There's a good reason Linkin Park's original name was Hybrid Theory - the band's music incorporates several genres, including rap, rock, metal and alternative. This summer, the six-piece group is burning up the country coast-to-coast on the main stage at Ozzfest. Talk to vocalist Mike Shinoda about the group's past, present and future.

Comment from USATODAY.com host: There are literally hundreds of questions here for Mike, so let's go...

Fresno, CA: I used to be a huge rap freak and anything else used to suck. My friend made me listen to your music and now it's just Linkin Park and rap. How does it make you feel to know you've changed people's entire perspective on rock?

Mike Shinoda: That's very exciting! I think everybody in our band listens to all different kinds of music, and we like sharing that with other people. Hopefully, no matter what you listen to, there's something from another genre you can like.

Lahti, Finland: When you come to Finland! If you weren't in the band, then where do you thing you'd be now!!!

Mike: Everybody always asks when we're coming to their country, and unfortunately I don't have a specific answer. We'll be touring outside the U.S. for a two weeks, and then we'll be on the Family Values tour this winter. If I wasn't in a band, I'd be doing what I studied in college, which was graphic design and illustration.

Sofia, Bulgaria: Where can I find the lyrics of "My december"?

Mike: Good question! I should tell our guy to put them on our site. You can ask on our linkinpark.com message board. I'm sure one of our fan sites has lyrics posted.

Wigan, UK: Hey Mr. Mike Shinoda! I know you guys have a DVD coming out soon. I would like to know what is on the DVD, and the expected release date please?! Tony Eckersley, founder of the "Official Manchester GIG thread" on the official website!

Mike: There's no release date yet. It's coming out in the winter, probably late November. It's going to have all of our videos, including live videos from the U.K. (five in all), as well as backstage footage, other live stuff, interviews with the band, interviews with other bands, etc. We're also trying to put a feature on it where you can switch camera angles whle watching a show.

Miami, Florida: When exactly is the Hybrid Theory Remix coming out?

Mike: Hopefully in the early part of next year. Tentatively, let's say March.

Diamond Bar: Why did you guys change your name to Linkin Park?

Mike: Legal problems. There was another band with a name similar to Hybrid Theory. We're lucky it happened, because we like Linkin Park a lot better.

Garner, NC: What bands/artists have influenced Linkin Park?

Mike: Lots. Everyone from Run DMC to the Beatles to STP and Jane's Addiction to Prodigy, None Inch Nails, the list goes on.

Los Angeles, CA: How do you keep your voice from getting hurt when you belt out those songs such as "Crawling"? Great song by the way.

Mike: The heart of vocal work in that sense is done by Chester. Somehow he manages to play entire shows and not even get hoarse. I think part of it is he's singing with his diaphragm, which is important for every vocalist. He's also just built that way. Every vocalist has days where they're hoarse or their voice isn't up to where it should be. His voice is really strong.

Bettendorf, Iowa: HEY MIKE!! I was wondering, what cd's are in your cd player? Thanks so much, Haley.

Mike: The new Jimmy Eat World, D12, Sunny Day Real Estate, Helmet, and a bunch of other stuff.

Appleton, WI: If, I remember correctly some of you guys were Graphic Artisits before this gig, do you think your work in the communication mediums influenced your stand on the message in your music, as a GA myself, I tend to look deep into content also.

Mike: I think that studying art definitely prepared us for the music writing process in a great way. I used to be in classes with 30 other painters where we'd spend 40 hours on a project. Classmates would critique your work. You take the criticism and make your project better. It gives you an open mind when you're writing songs with people. Regarding lyrical content, craftsmanship is always an issue. I hope that the high-level craftsmanship I was taught worked its way into our music.

Porto, Portugal: Do you guys get nervous with the "second album pressure"? Rita

Mike: We are feeling pressure, but we don't feel nervous. Naturally the label and the media ask a lot of questions about the second album, but we spent a lot of our earlier years as a band learning how to write songs, which comes easily at this point.

Levittown, NY: When you are on tour with other bands, did you think of colaborating with them?

Mike: It's gone through our heads before. On our next album, I don't see that a cameo appearance by another artist would really work. We're open to doing things with other people -- for instance, I just did a track with the Executioners. It's called "It's Going Down", and it'll be on their album on Loud Records. It's a hip-hop track that I sampled some guitars on.

Penang, Malaysia: Hey Mike, can you write/speak/understand Japanese? Also, coming to Malaysia anytime soon? Love ya, Dyan

Mike: Unfortunately, I don't know that much Japanese. I want to learn, but it's hard to find that time.

Scituate, Rhode Island: Do you feel as though you're the 'Justin Timberlake' of the group? And if not, who would you say it would be?

Mike: Hahaha! I can't answer this. It's too foreign to me.

Mesquite, Texas: Why was it that songs such as Carousel, High Voltage, and Part of Me were never released when you guys were called Hybrid Theory? Aaron Cmar

Mike: We made 2,000 copies of our EP. You can find them on Ebay, but they're really expensive. I hope in the future we can find a way to use those songs in some way. We're hoping to play at least one of those songs on the Family Values Tour.

Birmingham, UK: How often do you visit your offical website?

Mike: As often as I can. Some weeks I go every other day, and then sometimes I go twice a month. But I always go at least once a month. Next month I'll be on there a lot, because I'll be home, and we're renovating the site. It'll be flash-based with a lot of new information, attractions and pictures, and Phoenix! I haven't been able to get much up of him on the site so far. It's hard to get approved pictures of the whole band up on the site for some reason.

Comment from USATODAY.com host: Sorry we couldn't get to all your questions, but we were really swamped! Mike has offered to come back (or to send another Linkin Park member) to chat in the near future. Stay tuned to talk.usatoday.com for details.

by USA Today