Producer Ross Robinson Says Fred Durst Was ‘A Mega-Businessman And Just A Kid’

In a recent interview with Louder Sound, producer Ross Robinson talked about his collaborations with names like Korn, Slipknot, and Limp Bizkit. According to him, Fred Durst was a successful businessman besides being enthusiastic and young.

Back in his childhood, Durst was interested in hip hop, breakdancing, heavy metal, and punk rock and started to rap, skate, and beatbox. When he moved to Jacksonville, where he worked as a landscaper and tattoo artist, he came up with the idea to establish a band combining rock and hip-hop elements.

Since its foundation, Fred Durst has contributed to Limp Bizkit as a frontman and lyricist. He also has also come to the fore with his rapping. After building a small fan base during their tour with Korn, the band released the debut album ‘Three Dollar Bill, Y’all’ through Flip and Interscope Label, produced by Ross Robinson. Durst contributed to all the lyrics in this album.

In 1999, ‘Significant Other’ brought them initial commercial and mainstream success reaching number 1 on the US Billboard 200. The band improved its sound by combining the lyrics written by Durst in this record. The following one, ‘Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water,’ was another success, and they continued with Flip and Interscope Label. The vocalist was also the album’s lyricist and art director.

Recently, producer Ross Robinson revealed that after Korn’s Reginald Arzivu gave his number to Durst, the vocalist started to send him constant messages and finally a cassette. He stated that his girlfriend was initially impressed by the record and his reaction was the same after listening to it.

Robinson immediately made a record deal with Fred Durst after realizing his talent. Since the rocker has an entrepreneurial personality, he got out of the initial deal and signed a contract with Interscope, thinking it was a better opportunity. After Durst found the new record deal himself, Robinson had to sign a new agreement. According to the producer, the musician was a combination of a kid and a successful businessman.

Ross Robinson said the following when asked about Fred Durst from 1997:

“He’s probably the most charming person I’ve ever met. When Korn went through Jacksonville, Fred got my number and my address, and he sent me a cassette. I called up Fieldy, like, ‘Dude, why’d you give that guy my number? He keeps leaving me messages.’ I was really annoyed with it, and then my girlfriend listened to it, and she went, ‘This is really good.’ And I listen to it, and I remember like, ‘Oh my God, this is really good.’ And so I gave it to my manager, and we got it a record deal instantly.

Fred, being the entrepreneur, convinced us it wasn’t good enough yet, got out of that record deal, and got another record deal. And then, during the album, he wanted to be on Interscope, so the guy who did the deal before Interscope had to do a deal with Interscope. So he’s like a mega-businessman and just a kid.

Fred Durst’s most recent work ‘Still Sucks’ with Limp Bizkit, came out in 2021. He contributed to almost all of the tracks as the writer. Besides delivering lead vocals, he also became a part of the record’s production. The album received generally positive reviews from music critics.