Limp Bizkit Estonia Concert Canceled Following Backlash Over Fred Durst’s Past Comments on Russia
TALLINN, ESTONIA – Limp Bizkit’s planned concert in Tallinn, Estonia has been effectively canceled afterโ significant controversy erupted over frontman Fred Durst’s โฃpast โcomments adn personalโข connectionโข to Russia,โ specifically Crimea. The fallout stems โfrom Durst’s previous marriage to kseniya Beryazina, a Russian make-up artist fromโ Crimea, a region annexed by โRussia in 2014.The couple divorced in 2019.
The situationโฃ escalatedโฃ after โDurst’s comments resurfaced,โ leading to a ban from Ukraine for fiveโ years for the band. Now, Estonian officials have made clearโ thatโค those who appear to justify Russia’s aggression โฃare not welcome โฃto โperform within the country’s borders.โฃ This incident highlights the ongoing sensitivity surrounding russia’s actions in Ukraine and the scrutiny faced by public figures perceived to have ties to the country.
Estonia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Margus Tsahkna, stated, “My position is clear, and I will repeat it: Russia isโ the aggressor, and Crimea isโ occupied by Russia. Those โคwho โjustify Russia’s aggression andโ the occupation of a neighboring country are not welcome in Estonia. They have โno place on Estonian stages and โshould not be earning income here.” The Ministry of Culture also reportedly contacted concert organizers, โasserting it is “unacceptable for people to โคperform in Estonia who support a state whose president is the subject of an international arrest warrant.”
Baltic Live Agency, the concert promoter, attempted to mitigate the damage, with โขmedia director Gunnar Viese explaining to ERR that โDurst “was evidently living in a distorted information bubble” during his marriage to โBeryazina. Viese also โขpointed to Limp Bizkit’s recent performances โin โขcountries supportiveโค of Estoniaโค and Ukraine, including Germany, Austria,โฃ and Poland,โ and โnoted Durst has not made overtly political statements regarding Russia or the war in Ukraine. He furtherโ characterized Durst’s 2024 social media message to Russian fans – expressing hope to see them soon – as standard artist-fan dialog.