On Tuesday, October 8, 2024, rock band Limp Bizkit filed a lawsuit against Universal Music Group in the U.S. District Court, Central District of California, alleging that the record company owes the band over $200 million in unpaid royalties.
Limp Bizkit was nominated for three Grammys and has sold over 45 million records. The band was popular in the late 1990s and 2000s, but has seen a recent resurgence in popularity. In 2024, the band has over 450 million streams on music streaming platforms “and is on track to have over 793 million streams by the end of 2024.” The band has not released any new music but “is selling out arenas and headlining major [music] festivals.”
Universal Music Group is the successor in interest to recording agreements between Limp Bizkit and Flip Records, Inc. The original agreement between the band and Flip Records is dated back to July 1996. This agreement set forth the terms by which the band would be paid for its music. This agreement was amended September 1996 and December 1996. Limp Bizkit entered into a third amended agreement with Interscope Records, as successor in interest to Flip Records, on October 15, 1999. The band signed a new agreement with Interscope Records on December 1, 2000, at which point the band had released its first three albums pursuant to its agreement with Flip Records. The December 2000 agreement with Interscope Records terminated and replaced the agreement with Flip Records, “except to the extent that [Universal Music Group] was obligated to continue paying the band royalties or other amounts under the Flip Agreement.” Universal Music Group owns and operates Interscope Records.
In April 2024, William Frederick Durst, the lead singer of Limp Bizkit, “retained new representation and explained that he had not received any money for any Limp Bizkit exploitations – [ever].” Durst explained that he was informed by Universal Music Group that Durst had not received any royalty statements “since his account was still so far from recoupment.” Upon further investigation, Durst’s business managers noticed that the band’s accounts stated balances due to the band from Universal Music Group. The complaint states that “[Universal Music Group] had never previously set up [Limp Bizkit] as payees because it had no intention of actually paying them.” The complaint alleges that had the band not discovered the unpaid balances, the record company “would have found a way to fraudulently turn its positive accounts back into negative ‘unrecouped’ accounts, as it had done in the past, to continue to avoid its payment obligations in perpetuity.”
The complaint alleges that the band is due royalties for its record sales and music videos in excess of $200 million. The complaint states causes of action for rescission due to fraud and violation of public policy, breach of contract, breach of implied covenant of good standing and fair dealing, breach of fiduciary duty, concealment, intentional misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, promissory fraud, accounting, copyright infringement, violation of California Business & Professions Code, and declaratory relief.
Additional Reading
Limp Bizkit sues label Universal Music over unpaid royalties, Reuters (October 8, 2024)
William Frederick Durst et al v. Universal Music Group, Inc. et al, Case No. 2:2024cv08630
Complaint in William Frederick Durst et al v. Universal Music Group, Inc. et al
Photo Credit: Ben Houdijk / Shutterstock.com
