Fred Durst and Limp Bizkit weren’t doing it all for the nookie — they wanted their money also.
The $200 million lawsuit filed by the band over unpaid royalties is rollin’ forward after a judge ruled against Universal Music Group’s motion to dismiss. Filed in October in L.A.’s Central District, the suit says that as of April 2024, the plaintiffs “had not seen a dime in royalties on any Limp Bizkit assets.”
The complaint also accuses UMG of having a “fraudulent” system in place “to conceal artists’ royalties and keep those profits for itself.”
In his 17-page ruling this week (read it here), Judge Percy Anderson wrote: “The Court denies the Motion to Dismiss challenging the sufficiency of the copyright claims. Defendant shall file its Answer to the copyright claims asserted in the 1st AC by no later than April 7, 2025.”
The lawsuit by Durst and the nü metal band (read it here), of which he is the controlling member, claims that in early 2024, as they were riding a resurgence in popularity, “UMG repeatedly asked Durst to get involved with the 25th anniversary re-release of Limp Bizkit’s album ‘Significant Other.’ … Durst replied that he did not approve any ‘new art, new tracks, unreleased tracks, new versions of songs, new mastering, or remixes, etc.’ because it seemed like a ‘money grab’ that would only benefit UMG, as Plaintiffs had not seen a dime in royalties on any Limp Bizkit assets at that point.
“The fact that UMG had sought to exploit Limp Bizkit’s assets shows that they knew that they would generate significant revenues due to the band’s newly reignited popularity,” the suit adds. “Thus, UMG knew that, although Limp Bizkit’s assets were generating millions in income for UMG and Flip Records, and could be further exploited to generate even more, that UMG had still never paid Limp Bizkit a cent in royalties on any of those assets.”
Released on UMG-controlled Flip Records in 1999, Significant Other was the first of two back-to-back chart-topping, multiplatinum albums for the rap-rock band from Jacksonville, FL. It and 2000 follow-up Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water generated four Top 10 singles on Billboard’s Mainstream and Modern Rock charts: “Nookie,” “Re-Arranged,” Rollin’,” and “My Way.” It also had a Top 10 Modern Rock hit with “Take a Look Around,” from the film Mission: Impossible 2.
The group’s popularity led to a late-bill slot at Woodstock 1999. Violence broke out during their Limp Bizkit’s set as fans destroyed a perimeter fence and several were hurt trying to crowdsurf. Durst often is cited as being a catalyst for the mayhem, but, as then-manager Peter Katsis said in the 2022 Netflix docuseries Trainwreck: Woodstock ’99, “Pointing the finger at Fred is about the last thing anybody should do. There really isn’t a way to control 300,000 people.”
The band also hit the Top 5 with its 2003 album Results May Vary but didn’t match that success with future releases.
Durst since has enjoyed an acting career, appearing recently in awards-season pic I Saw the TV Glow and Y2K. He also has directed films including The Fanatic and The Longshots.
