Limp Bizkit bassist Sam Rivers dies at 48, band offers heartfelt tribute

Bassist and founding member of Limp Bizkit, Sam Rivers, has died at the age of 48, the band confirmed on Instagram. While the cause of death has not been officially released, Rivers had previously battled alcohol-related liver disease, according to reports.

“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…His talent was effortless, his presence unforgettable, his heart enormous.”

Born in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1977, Rivers began playing music in middle school, starting on the tuba while his future bandmate John Otto played jazz drums. Rivers later picked up bass and guitar, eventually forming the band ‘Malachi Sage’ with singer Fred Durst. The group evolved into Limp Bizkit in 1994 with the addition of guitarist Wes Borland and DJ Lethal.

Limp Bizkit became a defining act of late-90s nu-metal, releasing six studio albums, including Significant Other and Chocolate Starfish and the Hotdog Flavored Water, both of which hit No.1 on the Billboard 200.

Hits like “Nookie,” “My Way,” “Take a Look Around,” and “Behind Blue Eyes” also charted on the Billboard Hot 100. The band earned three Grammy nominations over the years.

Rivers stepped away from the band in 2015 due to liver-related health issues but returned in 2018 after undergoing a liver transplant.