In a raw and emotional video tribute, Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst has shared the powerful origin story of his band and his profound grief over the passing of his friend and co-founding bassist, Sam Rivers. The eight-minute video, posted on Sunday, October 19, is a deeply personal eulogy for the man Durst called a “legend” and the “first guy that really came in and helped make this dream come true.”
The video, in which Durst is visibly moved and fights back tears, was posted one day after the band shocked the music world with the news of Rivers‘ passing at the age of 48. In his message, Durst recounted the chance meeting in a Jacksonville, Florida, bar that started it all.
“There Sam was on the stage with his band, killing it on the bass. And I went, ‘Oh my gosh, this guy’s amazing,’” Durst recalled (as transcribed by theprp). “I could hear nothing else but Sam. Everything disappeared besides his gift. And I went up to Sam after the show and I said, ‘Hey, man, you’re unbelievable. I got this idea for this band I wanna do’… And he looked at me and he says, ‘Killer. I’m in. Let’s do it.’”
He explained that Rivers was the foundational piece of the Limp Bizkit puzzle, and that it was Rivers who then brought in his cousin, drummer John Otto, to complete the rhythm section. “John and Sam, it was a magical thing, the two of them. And I felt like, ‘This is it. This is it. This is what I’ve been looking for,’” Durst said.
He spoke at length about Rivers’ unique and irreplaceable talent, a gift that went far beyond what Durst himself could even imagine. “Anything I could spit out of my mouth — ‘try this’, ‘try this’, ‘do this’ or ‘this’ — Sam could do it, and do it a thousand times better than I could hear it in my head,” he said. He also noted their shared love for grunge music, and the “beautiful sadness” Rivers could pull from his bass.
Overcome with emotion, Durst reflected on the immense loss and the legacy his friend leaves behind.
“Just thinking about him, it’s so tragic that he’s not here right now. And I’ve gone through gallons and gallons of tears since yesterday,” he shared. “What he’s left us behind is priceless. He was such a special person. And Sam was a very private person too. So the few people that were able to be close with him and around him know what I’m saying to be true. He was a very, very special, genuine person.”
The band announced Rivers’ passing on Saturday, October 18, in a joint statement.
“Today we lost our brother. Our bandmate. Our heartbeat,” the band wrote. “Sam Rivers wasn’t just our bass player — he was pure magic… The pulse beneath every song, the calm in the chaos, the soul in the sound… We love you, Sam. We’ll carry you with us, always.”
The cause of death has not been officially released, though bandmate DJ Lethal hinted at a battle with cancer in a social media post. In his own tribute, Lethal urged fans to “Please respect the family’s privacy at this moment… We are heartbroken.”
Fred Durst’s video is a powerful and deeply personal tribute, a final, loving thank you to the man who was, in his own words, a “huge part of this journey, a huge part of my journey.”
