Ozzy Osbourne dead at 76: Black Sabbath lead singer and heavy metal icon, family release statement
John Michael 'Ozzy' Osbourne, the unforgettable voice behind Black Sabbath and one of heavy metal's most iconic figures, has died aged 76. Credit: AAP
John Michael 'Ozzy' Osbourne, iconic frontman of the legendary heavy metal band Black Sabbath, has died at 76, his family confirmed.Surrounded by his loved ones, Osbourne passed away peacefully, a family statement said.
'It is with deep sorrow that we announce the passing of our beloved Ozzy Osbourne this morning,' the statement added.
'He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time.'
He had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2019.
As frontman of Black Sabbath, he was at the forefront of the heavy metal scene - a deeper, darker offshoot of hard rock.
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Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath returned to their hometown, 56 years after the band was formed.
Credit: AAP
His theatrical stage presence, including once biting off the head of a bat, and styling himself as the Prince of Darkness marked him out as a controversial figure.
Born John Michael Osbourne on December 3 1948 in Aston, Birmingham, he left school at 15 and did odd jobs including factory work before teaming up with school friend Geezer Butler in several bands.
Children in school nicknamed him Ozzy, short for his surname.
As a boy, he loved the Four Seasons, Chuck Berry and Little Richard.
The Beatles made a huge impression.
'They came from Liverpool, which was approximately 60 miles north of where I come from,' he told Billboard.
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Ozzy Osbourne's final concert with Black Sabbath will be immortalised as a feature film.
Credit: AAP
'So all of a sudden it was in my grasp but I never thought it would be as successful as it became.'
Osbourne and his wife Sharon had three children together: Jack, Kelly and Aimee.
Either clad in black or bare-chested, Osbourne was often the target of parents' groups for his imagery.
Later, he would reveal himself to be a doddering and sweet father on the reality TV show The Osbournes.
Black Sabbath's 1969 self-titled debut LP has been likened to the Big Bang of heavy metal.
It came during the height of the Vietnam War and crashed the hippie party, dripping menace and foreboding.
The cover of the record was of a spooky figure against a stark landscape.
The music was loud, dense and angry, and marked a shift in rock 'n' roll.
The band's second album, Paranoid, included such classic metal tunes as War Pigs, Iron Man and Fairies Wear Boots.
The song Paranoid became in many ways the band's signature song.
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Kelly Osbourne with her dad Ozzy Osbourne.
Credit: AAP
Both albums were voted among the top 10 greatest heavy metal albums of all time by readers of Rolling Stone magazine.
'Black Sabbath are the Beatles of heavy metal. Anybody who's serious about metal will tell you it all comes down to Sabbath,' Dave Navarro of the band Jane's Addiction wrote in a 2010 tribute in Rolling Stone.
'There's a direct line you can draw back from today's metal, through Eighties bands like Iron Maiden, back to Sabbath.'
Sabbath fired Osbourne in 1979 for his legendary excesses, like showing up late for rehearsals and missing gigs.
'We knew we didn't really have a choice but to sack him because he was just so out of control. But we were all very down about the situation,' wrote bassist Terry 'Geezer' Butler in his memoir Into the Void.
Osbourne re-emerged the next year as a solo artist with Blizzard of Ozz and the following year's Diary of a Madman, both hard rock classics that went multi-platinum and spawned enduring favourites such as Crazy Train, Goodbye to Romance, Flying High Again and You Can't Kill Rock and Roll.
Osbourne was twice inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame - once with Sabbath in 2006 and again in 2024 as a solo artist.
The original Sabbath line-up reunited for the first time in 20 years in July 2025 in the United Kingdom for what Osborne said would be his final concert.
'Let the madness begin!' he told 42,000 fans.
Audiences at Osbourne shows could be mooned or spit on by the singer.
They would often be hectored to scream along with the song but Osbourne would usually send the crowds home with their ears ringing and a hearty 'God bless!'.
with Reuters, AAP and AP
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