William Frederick Durst (born Frederick Allen Mayne III; August 20, 1970) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, actor, and filmmaker, best known as the frontman and lyricist of the nu metal band Limp Bizkit, formed in 1994, with whom he has released six studio albums.

Durst was born Frederick Allen Mayne III in Jacksonville, Florida, but soon moved to Orlando, and then to a farm in Cherryville, North Carolina, at one year old. His mother, Anita, renamed him William Frederick Durst after remarrying Bill Durst, a local police officer. Shortly after, Durst's mother and stepfather had a child, his half-brother, Cory Durst. In the fifth grade, Fred Durst moved to Gastonia, North Carolina, where he graduated from Hunter Huss High School. As a child, Durst was bullied, a theme that he incorporated into his music. At the age of 12, Durst took an interest in breakdancing, hip hop, punk rock, and heavy metal. He began to rap, skate, beatbox, and DJ. After serving in the Navy for two years, 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.

In 1994, Durst, Malachi Sage bassist Sam Rivers, and Rivers's high school friend John Otto jammed together and wrote three songs. Guitarist Wes Borland later joined. Durst named the band "Limp Bizkit" because he wanted a name that would repel listeners. 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.

Later, when Korn performed in town as the opening act for Sick of It All, Durst invited Korn to his house. He was able to persuade bassist Reginald Arvizu to listen to demos of the songs "Pollution," "Counterfeit," and "Stalemate." Korn added a then-unsigned Limp Bizkit to two tours, which gave the latter a new audience. DJ Lethal, formerly of the hip hop group House of Pain, joined the band as a turntablist. During this time, Durst's disagreements with Borland led the guitarist to briefly leave the band, but Borland rejoined soon after.

In 1997, Limp Bizkit signed with Flip Records, a subsidiary of Interscope Records, and released its debut album, Three Dollar Bill, Y'all to moderate response. On October 23, 1997, Durst met the band Staind, but friction quickly emerged between the two over the cover art of Staind's album. Durst unsuccessfully attempted to remove Staind from a concert bill shortly before the latter's performance, but after hearing the band play, he was so impressed that he signed the band to Flip/Elektra, recorded a demo with the band, and co-produced its next album, Dysfunction.

After Limp Bizkit finished a tour with the band Deftones, Durst and DJ Lethal were asked by Max Cavalera, formerly of the band Sepultura, to appear on "Bleed," a song from the self-titled debut of his new band Soulfly. Cavalera stated that producer Ross Robinson recommended that he work with Durst. Durst also made an appearance on Korn's album Follow the Leader. Jonathan Davis had intended to write a battle rap with B-Real of Cypress Hill, but the latter's label would not let him do it, and Durst was tapped instead. Davis and Durst wrote the lyrics for "All in the Family," which featured the two vocalists trading insults. Davis and Durst would often offer suggestions for each other's lyrics; a lyric written by Durst as "tootin' on your bagpipe" was changed to "fagpipes" by Davis, who stated, "I helped him bag on me better".

Durst began to take an interest in filmmaking, directing the music video for Limp Bizkit's single "Faith" in promotion for its appearance in the film Very Bad Things; he was unsatisfied with it and made a second video that paid tribute to tourmates Primus, Deftones, and Mötley Crüe, bands that appeared in the video.

Limp Bizkit achieved mainstream success with the albums Significant Other (1999) and Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water (2000). In June 1999, Durst was appointed Senior Vice President of A&R at Interscope. Durst utilized his connections through the label and scouted numerous bands, landing record deals for Cold, Staind, Puddle of Mudd, and She Wants Revenge. Durst would also aid in attracting other bands such as 30 Seconds to Mars and Taproot, though Durst would pass on 30 Seconds to Mars, and he later engaged in a minor feud with Taproot after it rejected his original offer to sign the group to Interscope in 1999.