Limp Bizkit

Hailing from Florida, where they formed in 1994, Limp Bizkit have become one of the decade's leading exponents of the rap metal movement. Founded by singer Fred Durst (b. 1970), his high-school classmate Sam Rivers (bass) and the latter's cousin John Otto (drums), as well as masked guitarist Wes Borland, the band enlisted the turntable and programming services of DJ Lethal (b. Leor Dimant) and came to the attention of producer Ross Robinson, who, after hearing the demo lent by the band Korn, organized a tour and secured a contract with the Flip label, distributed by Interscope. The immediate success of their debut album, Three Dollar Bill, Y'all (1997), ranked #22 on the Billboard 200, was boosted by the band's participation in the Family Values tour, and followed by a second, consecrated collection. Released shortly before a stormy appearance at the Woodstock '99 festival, Significant Other reached the top of the sales charts and went on to win gold and platinum certification. With the following album Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water (2000), and its main assets "Take a Look Around" and "Rollin' (Air Raid Vehicle)", charting at No. 3 and No. 1 respectively in the UK, Limp Bizkit achieved the feat for a metal band of staying at the top of the sales charts in the USA, Canada, the UK and much of Europe. However, the singer's provocations at the Big Day Out festival (2001) tarnished the band's reputation, and saw prominent guitarist Wes Borland leave the band, to be temporarily replaced by Mike Smith. After three years of recording silence, Limp Bizkit reappeared in 2003 with the album Results May Vary, torn between third place in the Billbarod 200 and negative reviews. Wes Borland's return to record The Unquestionable Truth (Part 1) (2005) was followed by a period of inactivity, interrupted in 2009 by a tour and the release two years later of Gold Cobra (No. 16), which reached No. 16 on the Billboard 200 and went gold. Signing with rap label Cash Money led to the release of four singles in three years, followed by "Dad Vibes" (2021), the first single from the album Still Sucks, released to almost general indifference (no. 155), a decade after its predecessor. In 2025, a month after the release of the single "Making Love to Morgan Wallen", bassist Sam Rivers died on October 18 at the age of 48.