Peter Katsis, Former Manager of Korn, Limp Bizkit and Audioslave, Dies Aged 69

Veteran music manager Peter Katsis, who helped guide the careers of some of the biggest names in rock, metal and pop across more than three decades, has died aged 69.

Katsis’ death was confirmed on Thursday, August 6. According to Variety, he died following complications from congestive heart failure. 

His career behind the scenes of the music industry was extraordinary, with Katsis working with artists including Korn, Limp Bizkit, Audioslave, Ministry, Jane’s Addiction, The Smashing Pumpkins and the Backstreet Boys.

A major figure in the rise of nu-metal

Katsis began his management career at just 23 years old after discovering and managing Chicago industrial metal pioneers Ministry.

He would later move to Los Angeles and become a partner at management company The Firm, where his roster included Korn, Limp Bizkit, Audioslave, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Snoop Dogg and the Backstreet Boys, among others. 

His work placed him behind some of the most commercially significant acts of the late ’90s and early 2000s, including during the explosion of nu-metal into the mainstream.

Later in his career, Katsis continued working with major alternative artists including The Smashing Pumpkins, Jane’s Addiction, Bush and Liz Phair.

The historic Audioslave show in Cuba

One of Katsis’ most significant achievements came with Audioslave in 2005.

Katsis helped make possible the band’s historic free concert in Havana, where Audioslave became the first American rock band to perform an open-air concert in Cuba.

The show required special authorisation from both the US and Cuban sides and took place at Havana’s José Martí Anti-Imperialist Plaza. Contemporary reports estimated the crowd at tens of thousands of people. 

Katsis himself later described pulling off the cultural-exchange concert as one of the biggest accomplishments of his career. 

The performance was subsequently immortalised through Audioslave: Live in Cuba.

Tributes following his death

News of Katsis’ passing has prompted tributes from across the music world, with Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst among those publicly reacting to his death.

Although fans may not have known his name as readily as those of the artists he represented, Katsis spent decades helping shape the careers of bands that defined generations of rock and alternative music.

From Ministry and Korn to Limp Bizkit, Audioslave and Jane’s Addiction, his influence stretched across multiple eras and genres.

Peter Katsis was 69.

Rest in peace.

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