Limp Bizkit

Limp Bizkit anchored the tail end of the 1990s nu-metal explosion, pushing rap-metal into the mainstream spotlight through the breakthrough releases Significant Other in 1999 and Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water in 2000. Fronted by the magnetic yet divisive Fred Durst, the group racked up airplay smashes including “Counterfeit,” “Faith,” “Nookie,” “Break Stuff,” “Rollin’ (Air Raid Vehicle),” and “Behind Blue Eyes” before entering a mid-2000s hiatus once their volatile mix of hip-hop, metal, and post-grunge lost mainstream traction. The band reconvened in 2009 and issued Gold Cobra two years afterward. Throughout the following decade they maintained a touring presence and dropped sporadic singles. Their return gained fresh momentum in 2021 via a widely praised Lollapalooza set and the unexpected arrival of Still Sucks, their sixth studio album and first collection of new material in more than ten years.

The Florida outfit took shape in 1994 when vocalist Fred Durst and bassist Sam Rivers, longtime friends, began writing together. Rivers’ cousin John Otto soon came aboard on drums, and guitarist Wes Borland completed the initial lineup that would later welcome DJ Lethal. After Korn’s 1995 visit to Jacksonville, bassist Fieldy received tattoos from Durst, who worked as a tattoo artist, and the pair struck up a friendship. On their next swing through the region, Korn took a copy of Limp Bizkit’s demo and, impressed, forwarded it to producer Ross Robinson. Relying largely on grassroots buzz, the group landed support slots with House of Pain and Deftones. Offers from labels followed quickly; after inking with Flip/Interscope they unveiled their debut, Three Dollar Bill Y’All. By the middle of 1998 they ranked among the most talked-about acts in the rising rap-metal field, bolstered by further road work alongside Faith No More and Primus plus a showcase at MTV’s Spring Break ’98 Fashion Show. Their profile climbed sharply after securing a berth on that summer’s Family Values Tour.

Significant Other, the eagerly awaited follow-up, arrived in June 1999 and, paired with the “Nookie” video, elevated the band to superstardom. The album entered the chart at number one and moved more than four million copies before the year closed, while also driving Three Dollar Bill Y’All past platinum status. In early July, Durst accepted an appointment as senior vice president at Interscope Records. Yet amid the ascent, backlash intensified after the group’s Woodstock ’99 appearance. Durst drew sharp rebuke for urging the restless audience to “break stuff,” and reports surfaced of a mosh-pit assault plus widespread injuries; festival staff ultimately halted the set. Although the performance preceded the event’s notorious closing riots by a day, critics held the band responsible for igniting an already combustible atmosphere. Unfazed, Limp Bizkit topped the bill on that year’s Family Values Tour, where Durst again made headlines through occasional friction with fellow acts.

During the 2000 Napster controversy, Durst emerged as a vocal supporter of file-sharing; that summer the band embarked on a complimentary, Napster-backed trek. Those developments paved the way for Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water in October. Borland’s subsequent departure triggered an extensive search for a new guitarist. Nearly three years after their prior album, Results May Vary surfaced, reaching number three on the Billboard 200 and eventually earning platinum certification. Borland rejoined afterward, leading to the 2005 release of the EP The Unquestionable Truth, Pt. 1. Greatest Hitz, a 17-track retrospective spanning the group’s peak era, followed. In 2009 the original members returned to the studio; after repeated postponements they delivered Gold Cobra in summer 2011. Bolstered by the single “Shotgun,” the record earned favorable notices and registered on charts across multiple territories. The band exited Interscope in 2012, aligned with Cash Money Records, and began tracking what was slated to become their seventh album, Stampede of the Disco Elephants. They issued “Ready to Go” and “Endless Slaughter” in 2013, yet a full-length project remained on hold for years. The Cash Money partnership ended in 2014.

As the 2020s began, nu-metal experienced renewed interest among younger acts steeped in the sounds of Korn and Limp Bizkit. Seizing the moment, the group joined the 2021 Lollapalooza lineup and delivered a warmly received main-stage career-spanning performance that closed with the fresh track “Dad Vibes.” That song later surfaced on Still Sucks, the surprise Halloween release that blended their signature rap-rock energy with more reflective later-period material.