'A legend': Fred Durst pens moving tribute to Limp Bizkit bandmate Sam Rivers
Fred Durst says Sam's legacy is "priceless" and his "music and his gift" will "keep on giving".
Fred Durst has "been through gallons and gallons of tears" since the death of his bandmate Sam Rivers.
The Limp Bizkit bassist passed away on Saturday (18.10.25) at the age of 48. And, a day later, the frontman of the legendary nu-metal band shared a moving tribute.
He first recalled being “blown away” from the moment he saw Sam play bass while assembling the group in the ’90s.
Fred began his lengthy video tribute on social media: “Sam Rivers, the legend, truly. Such a gifted, unbelievably sweet and wonderful person.
I had this idea and vision for this particular type of style and sound and I just couldn’t get it together right. So I decided I’m going to go out and find the right players to do this and bring this thing together.”
He continued: “I went, oh my gosh, this guy is amazing.
“I saw Sam play, and I was blown away.
“He was playing a five-string bass too, I’d never really seen someone using a five-string bass. He was so smooth and good and he stood out. I could hear nothing else but Sam, everything disappeared besides his gift.”
The Break Stuff hitmaker said Sam will be "smiling" knowing he achieved his "dream".
The tearful singer said of his passing: “It’s so tragic that he’s not here right now, and I’ve gone through gallons and gallons of tears since yesterday. And I’m thinking, gosh, Sam’s a legend, you know? He did it, he lived it.”
Fred said: “We rocked stadiums together, we’ve been around the world together, shared so many moments together, and I know that wherever Sam is right now, he’s smiling and feeling like, man, I did it.
“And man, did he do it.”
He continued: “What he’s left us behind is priceless, he’s such a special person. And Sam’s a very private person too, so the few people that were able to be close with him know what I’m saying to be true.
“Sam was the first guy that really came in and helped make this dream come true. And he didn’t think twice about it, he just went, ‘Yeah let’s go, let’s do it’.”
Fred concluded that the "overwhelming support and love" from fans around the world shows the "impact" he had.
He added: “I was very, very fortunate to have him in my life, and I’m so incredibly grateful to have shared part of this journey with Sam Rivers, a huge part of my journey. I’m super, super grateful and I miss him terribly already. All the support and love I’ve seen out there online is overwhelming, he really did have an impact on the world. His music and his gift is the one that’s going to keep on giving. I just love him so much.”
Limp Bizkit's DJ Lethal also posted his own personal tribute and highlighted how his bandmate's impact went beyond music, highlighting Sam's charity work.
He wrote: “We are in shock. Rest in power my brother! You will live on through your music and the lives you helped save with your music, charity work and friendships. We are heartbroken [broken heart emoji] enjoy every millisecond of life. It’s not guaranteed.”
At the time of writing, no cause of death has been disclosed.
The award-winning musician left Limp Bizkit for a number of years in 2015, due to liver disease from "excessive drinking".
He told author Jon Wiederhorn for the book Raising Hell: "I quit drinking and did everything the doctors told me.
"I got treatment for the alcohol and got a liver transplant, which was a perfect match."
