Follow the Leader (Korn album)
Encyclopedia
Follow the Leader is the third studio album
by American nu metal
band Korn
. The album was released on August 18, 1998, through Immortal
/Epic
. This was their first album not produced by Ross Robinson
. Instead, it was produced by Steve Thompson
and Toby Wright
.
The album peaked at number one on four charts, including the Billboard 200
, and is often credited with bringing nu metal to the mainstream. The album received a 5× Platinum certification in the United States as well as a 3× Platinum in Australia and Canada. Its singles
"Got the Life
" and "Freak on a Leash
", both charted on more than three charts, and their music videos are considered to be the first music videos retired from MTV
. The album generally received positive reviews by critics. Korn was praised by Allmusic saying the album is "an effective follow-up to their first two alt-metal landmarks."
The Family Values Tour
promoted the album, along with its five singles. The song "Freak on a Leash" was nominated for nine MTV Video Music Awards
, and won for the Best Rock Video
award, as well as the Best Editing
. Follow the Leader has sold over 14 million copies, making it Korn's most successful album.
had done on their previous albums, they decided to work with Steve Thompson and Toby Wright. Korn was shown making the video on KornTV. The reason they exposed themselves making the album was because they wanted to let their fans see what they were doing in the studio and behind the scenes.
Follow the Leader features numerous guest vocalists, including Ice Cube
on "Children of the Korn", Tré Hardson
of The Pharcyde
on "Cameltosis" and Limp Bizkit
's Fred Durst
on "All in the Family". Actor Cheech Marin
provides vocals on "Earache My Eye
", a cover
of the song from the Cheech and Chong
movie Up in Smoke
, with the rest of the band trading instruments
for the song.
and Todd McFarlane
designed the cover artwork for Follow the Leader, who later designed the artwork for other albums such as Ten Thousand Fists
by Disturbed. They also drew the image which surfaced as the back cover of Follow the Leader. The cover art depicts a child hopscotch
ing off a cliff and a gathering of kids waiting to follow. The album cover is featured in the "Freak on a Leash" music video.
into the mainstream. Follow the Leader was released August 18, 1998, and was awarded multi-platinum certification for shipments in excess of five million copies, by the RIAA
on March 15, 2002. In fall of 1998, Korn started the Family Values Tour
. It was called this because, as bassist Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu
says, "so many of their friends who were like family to us played in bands". The tour started on September 22, 1998, ending on October 31, 1998. The tour grossed over 6.4 million (6,400,000). Korn maintained a generally low ticket price, usually no more than thirty dollars. Korn toured with the band Limp Bizkit
, as well as Ice Cube
, Orgy
, Incubus
, and Rammstein
. The tour was considered to be a major success, and promoted Follow the Leader to sales that were considered to have "skyrocketed".
The album was also promoted through Concrete Marketing
's Concrete Corner program. The promotion saw 100,000 copies of a compilation CD featuring tracks of breakthrough artists approved by Korn, as well as a previously unreleased Korn track, being shrink-wrapped to the album at participating stores and given away for free with each purchase of the album. Baby band artists (at the time) featured on this CD included Kid Rock
, Orgy, Powerman 5000
and Limp Bizkit.
The album has had five singles issued: "All in the Family", "Got the Life
", "Freak on a Leash
", "Children of the Korn", and "B.B.K."
and heavy metal.
The album features 25 tracks, 12 of which last five seconds of silence, making the first 60 seconds of the album all silent. Follow the Leader follows the lyrical style that vocalist Jonathan Davis
, who was established on their demo album Neidermeyer's Mind
. Journal Now said that Korn "shaped rap, metal and punk into a sonic maelstrom that is brutal, aggressive - and reasonably musical". The Daily News said that "the band shovels chunky beats into an already complex sound..." Michael Mehle of Rocky Mountain News said, "For the uninitiated, the classic Korn sound comes rumbling out of the speakers on the first cut: It's On! grinds fuzzy guitars, thunderous beats and shouts of gut-wrenching rage into an anthem for the alienated", and gave other positive remarks. Charlotte Observer said the album was dark, but humble. A Zeeland
high school assistant principal said in an interview for a Michigan
newspaper that the music is "indecent, vulgar, obscene and intends to be insulting". She said this after giving a student a one-day suspension for wearing a shirt with Korn on it.
gave the album a B–. Reviewer Jim Farber said that the lyrics "provide a new blend of metal and remnants of alt-rock." Jon Pareles
from The New York Times
said the album was "choppy", and also said that lead singer Jonathan Davis was "wrestling with self-hatred, violent impulses, parental execration, and a confused sexual identity..." Robert Christgau
gave Follow the Leader a C, saying that despite the band's denials they fit the definition of "metal", and criticizing the lyrical themes. Rolling Stone
gave the album four out of five stars, while saying that Korn "have an ideal record for those long, black days when all you can do is say 'What the Fuck! What the Fuck! What the Fuck!' at bloody murder volume". The album is featured in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
.
The album peaked at number one on four charts, including the Billboard 200
. Follow the Leader peaked at number five in the United Kingdom. The album received a 5× Platinum certification in the United States, as well as a triple platinum in Australia and Canada. Follow the Leader also received a gold in the NVPI
. The album's first charting single, "Got the Life", released November 23, 1998, peaked at number fifteen on the Mainstream Rock Songs chart, and received a gold certification in Australia. The album's next charting single, "Freak on a Leash", released May 25, 1999, peaked at number six on the Alternative Songs chart, as well as number six on the Bubbling Under Hot 100
, and like "Got the Life", received a gold certification in Australia. "Freak on a Leash" was nominated for nine MTV Video Music Awards
, and won for the Best Rock Video
award, as well as the Best Editing
award.
Singles
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by American nu metal
Nu metal
Nu metal is a subgenre of heavy metal. It is a fusion genre which combines elements of heavy metal with other genres, including grunge and hip hop...
band Korn
Korn
Korn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...
. The album was released on August 18, 1998, through Immortal
Immortal Records
Immortal Records is an independent record label out of Los Angeles, California. Founded by Happy Walters in 1994, the label had helped launched the careers of such influential acts as Korn, 30 Seconds to Mars, and Incubus over the years. The label had also released soundtracks, including Judgment...
/Epic
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
. This was their first album not produced by Ross Robinson
Ross Robinson
Ross Robinson, son of Byron Katie, is an American multi-platinum music producer, who has discovered successful acts such as Korn, At the Drive-In, Glassjaw, Repeater, Slipknot and Limp Bizkit. Robinson has also worked with Machine Head, Vanilla Ice, The Cure, Sepultura and many others...
. Instead, it was produced by Steve Thompson
Steve Thompson (musician)
-Biography:Steve Thompson is an American record producer, Having worked with Guns N Roses, Madonna, John Lennon, Wu Tang, Korn, Cutting Crew, Belouis Some,Public Enemy, Whitney Houston, Metallica and Red Hot Chili Peppers...
and Toby Wright
Toby Wright
Toby Wright is a record producer and mixing engineer who has worked with artists such as Alice in Chains, Metallica, Sevendust and Korn. He is currently in Nashville, Tennessee working on Kara Clark's latest Ep.-Producer:...
.
The album peaked at number one on four charts, including the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
, and is often credited with bringing nu metal to the mainstream. The album received a 5× Platinum certification in the United States as well as a 3× Platinum in Australia and Canada. Its singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
"Got the Life
Got The Life
"Got the Life" is a song written and recorded by American nu metal band Korn for their third studio album, Follow the Leader. It was released as the album's second single on November 23, 1998. It was recorded in April 1998 at NRG Recording Studios...
" and "Freak on a Leash
Freak on a Leash
"Freak on a Leash" is a song by the American nu metal band Korn, featured on the group's 1998 studio album Follow the Leader. Prior to the album's release, Korn had an instrumental section of the song, described as a "noisy guitar break." The section was taken out of the song after their fans...
", both charted on more than three charts, and their music videos are considered to be the first music videos retired from MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
. The album generally received positive reviews by critics. Korn was praised by Allmusic saying the album is "an effective follow-up to their first two alt-metal landmarks."
The Family Values Tour
Family Values Tour
The Family Values Tour was created by the band Korn in 1998 to be an annual rock & rap tour.The tour began in 1998 and would take the year off in 2000, due to heavy competition from other tours, such as the Anger Management Tour and the Summer Sanitarium Tour. After a four year hiatus, the Family...
promoted the album, along with its five singles. The song "Freak on a Leash" was nominated for nine MTV Video Music Awards
MTV Video Music Awards
An MTV Video Music Award , is an award presented by the cable channel MTV to honor the best in music videos...
, and won for the Best Rock Video
MTV Video Music Award for Best Rock Video
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Rock Video was first given out in , and it was one of the four original genre categories added to the VMAs that year. That year, though, the award was called the Best Heavy Metal Video. From 1990 to 1995, the award was called the Best Metal/Hard Rock Video, and...
award, as well as the Best Editing
MTV Video Music Award for Best Editing
The following is a list of MTV Video Music Awards winners for Best Editing in a Video. Five artists are tied for the record of biggest winner in this category, each having won the award twice: Peter Gabriel, R.E.M., Madonna, The White Stripes, and Gnarls Barkley. The latter two, in fact, won...
. Follow the Leader has sold over 14 million copies, making it Korn's most successful album.
Recording and production
By early 1998, Korn returned to the studio to record Follow the Leader. Even though Korn was impressed by the work Ross RobinsonRoss Robinson
Ross Robinson, son of Byron Katie, is an American multi-platinum music producer, who has discovered successful acts such as Korn, At the Drive-In, Glassjaw, Repeater, Slipknot and Limp Bizkit. Robinson has also worked with Machine Head, Vanilla Ice, The Cure, Sepultura and many others...
had done on their previous albums, they decided to work with Steve Thompson and Toby Wright. Korn was shown making the video on KornTV. The reason they exposed themselves making the album was because they wanted to let their fans see what they were doing in the studio and behind the scenes.
Follow the Leader features numerous guest vocalists, including Ice Cube
Ice Cube
O'Shea Jackson , better known by his stage name Ice Cube, is an American rapper and actor. He began his career as a member of the hip-hop group C.I.A. and later joined the rap group N.W.A. After leaving N.W.A in December 1989, he built a successful solo career in music, and also as a writer,...
on "Children of the Korn", Tré Hardson
Slimkid3
SLIMKID3 also known as "Slim Kid Tre" and "Tre Hardson", was one of the four original members of Los Angeles innovative hip hop group The Pharcyde.-Two For Two:...
of The Pharcyde
The Pharcyde
The Pharcyde are an alternative hip hop group based in South Central Los Angeles. The original four members of the group are Imani , Slimkid3 , Bootie Brown and Fatlip . DJ Mark Luv was the group's first DJ, followed by producer J-Swift and then J Dilla...
on "Cameltosis" and Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit is an American rock band from Jacksonville, Florida. Formed in 1995, the group's lineup consists of Fred Durst , Wes Borland , Sam Rivers , John Otto and DJ Lethal . The band achieved mainstream success with their second studio album Significant Other, released in 1999...
's Fred Durst
Fred Durst
William Frederick "Fred" Durst is an American musician, director, producer and actor, well known as the frontman of the band Limp Bizkit.-Early life:...
on "All in the Family". Actor Cheech Marin
Cheech Marin
Richard Anthony "Cheech" Marin is an American comedian, actor and writer who gained recognition as part of the comedy act Cheech & Chong during the 1970s and early 1980s, and as Don Johnson's partner, Insp. Joe Dominguez on Nash Bridges...
provides vocals on "Earache My Eye
Earache My Eye
"Earache My Eye" is a comedy routine and song by Cheech and Chong which features Alice Bowie .-History:It first appeared on Cheech & Chong's Wedding Album and later on the greatest hits collections Cheech & Chong's Greatest Hit , and Where There's Smoke There's Cheech & Chong, a double-CD...
", a cover
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of the song from the Cheech and Chong
Cheech and Chong
Cheech & Chong are a comedy duo consisting of Richard "Cheech" Marin and Tommy Chong, who found a wide audience in the 1970s and 1980s for their films and stand-up routines, which were based on the hippie and free love era, and especially drug culture movements, most notably their love for...
movie Up in Smoke
Up in Smoke
Up in Smoke, directed by Lou Adler, is Cheech and Chong's first feature-length film, released in 1978 by Paramount Pictures. It stars Cheech Marin, Tommy Chong, Edie Adams, Strother Martin, and Stacy Keach....
, with the rest of the band trading instruments
Instrument-switch
Instrument-switching is a practice of live musicians in which musicians trade their instruments and perform with an instrument with which they are usually not associated...
for the song.
Photography and illustration
Artists Greg CapulloGreg Capullo
Gregory “Greg” Capullo is an American comic book artist and penciller, best known for his work on Quasar , X-Force , Angela and Spawn ....
and Todd McFarlane
Todd McFarlane
Todd McFarlane is a Canadian cartoonist, writer, toy designer and entrepreneur, best known for his work in comic books, such as the fantasy series Spawn....
designed the cover artwork for Follow the Leader, who later designed the artwork for other albums such as Ten Thousand Fists
Ten Thousand Fists
Ten Thousand Fists is the third studio album by American heavy metal band Disturbed. It was released on September 20, 2005 and became Disturbed's second consecutive #1 debut on the Billboard 200 in the United States, shipping around 239,000 copies in its opening week. It has been certified Platinum...
by Disturbed. They also drew the image which surfaced as the back cover of Follow the Leader. The cover art depicts a child hopscotch
Hopscotch
Hopscotch is a children's game that can be played with several players or alone. Hopscotch is a popular playground game.- Court and rules :- The court :...
ing off a cliff and a gathering of kids waiting to follow. The album cover is featured in the "Freak on a Leash" music video.
Promotion
Follow the Leader is recognized as Korn's mainstream breakthrough, and the album that ultimately ushered nu metal and re-ushered heavy metalHeavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
into the mainstream. Follow the Leader was released August 18, 1998, and was awarded multi-platinum certification for shipments in excess of five million copies, by the RIAA
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
on March 15, 2002. In fall of 1998, Korn started the Family Values Tour
Family Values Tour
The Family Values Tour was created by the band Korn in 1998 to be an annual rock & rap tour.The tour began in 1998 and would take the year off in 2000, due to heavy competition from other tours, such as the Anger Management Tour and the Summer Sanitarium Tour. After a four year hiatus, the Family...
. It was called this because, as bassist Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu
Reginald Arvizu
Reginald Quincy "Fieldy" Arvizu is the bassist for the nu metal band Korn, and guitarist for the hard rock band StillWell.-Musical career:...
says, "so many of their friends who were like family to us played in bands". The tour started on September 22, 1998, ending on October 31, 1998. The tour grossed over 6.4 million (6,400,000). Korn maintained a generally low ticket price, usually no more than thirty dollars. Korn toured with the band Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit is an American rock band from Jacksonville, Florida. Formed in 1995, the group's lineup consists of Fred Durst , Wes Borland , Sam Rivers , John Otto and DJ Lethal . The band achieved mainstream success with their second studio album Significant Other, released in 1999...
, as well as Ice Cube
Ice Cube
O'Shea Jackson , better known by his stage name Ice Cube, is an American rapper and actor. He began his career as a member of the hip-hop group C.I.A. and later joined the rap group N.W.A. After leaving N.W.A in December 1989, he built a successful solo career in music, and also as a writer,...
, Orgy
Orgy (band)
Orgy is an American synth rock band formed in 1996, from Los Angeles, California. Orgy described their music as "death pop".-History:Orgy was formed in 1996 by vocalist Jay Gordon and guitarist Ryan Shuck. Bassist Paige Haley, guitarist Amir Derakh, and drummer Bobby Hewitt soon completed the line-up...
, Incubus
Incubus (band)
Incubus is an American rock band from Calabasas, California. The band was formed in 1991 by vocalist Brandon Boyd, lead guitarist Mike Einziger, and drummer Jose Pasillas while enrolled in high school and later expanded to include bassist Alex "Dirk Lance" Katunich, and Gavin "DJ Lyfe" Koppell;...
, and Rammstein
Rammstein
Rammstein is a German Neue Deutsche Härte band from Berlin, formed in 1994. The band consists of members Till Lindemann , Richard Z. Kruspe , Paul H. Landers , Oliver "Ollie" Riedel , Christoph "Doom" Schneider and Christian "Flake" Lorenz...
. The tour was considered to be a major success, and promoted Follow the Leader to sales that were considered to have "skyrocketed".
The album was also promoted through Concrete Marketing
Concrete Marketing
Concrete Marketing is an independent marketing company based in New York, USA, founded by Bob Chiappardi and Walter O'Brien in 1984. is known mainly for its work with cutting edge rock and heavy metal, having amassed a client roster that features bands such as Metallica, Megadeth, Korn, Limp...
's Concrete Corner program. The promotion saw 100,000 copies of a compilation CD featuring tracks of breakthrough artists approved by Korn, as well as a previously unreleased Korn track, being shrink-wrapped to the album at participating stores and given away for free with each purchase of the album. Baby band artists (at the time) featured on this CD included Kid Rock
Kid Rock
Robert James "Bob" Ritchie , known by his stage name Kid Rock, is an American singer-songwriter, musician and rapper with five Grammy Awards nominations...
, Orgy, Powerman 5000
Powerman 5000
Powerman 5000 is an American Metal band formed in 1991. Through the span of over two decades, the group has released several albums and gained their highest commercial success with 1999's science fiction themed Tonight the Stars Revolt!...
and Limp Bizkit.
The album has had five singles issued: "All in the Family", "Got the Life
Got The Life
"Got the Life" is a song written and recorded by American nu metal band Korn for their third studio album, Follow the Leader. It was released as the album's second single on November 23, 1998. It was recorded in April 1998 at NRG Recording Studios...
", "Freak on a Leash
Freak on a Leash
"Freak on a Leash" is a song by the American nu metal band Korn, featured on the group's 1998 studio album Follow the Leader. Prior to the album's release, Korn had an instrumental section of the song, described as a "noisy guitar break." The section was taken out of the song after their fans...
", "Children of the Korn", and "B.B.K."
Composition
Follow the Leader is seventy minutes and eight seconds long. Allmusic said, "They write songs, but those wind up not being nearly as memorable as their lurching metallic hip-hop grind." Entertainment Weekly commented that Follow the Leader was Korn's "gimmick", while saying the album had "steely riffs" and "stomping beats". Tower Records said the album "combines streamlined metal with ominous industrial touches and an undercurrent of hip-hop rhythm," and also said it was an "urban nightmare". The album is considered to be nu metal, but spans other genres such as alternative metalAlternative metal
Alternative metal is a genre of alternative rock and heavy metal that gained popularity in the early 1990s. Most notably, alternative metal bands are characterized by heavy guitar riffs and experimental approaches to heavy music.-Origins:...
and heavy metal.
The album features 25 tracks, 12 of which last five seconds of silence, making the first 60 seconds of the album all silent. Follow the Leader follows the lyrical style that vocalist Jonathan Davis
Jonathan Davis
Jonathan Houseman Davis is the lead vocalist and frontman for the nu metal band Korn. Davis was ranked 16th on Hit Parader 's list of "Heavy Metal's All-Time Top 100 Vocalists".-Early life:...
, who was established on their demo album Neidermeyer's Mind
Neidermeyer's Mind
Neidermeyer's Mind is a demo album by the American nu metal band Korn. It was was produced by Ross Robinson and released in 1993. The demo is very difficult to find...
. Journal Now said that Korn "shaped rap, metal and punk into a sonic maelstrom that is brutal, aggressive - and reasonably musical". The Daily News said that "the band shovels chunky beats into an already complex sound..." Michael Mehle of Rocky Mountain News said, "For the uninitiated, the classic Korn sound comes rumbling out of the speakers on the first cut: It's On! grinds fuzzy guitars, thunderous beats and shouts of gut-wrenching rage into an anthem for the alienated", and gave other positive remarks. Charlotte Observer said the album was dark, but humble. A Zeeland
Zeeland, Michigan
Zeeland is a city in Ottawa County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 5,805 at the 2000 census. The city is located at the western edge of Zeeland Charter Township which is politically independent. Its name is derived from the Dutch province of Zeeland...
high school assistant principal said in an interview for a Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
newspaper that the music is "indecent, vulgar, obscene and intends to be insulting". She said this after giving a student a one-day suspension for wearing a shirt with Korn on it.
Critical reception
Follow the Leader received generally positive reviews. Stephan Thomas Erlewine from Allmusic gave the album four out of five stars, saying that it "is an effective follow-up to their first two alt-metal landmarks." Erlewine also said that the songs were "vehicles for the metal grind". Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
gave the album a B–. Reviewer Jim Farber said that the lyrics "provide a new blend of metal and remnants of alt-rock." Jon Pareles
Jon Pareles
Jon Pareles is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of the New York Times. He played jazz flute and piano, and graduated from Yale University with a degree in music. In the 1970s he was an associate editor of Crawdaddy!, and in the 1980s an associate...
from The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
said the album was "choppy", and also said that lead singer Jonathan Davis was "wrestling with self-hatred, violent impulses, parental execration, and a confused sexual identity..." Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
gave Follow the Leader a C, saying that despite the band's denials they fit the definition of "metal", and criticizing the lyrical themes. Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
gave the album four out of five stars, while saying that Korn "have an ideal record for those long, black days when all you can do is say 'What the Fuck! What the Fuck! What the Fuck!' at bloody murder volume". The album is featured in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die is a musical reference book edited by Robert Dimery, first published in 2005. The most recent edition consists of a list of albums released between 1955 and 2010, part of a series from Quintessence Editions Ltd...
.
The album peaked at number one on four charts, including the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
. Follow the Leader peaked at number five in the United Kingdom. The album received a 5× Platinum certification in the United States, as well as a triple platinum in Australia and Canada. Follow the Leader also received a gold in the NVPI
NVPI
The NVPI is the Dutch tradeassociation of the entertainment industry...
. The album's first charting single, "Got the Life", released November 23, 1998, peaked at number fifteen on the Mainstream Rock Songs chart, and received a gold certification in Australia. The album's next charting single, "Freak on a Leash", released May 25, 1999, peaked at number six on the Alternative Songs chart, as well as number six on the Bubbling Under Hot 100
Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles
The Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States. It lists the top 25 singles below number 100 that have not yet charted on the Billboard Hot 100. Sometimes, however, singles halt their progress on this chart, and never appear on the Hot 100...
, and like "Got the Life", received a gold certification in Australia. "Freak on a Leash" was nominated for nine MTV Video Music Awards
MTV Video Music Awards
An MTV Video Music Award , is an award presented by the cable channel MTV to honor the best in music videos...
, and won for the Best Rock Video
MTV Video Music Award for Best Rock Video
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Rock Video was first given out in , and it was one of the four original genre categories added to the VMAs that year. That year, though, the award was called the Best Heavy Metal Video. From 1990 to 1995, the award was called the Best Metal/Hard Rock Video, and...
award, as well as the Best Editing
MTV Video Music Award for Best Editing
The following is a list of MTV Video Music Awards winners for Best Editing in a Video. Five artists are tied for the record of biggest winner in this category, each having won the award twice: Peter Gabriel, R.E.M., Madonna, The White Stripes, and Gnarls Barkley. The latter two, in fact, won...
award.
Track listing
All songs credited to Korn.Credits
| Korn | Additional musicians | Production | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Fred Durst William Frederick "Fred" Durst is an American musician, director, producer and actor, well known as the frontman of the band Limp Bizkit.-Early life:... – vocals Ice Cube O'Shea Jackson , better known by his stage name Ice Cube, is an American rapper and actor. He began his career as a member of the hip-hop group C.I.A. and later joined the rap group N.W.A. After leaving N.W.A in December 1989, he built a successful solo career in music, and also as a writer,... – vocals Cheech Marin Richard Anthony "Cheech" Marin is an American comedian, actor and writer who gained recognition as part of the comedy act Cheech & Chong during the 1970s and early 1980s, and as Don Johnson's partner, Insp. Joe Dominguez on Nash Bridges... - vocals |
|
Chart positions
| Chart (1998) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
1 |
| Australian ARIA Charts ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
1 |
| Austrian Albums Chart Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
7 |
| Belgian Ultratop Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... (Flanders) |
13 |
| Belgian Ultratop (Wallonia) | 30 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
1 |
| Dutch MegaCharts | 7 |
| Finland charts | 4 |
| French SNEP Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
5 |
| German Media Control Charts Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
12 |
| New Zealand RIANZ | 1 |
| Norwegian VG-lista VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
5 |
| Swedish Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
24 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
5 |
Singles
| Year | Song | US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
US Main. |
US Alt. |
AUS |
CAN Alt. RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
DUT |
GER |
NZ |
UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
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| 1998 | "Got the Life Got The Life "Got the Life" is a song written and recorded by American nu metal band Korn for their third studio album, Follow the Leader. It was released as the album's second single on November 23, 1998. It was recorded in April 1998 at NRG Recording Studios... " |
— | 15 | 17 | 26 | 1 | — | — | — | 22 |
| 1999 | "Freak on a Leash Freak on a Leash "Freak on a Leash" is a song by the American nu metal band Korn, featured on the group's 1998 studio album Follow the Leader. Prior to the album's release, Korn had an instrumental section of the song, described as a "noisy guitar break." The section was taken out of the song after their fans... " |
106 | 10 | 6 | 22 | 25 | 23 | 58 | 43 | 24 |