Rancid is an American punk rock band formed in Berkeley, California in 1991. Founded by 1980s punk veterans Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman, who previously played in the highly influential ska punk band Operation Ivy, Rancid is often credited, along with Green Day and the Offspring, for reviving mainstream interest in punk rock in the United States and bringing punk rock into the mainstream during the mid-1990s. Over their 26-year career, Rancid remained signed to an independent record label and retained much of its original fan-base, most of which was connected to its underground roots.