Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath frontman, dies at 76. In a statement shared with Sky News, the Osbourne family said: “It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love.” Osbourne died just weeks after reuniting with his Black Sabbath bandmates and performing a grand farewell concert for fans. Fans flocked to Birmingham’s Villa Park on July 5th for the major event, which has been dubbed “the greatest heavy metal show ever.” It was the final live performance by Ozzy Osbourne and the original Black Sabbath lineup.
Less than three weeks ago, Osbourne told fans, “You’ve no idea how I feel – thank you from the bottom of my heart,” while performing from a throne on stage at Villa Park. For the star’s “final bow,” a concert featuring performances by some of his favourite bands, such as Metallica and Guns N’ Roses, was organised. Metallica posted a photo on X of the band with Osbourne, along with a broken heart emoji soon after his death.
Who was Ozzy Osbourne?
Ozzy Osbourne aka John Michael Osbourne is known as the godfather of heavy metal. Before achieving great success on his own, he helped create the genre of music with Black Sabbath. Both with the band and as a solo artist, he was well-known for hits like Iron Man, Paranoid, War Pigs, Crazy Train, and Changes.
The Osbournes, a noughties MTV reality show that followed the star from Birmingham’s somewhat chaotic life in Los Angeles with wife Sharon and two of their kids, Kelly and Jack, also brought the singer a different kind of fame. During his rock star days, he was also well-known for his hellraising anecdotes, the most notorious of which was the story of how he bit a bat’s head off while performing.
How did Ozzy Osbourne die?
In addition to having Parkinson’s disease, he had experienced other health issues recently, such as complications from injuries he sustained in a fall in 2019.Osbourne received two inductions into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the UK Music Hall of Fame during his career, one as a solo artist and one with Black Sabbath. In addition, he has an Ivor Novello, five Grammys from twelve nominations, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and Broad Street in Birmingham. Over the years, he also won other accolades like Classic Rock’s Living Legend prize and the NME’s Godlike Genius award. In addition to his two older children, Jessica and Louis, from his first marriage to Thelma Riley, Osbourne also leaves behind his wife, Sharon, and their kids, Aimee, Kelly, and Jack, as well as his grandchildren.