Ozzy Osbourne, the trailblazing frontman of Black Sabbath whose eerie vocals and wild persona helped define heavy metal, has died at the age of 76. A statement released on Tuesday (July 22) read:
“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. We ask everyone to respect our family’s privacy at this time.”
No cause of death was given.
His passing comes just weeks after Black Sabbath played their final concert on July 5—a charity event that grossed $190 million, making it the most lucrative benefit concert in history.
A Voice That Shaped a Genre
With a voice that cut through even the heaviest guitar riffs, Osbourne helped forge the sound and aesthetic of heavy metal. When Black Sabbath released their debut album in 1970, the genre didn’t have a name yet—but Osbourne’s sharp, haunted vocals quickly gave it one. Dressed in funereal black and singing about doom and darkness, he earned the nickname The Prince of Darkness—a title he wore with a mix of irony and pride.
“They all thought I lived in some Bavarian castle and flew around at midnight with bat wings,” he joked in a 2004 interview with British GQ.
Outrage, Excess, and Reinvention
After being fired from Sabbath in 1979 due to growing tensions and substance abuse, Osbourne launched a solo career that would outshine even his groundbreaking work with the band. His solo debut, Blizzard of Ozz (1980), included hits like "Crazy Train" and "Mr. Crowley," establishing him as a solo force in metal.
But his antics often made as many headlines as his music. He famously bit the head off a dove in a record-label meeting, and a year later, did the same to a dead bat onstage. In 1982, while wearing a dress borrowed from future wife Sharon Arden, he urinated on a historic monument in Texas and was banned from San Antonio for a decade.
These incidents were fueled by years of alcohol and drug abuse—addictions he later admitted nearly destroyed him. One binge led to him attempting to strangle Sharon, though he had no memory of the event. “It’s one of the most regretful things,” he later told British GQ. “Thank God, she dropped the charges.”
Yet, Osbourne also understood the power of controversy. “Rock ‘n’ roll is a sensationalist business,” he told Rock Hard in 1991. “If you haven’t got controversy, you haven’t got rock ‘n’ roll.”
The Unlikely Reality Star
In the early 2000s, Osbourne’s image shifted again—this time into something surprisingly wholesome. The Osbournes, a hit MTV reality show starring Ozzy, Sharon, and two of their children, revealed the metal icon as a lovable, often confused father mumbling through his Beverly Hills mansion.
Though some critics saw the show as a contradiction of his darker persona, Ozzy embraced the contradiction. “I’m just a zany ham,” he said in 2018. “It’s all entertainment.”
Honors and Legacy
Osbourne was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Black Sabbath in 2006. All nine of his Sabbath albums went gold, and five were certified platinum. As a solo artist, he released a string of successful albums, including No More Tears (1991), which sold over 3 million copies in the U.S. Seventeen of his singles hit the Top 10 on the Mainstream Rock Songs chart, and two reached No. 1.
In 1996, he created Ozzfest, a touring festival that became a global celebration of metal music, helping boost the careers of countless other artists.
From Birmingham to Immortality
Born John Michael Osbourne on December 3, 1948, in the industrial neighborhood of Aston, Birmingham, England, he grew up the fourth of six children in a working-class family. Nicknamed “Ozzy” in elementary school, he battled dyslexia, ADHD, and low self-esteem from a young age. “I’ve never been comfortable in my own skin,” he said in 2007. “For some reason, I’m a frightened soul.”
Inspired by the Beatles’ “She Loves You,” he dropped out of school at 15 and worked odd jobs before a stint in prison for burglary. After his father refused to bail him out, he spent six weeks in jail—but later, his dad bought him a microphone, a gesture that helped launch his career.
His first real break came in 1967, when bassist Geezer Butler hired him for a band that eventually evolved into Black Sabbath. Alongside guitarist Tony Iommi and drummer Bill Ward, they created a sound that reflected the grim realities of working-class life in Birmingham—music full of menace, distortion, and dread.
Their early albums, including Black Sabbath, Paranoid, and Master of Reality, laid the foundation for metal’s themes and tone. As Ozzy put it, “The only flower I’m likely to wear is on my f---ing grave.”
Resilience, Loss, and Redemption
Following his dismissal from Sabbath, Sharon Arden helped him rebuild his life and career. Blizzard of Ozz marked a remarkable comeback. But tragedy struck in 1982 when his band’s gifted guitarist, Randy Rhoads, died in a plane crash. Ozzy married Sharon four months later.
Despite personal turmoil and relapses, he continued to release acclaimed music, rarely straying from the charts. In 2013, he reunited with Black Sabbath for 13, the band’s first No. 1 album in the U.S. A farewell tour followed, concluding in 2017. He also announced his solo farewell tour shortly after, though he continued performing selectively.
A Final Reflection
Osbourne is survived by his first wife, Thelma Riley; their children, Jessica and Lewis; their adopted son Eliot; and by Sharon, his wife of more than 40 years, along with their children, Aimee, Kelly, and Jack.
Later in life, Osbourne often reflected on his improbable journey—from a troubled youth in Birmingham to a global icon. “When we did our first Black Sabbath album, I thought this will be good for a couple of albums,” he told Rolling Stone in 2018. “My life has just been unbelievable. You couldn’t write my story. You couldn’t invent me.”
