We are deeply saddened to report that the legendary Prince Of Darkness, Ozzy Osbourne, has passed away at the age of 76.
In a statement released today (July 22), his 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.”
As a founding member of Black Sabbath, Osbourne helped create and define the genre of heavy metal with the likes of ‘Paranoid’, ‘War Pigs’ and ‘Iron Man’ before embarking on an illustrious solo career with debut album ‘Blizzard Of Ozz’ in 1980, going on to release 12 further studio albums across more than four decades in music.
Through his Ozzfest event, a travelling music festival first established in 1996, he helped launch the careers of the next wave of metal icons including Slipknot and System Of A Down.
Earlier this month, he took the stage for one final time in Birmingham at Back To The Beginning, an epic all-day show featuring the likes of Metallica, Guns ‘N’ Roses, Tool, Slayer and more as well as farewell sets from Sabbath and Osbourne. The event at Villa Park raised more than £140m for Acorns Children’s Hospice, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Cure Parkinson’s. A film of the concert will receive a theatrical release in 2026.
He told the cheering crowd that day simply “Thank you from the bottom of my heart.” For us and all metal fans around the world that day, the feeling was mutual.
RIP to a one of a kind legend. And thank you.
