Korn (stylized as KoЯn) is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, originally formed in 1993 by James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and David Silveria, who were members of the band L.A.P.D. Their current lineup features Shaffer (guitar), Brian "Head" Welch (guitar), Jonathan Davis (vocals), and Ray Luzier (drums), the last of whom replaced Silveria in 2007. The band is notable for pioneering and popularizing the nu metal genre.
Korn made a demo tape, Neidermayer's Mind, in 1993, which was distributed free to record companies and on request to members of the public. Their debut album Korn was released in 1994, followed by their commercial breakthrough, Life Is Peachy, in 1996. The band first experienced mainstream success with Follow the Leader (1998) and Issues (1999), both of which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. The band's mainstream success continued with Untouchables (2002), Take a Look in the Mirror (2003), and See You on the Other Side (2005).
A compilation album, Greatest Hits Vol. 1, was released in 2004, spanning a decade of singles and concluding the band's recording contract with Immortal Records and Epic Records. They signed to Virgin Records, releasing See You on the Other Side in 2005, and an untitled album in 2007. The band's other recent albums, Korn III: Remember Who You Are (2010) and The Path of Totality (2011), were released via Roadrunner Records, with The Paradigm Shift (2013) being released via Prospect Park and Caroline Records. The Serenity of Suffering (2016) saw their return to Roadrunner Records, through which The Nothing was released on September 13, 2019. Their latest album, Requiem, was released via Loma Vista Recordings on February 4, 2022.
As of 2021, Korn had sold more than 40 million records worldwide. Several of their releases have been certified gold, platinum or multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Fourteen of the band's official releases have peaked in the top ten of the Billboard 200, eight of which have peaked in the top five. Korn has earned two Grammy Awards out of eight nominations and two MTV Video Music Awards out of 11 nominations. Several of their music videos received substantial play on MTV's Total Request Live, and were among the first to be retired on the show, including "Got the Life" and "Freak on a Leash".
History Early years and formation (1989–1993)
Before Korn was formed, three of the original members of the band were associated with the band L.A.P.D.–James Shaffer, Reginald Arvizu, and David Silveria. The group originally consisted of Shaffer, Arvizu, and lead vocalist Richard Morrill; Silveria joined when he was 16. When the band moved from Bakersfield, California to Los Angeles, Silveria dropped out of high school and Shaffer stayed in Bakersfield. When Shaffer reunited with the band, they found a manager and released an EP entitled Love and Peace Dude in 1989 through Triple X Records. L.A.P.D. released their sole full-length studio album Who's Laughing Now on May 3, 1991. After the album's release, Morrill departed from the ensemble. The remaining trio were also briefly known as Creep, recording a demo with a singer named Corey before enlisting Brian Welch and Jonathan Davis to form the band that went on to become Korn.
When thinking of a band name, someone suggested "corn", but the band rejected that name, but Shaffer later had the idea to spell the name with a "K" instead of a "C", and a backwards "R", so the band's name would appear as "KoЯn". The idea of using a backwards "R" came from the logo of toy retailer Toys R Us, for which many of the band members had previously worked. Silveria explained the logo, designed by Davis, "the music makes the name, because Korn's a dumb name. But once we get established, it makes the name cool."
Korn rented a studio from Jeff Creath called Underground Chicken Sound, in Huntington Beach, California. While they were recording there, a crowd had been loitering outside the studio. The band began playing a prelude to a later song "Clown", attracting a larger crowd. Arvizu said the crowd gathered because it sounded so "different." Korn started performing at gigs in the summer of 1993, with members saying that touring was a "pain-in-the-ass." While in Huntington Beach, the band was spotted by Immortal Records A&R employee Paul Pontius. Pontius would describe Korn's sound as "the new genre of rock." In 1993, Korn released their first demo album, Neidermayer's Mind, which had very limited printing. It was not well received by critics or the public. It was released to record companies and to people who filled out a flyer given out at gigs they played for free with Biohazard and House of Pain. With this demo, Korn pioneered the nu metal sound, riffs, and rhythm.
Korn, Life Is Peachy and recognition (1994–1997) By May 1994, Korn began recording their self-titled debut album with Ross Robinson. Recording was finished by the end of the following month, and on October 11, the band's debut album was released through Immortal Records (an Epic imprint label); it peaked at number one on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart and would eventually reach number 72 on the Billboard 200 in February 1996. The album received positive reviews by critics, and is said to have established the new wave of metal. As well as sparking the nu metal genre, it also started record producer Ross Robinson's music career and influenced bands such as Slipknot, Coal Chamber, and Limp Bizkit.
After the band finished recording the album, they began touring with Biohazard and House of Pain. Their record company gave them enough money for their own tour bus. Korn's first gig was in Atlanta. About halfway through the tour, the bus that Korn's record company gave them stopped working, and the band had to find a new one. Their first tour was not very successful in promoting the album.
Korn went on tour with hardcore punk band Sick of It All in January 1995. The band embarked on their first European tour, including at LA2 in London and L'Arapaho in Paris. Later that year, Korn was chosen alongside Deftones as direct support for Ozzy Osbourne. Korn's self-titled album went gold in the midst of the tour and was eventually certified two-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Aside from touring, Korn released four singles. "Blind" was released on August 1, 1994, and "Shoots and Ladders" was released on October 31, 1995. The latter received a Grammy nomination in 1997 for Best Metal Performance. "Need To" was also released in 1995, on April 8. The fourth and final single, "Clown", was released on February 2, 1996. "Blind" was the only single to chart, peaking at number 15 on the Canadian RPM Alternative 30.
After the success of their debut, Korn decided to enter the studio again for a second album. By then, the band had created a large fan base, having played between 200 and 250 shows, and the expectations for their follow-up album were high. They went back into the studio in early April 1996 at Indigo Ranch Studios, Malibu, California.
Life Is Peachy was released October 15, 1996 and despite minimal radio airplay and television attention, the album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, and peaked at number one in New Zealand. The album sold 106,000 copies in its first week.Arvizu 2009 p. 79 Jon Pareles from The New York Times said that the band was "mad at everybody, including themselves." The album was certified double platinum in the United States, platinum in Australia, and gold in Canada.
The first single, "No Place to Hide", spawned a Grammy nomination for Best Metal Performance. "A.D.I.D.A.S." was released as the second single on March 4, 1997. It became the band's first charting single on Billboard, peaking at number 13 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart. The third single, "Good God", was released on July 14, 1997. A promotional disc was released in 1997 to promote both the band and the Life Is Peachy Tour featuring Incubus and the Urge and included three live tracks.
Korn gained more popularity after co-headlining the Lollapalooza summer tour festival in 1997 with Tool. However, Korn was forced to stop touring after Shaffer was diagnosed with viral meningitis. The band remained relatively quiet during the end of the year, resting and setting new goals. The band then founded their own label, Elementree Records, to sign and introduce new bands to their fans. The label was run by Davis who first signed Orgy. Silveria influenced Davis to sign them.
Prior to the release of 1998's Follow the Leader, Gretchen Plewes, a Zeeland, Michigan high school assistant principal, said in an interview for a Michigan newspaper that Korn's music is "indecent, vulgar, obscene and intends to be insulting" after giving a student named Eric VanHoven a one-day suspension for wearing a shirt with the Korn logo.Ross, Mike (September 17, 1998). "Kids like their Korn". Canoe. Retrieved March 20, 2010. FM station WKLQ was filmed giving away hundreds of free Korn T-shirts, donated by the band outside the school. Ottawa County Police were called by the school, but they ended up helping handing out shirts. Korn filed a cease and desist order against Plewes and the school district for their comments. They also threatened a multimillion-dollar lawsuit, but dropped both actions due to the band members' personal lives. The period from 1993 to 1997 was embodied by wearing apparel that featured the Adidas clothing brand.
Follow the Leader and Issues (1998–2001) In 1998, Korn signed a publishing contract with Warner Chappell Music. While Korn was waiting for a full partnership with Adidas (which had previously sponsored Run-DMC), the sportwear brand refused to sign a contract with Korn. In a contradictory argument, Adidas told them: "We do sports, not music". In 1998, Puma seized the opportunity and offered a $500,000 deal to Korn, including their music featured in Kevin Kerslake-directed advertisements. Korn accepted the contract; Davis said, "That's more than Adidas ever did for us! It wasn't a sell-out thing. It was about respect."
Prior to the release of the band's third album, Korn produced a weekly online TV show called KornTV, which documented the making of the record and featured special guests such as porn star Ron Jeremy, Limp Bizkit, and 311. The project also gave fans (nicknamed "nibletz") the chance to call in and ask the band questions, an approach that represented one of the first times a band utilized the Internet in such a way. Korn released their third album Follow the Leader on August 18, 1998, which featured a number of guest vocalists such as Ice Cube; Pharcyde member Tre Hardson; Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit; and actor Cheech Marin on the hidden track "Earache My Eye" (written by Marin himself).
Korn launched a political campaign-styled tour to promote Follow the Leaders release, which took the group on a chartered jet all over North America. Band members talked to fans and answered questions during special "fan conferences" organized at every stop along the tour and signed autographs. Jim Rose of the Jim Rose Circus hosted the entire "Kampaign" tour.