Nu metal (also spelled New Metal) is the newest form of Heavy Metal, which in itself is a kind of Rock music. Unlike traditional forms of Heavy Metal, Nu Metal turns up the groove up a bit and often incorporates Funk, Grunge, Rap / Hip Hop, Electronica / Industrial music, multiple vocalists and DJs. Since elements of Rap are often present in Nu Metal, it is often confused with Rap Metal, which is ANOTHER genre; this is so because Nu Metal may have Rap INFLUENCED lyrics, while the lyrics in Rap Metal sound JUST like Rap. The same thing occurs with Rap Rock; Rap Rock is NOT Nu Metal; Rap Rock is merely a combination of non Metal kinds of Rock with Rap. Nu Metal was born with the release of Korn's first album in 1994. Later on, Nu Metal would evolve, with artists such as Limp Bizkit, Slipknot and Linkin Park incorporating DJs and electronic/industrial music. This is yet another confusing element; just because Nu Metal has elements of Industrial, doesn't mean that it can be considered Industrial Metal, which is another sub - genre of Heavy Metal altogether. Key artists:
- Korn (Jonathan Davis, Reginald Arvizu, James Shaffer, Brian Welch, David Silveria)
- Linkin Park (Chester Bennington, Mike Shinoda, Phoenix, Brad Delson, Rob Bourdon, Joseph Hahn)
- Papa Roach (Jacoby Shaddix, Jerry Horton, Dave Buckner, Tobin Esperance)
- Limp Bizkit (Fred Durst, Sam Rivers, Wes Borland, John Otto, DJ Lethal)
- Adema (Mark Chavez, Dave DeRoo, Mike Ransom, Tim Fluckey, Kris Kolhs)
- Slipknot (Corey Taylor, Paul Grey, James Root, Mick Thompson, Chris Fehn, Shawn Crahan, Joey Jordison, Craig Jones, Sid Wilson)
- Coal Chamber (Dez Fafara, Nadja Peulen, Miguel Rascon, Mike Cox)
Linkin Park is a one of the best examples of a 21st century Nu Metal band: 2 vocalists, 2 sampling artists, DJ and the standard guitar, bass and drum combo.