album, the rapper is showed off his painting at a recent art show at Gallery 1988 in Hollywood, California.
According to the Associated Press, Shinoda studied to be graphic designer before shooting to music stardom. So now, he felt time to display his art, which is influenced by things he enjoyed as a child.
"I'm influenced by comic books, newspaper comics, cartoons I used to watch on Saturday morning. Mix that with the Japanese ancestry and the fact that I've always loved graffiti art as well... I want to ride that balance between something that looks kind of funny and fun, and also is not happy. There's a creepiness to it," Shinoda explained of his art.
His works are a bit messy -- he likes to paint fast -- and are filled with gambling imagery, which he says is inspired by the unpredictability of his career.
"You can't bank on it," said the rapper. "My whole career, my whole schedule from week to week, I can never tell you what's going to be going on. I don't know when the Linkin Park album's coming out. I don't know where I'm going to be in January. I can never tell you anything."
Shinoda displayed 28 of his pieces at the recent show.
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