Ozzy Osbourne is set to reunite with his Black Sabbath bandmates for what will be his final performance – “the greatest heavy metal show ever”.
The announcement was made by the star’s wife Sharon Osbourne and bandmate Tony Iommi at Villa Park in Birmingham, which will host the gig on 5 July.
The Back To The Beginning show will be the heavy metal band’s first performance together in 20 years, with original stars Osbourne, Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward.
Image: Black Sabbath in the 1970s. Pic: Shutterstock
It will also feature sets from acts including Metallica, Slayer, Alice In Chains and a “supergroup of musicians” including Duff McKagan and Slash (Guns ‘n’ Roses), Billy Corgan (The Smashing Pumpkins), Fred Durst (Limp Bizkit) and Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine).
Osbourne, 76, who has faced health problems including Parkinson’s disease in recent years, will play his own short set before joining his bandmates “for his final bow”.
‘One regret’
His wife Sharon told Sky News that for Ozzy “there’s one regret for everything that’s happened to him in the last six years.
“He said he never got a chance to say thank you to his fans and here we are, he’s going to say thank you, he’s going to give back to the city, with his brothers who are Sabbath… It’s the perfect farewell.”
Sharon acknowledged there would be “a lot of tears” but also “a lot of great memories”.
Profits will be shared between Cure Parkinson’s, Birmingham Children’s Hospital, and Acorn’s Children’s Hospice, organisers said.
About Cure Parkinson’s, Sharon said they wanted to raise awareness of the cause as “there is no cure right now” but there is “hope that in our lifetime there will be a cure, not for Ozzy but for the younger generation”.
‘Birmingham forever’
Osbourne said in a statement: “It’s my time to go Back to the Beginning, time for me to give back to the place where I was born.
“How blessed am I to do it with the help of people whom I love.
“Birmingham is the true home of metal. Birmingham forever.”
The singer had extensive spinal surgery after a fall at home in 2019 aggravated injuries he suffered in a near-fatal quad bike crash in 2003.
Despite his health problems, he has appeared at some one-off shows in recent years – including the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in 2022 and at half-time during an NFL game in California in the same year.
Black Sabbath formed in Birmingham in 1968 and went on to become one of the most successful metal bands of all time, selling more than 75 million albums worldwide over the years.
Morello, who is also music director for the reunion show, said: “This will be the greatest heavy metal show ever.”
Other acts confirmed for the gig include Pantera, Gojira, Halestorm, Lamb Of God, Anthrax and Mastodon.
More names will be announced shortly, organisers said.
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