Limp Bizkit’s planned May 31st, 2026 concert in Tallinn, Estonia has been canceled over singer Fred Durst’s past support of Russia and Vladimir Putin.
In 2012, Durst married Crimean-born Russian makeup artist Kseniya Beryazina, and appeared to speak in support of Russia’s 2014 annexation of the region from Ukraine, even holding up a “Crimea = Russia” banner at a show in 2015. As ThePRP points out, in a tweet that year, Durst wrote, “There are great people everywhere. I have met many Russians, in Russia, that are excited to learn more about America.”
Durst, who divorced Beryazina in 2019, also spoke highly of Russian president Vladimir Putin, once praising him as “a great guy with clear moral principles and a nice person,” according to the site ERR News. As a result of the banner and the kind words about Putin, the Limp Bizkit frontman was banned from entering the Ukraine for five years beginning in 2015.
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A note from the concert promoter reads, “We inform you that due to circumstances beyond the organizer’s control, the Limp Bizkit concert planned for May 31, 2026, is canceled. Our apologies!”
The cancellation appeared to occur after pressure from Estonia’s Foreign Ministry, with Minister of Foreign Affairs Margus Tsahkna stating, “My position is clear, and I will repeat it: Russia is the aggressor, and Crimea is occupied by Russia. Those who justify Russia’s aggression and the occupation of a neighboring country are not welcome in Estonia. They have no place on Estonian stages and should not be earning income here.”
He added, “Concert and cultural event organizers must also understand this. This has been Estonia’s clear stance, and this principle has been followed for several years already. I hope that concert organizers will act accordingly now as well.”
Liisi Rohtung, a spokesperson for Estonia’s Ministry of Culture, told the country’s news outlet Kroonika, “It is unacceptable for people to perform in Estonia who support a state whose president is the subject of an international arrest warrant.”
Regarding Durst’s stance on Russia and Putin, Gunnar Viese of the concert promotion company Baltic Live Agency reasoned, “The only way we can explain it is that at the time (until 2019), Fred Durst was married to a Russian Crimean woman and evidently living in a distorted information bubble.”
Similarly, Disturbed’s recent concert in Brussels, Belgium was canceled by a local mayor over fears that singer David Draiman’s pro-Israel stance would incite violent protests around the venue.
In the meantime, Limp Bizkit, who are mourning the recent passing of their bassist Sam Rivers, are set to tour Latin America beginning later this month.