Limp Bizkit Bassist Sam Rivers Dies at 48

Sam Rivers, longtime bassist for the iconic rap-rock band Limp Bizkit, has passed away at the age of 48. The band confirmed his death in a heartfelt post on Instagram Saturday evening, calling him the group’s “heartbeat” and honoring his legacy.

“Sam wasn’t just a bass player,” the band wrote. “He was pure magic — the pulse beneath every song, the calm in the chaos, the soul in the sound.” The cause of death has not been made public.

Rivers formed a musical bond early in life with Limp Bizkit drummer John Otto. He met frontman Fred Durst while working at a Chick-fil-A in the early ‘90s. The three became the core of Limp Bizkit, later adding guitarist Wes Borland and DJ Lethal to complete the lineup in 1996.

The group exploded onto the rock scene in the late ‘90s and became a defining act of the nu-metal era. With six studio albums under their belt, Limp Bizkit delivered several genre-shaping releases, including Significant Other and Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water — both of which debuted to massive commercial success.

Hits like “Rollin’ (Air Raid Vehicle),” “My Way,” “Take A Look Around,” and “Break Stuff” became cultural staples, with the latter approaching a billion streams on Spotify.

In 2015, Rivers briefly stepped away from the band after being diagnosed with liver disease linked to alcohol use. He later received a liver transplant and returned to the stage with the band in 2018.

Limp Bizkit’s message ended simply: “Rest easy, brother. Your music never ends.”