Ozzy Osbourne, undoubtedly one of the most beloved and iconic heavy metal singers on the planet, has died at age 76.
A statement from his family issued on Tuesday reads, “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 privacy at this time.”
In 1968, the Birmingham, England, native co-founded Black Sabbath with guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward. The band helped define the metal genre, thanks in large part to Osbourne’s otherworldly vocals on such classic tunes as “Iron Man,” “Paranoid” and “War Pigs.” Ozzy also gained notoriety for his often-drug-and-alcohol-fueled exploits. His persona and antics earned him the nicknames the Prince of Darkness and the Metal Madman.
After a decade with the group, Osbourne was fired from Sabbath in 1979, purportedly over his substance abuse. However, he soon launched a solo career that, with initial help from virtuoso guitarist Randy Rhoads, became more successful than Black Sabbath’s. Among Ozzy’s memorable tunes from the ’80s are “Crazy Train,” “Flying High Again,” “Shot in the Dark,” “Bark at the Moon” and “No More Tears.” In 1988, Osbourne scored a top-10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Close My Eyes Forever,” a duet with former Runaways guitarist Lita Ford.
Ozzy occasionally reunited with Black Sabbath over the years, while mainly focusing on his solo endeavors. In 1996, Osbourne’s wife and manager, Sharon Osbourne, launched Ozzfest, an annual hard-rock festival and tour that Ozzy regularly headlined either solo or with Sabbath.
In the early 2000s, the singer found a whole new audience when he starred alongside Sharon and two of their children — Jack Osbourne and Kelly Osbourne — in the hit MTV reality series The Osbournes, which ran from 2002 to 2005. He and Jack teamed up again for another reality show, Ozzy & Jack’s World Detour, which debuted in 2016.
In 2006, Ozzy was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Black Sabbath. The band — minus Ward — reunited to record a final studio album, 13, which was released in 2013. The group launched a farewell tour called The End that ran from January 2016 to February 2017.
Ozzy then refocused on his solo career and in 2018 launched the No More Tours II outing, which he intended to be his final major trek. But in early 2019 he battled an upper respiratory infection and pneumonia, which forced him to postpone tour legs in the U.K. and Europe, and cancel dates in Australia, New Zealand and Japan.
Also in 2019, Osbourne suffered a fall in his home, aggravating injuries he suffered in a 2003 ATV accident. He required extensive surgery and recovery time, and continued to postpone tour dates. In 2020, Ozzy revealed he’d been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
Amid all that, Ozzy continued to put out new music, including the Grammy-nominated 2022 solo album Patient Number 9, which he supported with several live appearances. Still, the effects from the 2019 fall continued to hamper him, and in early 2023, he announced that his long-postponed tour dates would be canceled and that he was retiring from touring.
In 2024, Ozzy returned to the stage for his induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist: He shouted the iconic “All aboard”‘ intro to “Crazy Train” from a throne onstage. In addition to that song, an all-star band paid tribute to him with versions of “Mama, I’m Coming Home” and “No More Tears.”
On July 5, 2025, Ozzy made his final onstage appearance as part of the epic 10-hour all-star Back to the Beginning concert in Birmingham, England. He performed a five-song solo set while seated on a throne and was joined by his original Black Sabbath bandmates for a four-song set that included “War Pigs,” “Iron Man” and “Paranoid.” The concert will screen in theaters in 2026.
Ozzy had announced earlier in July that a memoir entitled Last Rites will be released Oct. 7.
Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
