Durst was born Frederick Allen Mayne III in Jacksonville, Florida, but soon moved to Orlando and then a farm in Cherryville, North Carolina, at one year old.

Leaving the Navy after two years (1988–1990), Durst moved back to Jacksonville with his father where he worked as a landscaper and a tattoo artist while developing an idea for a band that combined elements of rock and hip-hop.

[9] Limp Bizkit developed a cult following in the underground music scene when its covers of George Michael's "Faith" and Paula Abdul's "Straight Up" began to attract curious concertgoers.

Jonathan Davis had intended to write a battle rap with B-Real of Cypress Hill, but the latter's label wouldn't let him do it, and Durst was tapped instead.

[12] Limp Bizkit achieved mainstream success with the albums Significant Other (1999) and Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water (2000).

[11][13] Durst utilized his connections through the label and scouted numerous bands; landing record deals for Cold, Staind, Puddle of Mudd, and She Wants Revenge.

The concert was tarnished by violent behavior from the crowd, much of which occurred during and after their performance, including fans tearing plywood from the walls during the song "Break Stuff".

I would turn the finger and point it back to the people that hired us," said Durst, in reference to original Woodstock co-founder, Michael Lang.

[10] During the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards, Durst performed Limp Bizkit's song "Livin' It Up", as a duet with Christina Aguilera.

"[19] During a 2001 tour of Australia at the Big Day Out festival in Sydney, fans rushed the stage in the mosh pit, and teenager Jessica Michalik died of asphyxiation.

In Auckland, New Zealand, on the same tour, Durst threw water over the head of a security personnel tasked with defusing a similar situation.

[21] In court, Durst, represented by his long-time attorney, Ed McPherson, testified he had warned the concert's organizers Aaron Jackson, Will Pearce and Amar Tailor and promoter Vivian Lees of the potential dangers of such minimal security.

[22] After viewing video and hearing witness testimony, the coroner said it was evident that the density of the crowd was dangerous at the time Limp Bizkit took the stage and Durst should have acted more responsibly when the problem became apparent.

[29] In the days preceding the tour's stop in Chicago, local radio personality Mancow Muller mocked Durst and suggested that listeners who were attending the concert should heckle the singer and throw debris.

[31] Durst was eventually sued for breach of contract (for not completing the show) by Chicago lawyer Michael Young in a class-action suit.

[46] In February 2012, Lil Wayne announced in a radio interview that Limp Bizkit had signed to his label, Cash Money Records, which Durst confirmed on his Twitter page.

[47] A few months later Durst was featured alongside Lil Wayne and Birdman on the Kevin Rudolf song "Champions", which peaked in the top 10 on iTunes.

[63] On October 8, 2015, the Russian newspaper Izvestia reported that Durst responded positively to Sergey Aksyonov's call to settle in Crimea.

[64][65] Additionally, at a concert during the 'Money Sucks Tour' in Voronezh, Russia, he picked up a flag thrown on stage, which he did not realize had an anti-Ukrainian slogan on it.

His bandmate, Wes Borland, also lost several pieces of equipment in the fire due to them being stored in Durst's home in anticipation of a scheduled recording session.

[70][71][72] Following Slipknot lead vocalist Corey Taylor's (also known as "#8") publicly displayed distaste for Korn drummer David Silveria's magazine photo campaign for Calvin Klein, Taylor burned copies of the magazine issues during multiple Slipknot live performances, culminating in Durst taking offense to the gestures.

In 1998, the band sent their demo to Durst who quickly befriended them, often invited them to various press releases in Los Angeles and occasionally bringing them to Limp Bizkit's concerts throughout the region.

Durst was enraged to eventually discover Taproot had defected to Atlantic, leading him to leave a threatening message on frontman Stephen Richards' mother's answering machine.

[91][92] In June 2000, Limp Bizkit performed at the WXRK Dysfunctional Family Picnic in Holmdel, New Jersey, but arrived an hour late for their set.

[95] Prior to introducing Staind as a part of K-Rock's Dysfunctional Family Picnic in Holmdel, New Jersey in 1999, Durst once again encouraged the crowd to chant "Fuck Placebo".

[98][99] In a profile for Kerrang!, Reznor mocked Durst saying "It's one thing if you know your place; like, 'Hey, I'm an idiot who plays shitty music but people buy it – fuck it, I'm having fun.

"[100] Durst in turn made several references to Nine Inch Nails in the Limp Bizkit song "Hot Dog", leading to Reznor earning a co-writer credit.

[101] In 1999, Marilyn Manson insulted Limp Bizkit and their fans, calling them "illiterate apes that beat your ass in high school for being a 'fag' and now sell you tuneless testosterone anthems of misogyny and pretend to be outsiders...".

"[102] Durst's relationship with Manson had reportedly grown cordial as the two appeared on the cover of a Rolling Stone magazine issue in June 2003 alongside James Hetfield and Ozzy Osbourne.

During a show in Seoul, South Korea on August 15, 2008; Manson would introduce Borland onstage and attacked Limp Bizkit, claiming to the crowd "Here's our new guitarist, he used to play for a really bad band…".