Ozzy Osbourne, 76, dies as tributes pour in for Black Sabbath singer after family announced his ‘peaceful’ passing: Live updates

‘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.  

‘Sharon, Jack, Kelly, Aimee and Louis’.

Black Sabbath co-founder Tony Iommi and bass player Terrence ‘Geezer’ Butler have paid tribute to their late friend.

Tony said he ‘just can’t believe’ that his ‘dear friend’ had died so soon after their blockbuster final performance at Villa Park.

He added: ‘It’s just such heart-breaking news that I can’t really find the words, there won’t ever be another like him. Geezer [Butler], Bill [Ward] and myself have lost our brother.

‘My thoughts go out to Sharon and all the Osbourne family. Rest in peace Oz. Tony.’

Meanwhile, ‘Geezer’ gave a poignant call-back to the bands humble roots after their formation in 1968.

He said: ‘Goodbye dear friend – thanks for all those years – we had some great fun. Four kids from Aston – who’d have thought, eh?

‘So glad we got to do it one last time, back in Aston. Love you.’

Ozzy Osbourne will go down in history as one of the greatest frontmen there have ever been.

But he almost prematurely curtailed his career after putting himself at severe risk of rabies when biting the head off a bat.

As a performer, Ozzy would sprinkle audiences with raw meat and, in 1982, had his encounter with a the flying mammal which had been thrown on stage by a fan.

He always insisted he thought it was a toy until he took a bite out of it, before realising his mistake and rushing to hospital for a rabies shot.

Ozzy later sold branded bat soft toys with a removable head.

Ozzy Osbourne’s death came as a shock, sources close to the family have told the Daily Mail.

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While broadcasting live on BBC Radio 1, presenter Jack Saunders became emotional as he delivered the news of Ozzy’s death.

‘We bring you the sad news that Ozzy Osbourne has sadly passed away at the age of 76,’ he said.

‘The Prince of Darkness himself, the frontman of one of the most important heavy metal bands, Black Sabbath, whose second album, Paranoid, remains without doubt the most influential metal album of all time.

‘If you’ve had a chance to listen to the album, you’ll know when I say this. But if not, the riffs were cutthroat and raw and I mean, there really wasn’t a consideration to be something or play up to a certain way. There was only concern to be heard.

‘And this track that I want to play you from Black Sabbath tonight was the opener to the album. It was emblematic, set the tone and completely ambitious in its time, which was 1970, by the way.

‘Fresh off the back of the chokehold of The Beatles, this felt like something fresh and different and exciting.

‘And Ozzy’s voice felt timelessly evil, filled with temptation and snare. There was no way once you heard Ozzy do his thing that you were going anywhere but listening to Black Sabbath.

‘Riding the rhythm and blues that had so far shaped the sound of rock and roll, Ozzy Osbourne, on this track and beyond, shaped himself as the Prince of Darkness. Rest in peace, to a legend’.

Captioning his upload of the heartbreaking moment, Saunders said:’As I was on air tonight, the news broke that we had lost one of the greatest showman the world of metal and music has ever seen.

‘The bands and artists that dare to fly the flag in the name of rock n’ roll do so because Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath did first. He was a blessing to music. Rest In Peace the Prince Of Darkness.’

In a social media post he said: ‘Whether we were in our basements with our brothers, in the woods with our buddies, in the car, at a keg party, on a boat, at football practice, at a sleepover…. Nobody was more badass to crank up on our speakers than the one and only prince of darkness – Ozzy Osbourne!

‘Loved him a lot like we all did! Sending love to the family and so happy to have spent time with the legend himself. RIP’

The US singer posted a photo of the heavy metal vocalist on Instagram and wrote: ‘No words. We love you Ozzy.’

In a post to Pearl Jam’s social media pages, he said: ‘Sad to hear Ozzy died today. When I was in high school I discovered Sabbath.

‘War Pigs’ was terrifying and mesmerizing at the same time. It was Ozzy’s voice that took me away to a dark universe. A great escape.

‘Then when ‘The Blizzard of Ozz’ record came out I was instantly a fan.

‘Randy Rhoads was an influence on me to play lead guitar. Luckily I got to play on the song ‘Immortal’ on the (Osbourne’s) last record.

‘Thanks for the music, Ozzy it makes our journey in life better. Mike McCready.’

Sir Brian May has paid tribute to Ozzy Osbourne following his death.

The Queen guitarist said Ozzy’s final concert earlier in the month ‘was a glorious way to say goodbye’ to the heavy metal vocalist.

‘So sad to hear of Ozzy’s passing. His last appearance at Villa Park was a glorious way to say goodbye – the love in that place for him was gigantic,’ he said.

May added he was ‘grateful’ that he was able to have ‘a few quiet words’ with Osbourne after the show, and happy to know he passed peacefully with his loving family close by.

‘But the world will miss Ozzy’s unique presence and fearless talent. My heartfelt consolations to Sharon and their great family.

‘And to Bill (Ward) and Geezer (Butler) and my dear friend Tony (Iommi) – for this is family – I know only too well. REST IN PEACE dear Ozzie. Bri.’

UK Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood, MP in Osbourne’s home city of Birmingham, said Osbourne was ‘one of the greatest gifts my city gave the world.

‘My thoughts are with his family. In Ozzy’s own words: Birmingham forever’.

Fans in Birmingham are leaving flowers on Black Sabbath Bridge in Birmingham following the death of the iconic singer.

He was born there in 1948 and spent his childhood in the Aston area of the city.

Ozzy was widely recognied as a Brummie and a proud one at that, despite his international fame.

Flowers are being left by grieving fans at Ozzy Osbourne’s Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles.

The legendary frontman of heavy metal group Black Sabbath, died on Tuesday at the age of 76.

Osbourne was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2020 and paused touring three years later after extensive spinal surgery.

But the star continued working and made two announcements about upcoming projects just weeks before his death.

On 10 July, the 78-year-old revealed plans to release a memoir titled Last Rites.

The book, described as ‘the shocking, bitterly hilarious, never-before-told story of Osbourne’s descent into hell’, is set to be released on October 7.

And just a week later, Black Sabbath confirmed a concert film of their final gig with Osbourne will be out next year.

The ex-footballer took to Instagram to pay tribute to the music legend, who he thanked for ‘entertaining us’.

Taking to X, the charity wrote: The Parkinson’s Foundation is deeply saddened by the passing of music legend Ozzy Osbourne, just weeks after his farewell show.

‘Since his Parkinson’s disease diagnosis in 2019, Osbourne publicly shared his journey and brought greater awareness to the challenges of living with PD.

‘We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and fans as we honor his legacy and continue to fight for everyone impacted by Parkinson’s’.

Ozzy Osbourne told Rolling Stone magazine in 2023 that he would ‘die a happy man’ if he passed away after one of his farewell shows.

Speaking to the magazine’s content editor Nick Reilly, Osbourne expressed his desire to perform a goodbye concert, ‘because my fans are what it’s all about’.

He added: ‘If I can’t continue doing shows on a regular basis, I just want to be well enough to do one show where I can say, “Hi guys, thanks so much for my life.” That’s what I’m working towards, and if I drop down dead at the end of it, I’ll die a happy man.’

Taking to X, the presenter wrote: Ozzy Osbourne – a proper British legend. And @MrsSOsbourne an absolute one off. Love to you all and RIP. Your legacy will live on forever’.

The boxer took to X to share a personal memory of an interaction he shared with Ozzy several years ago.

Bruno wrote: ‘RIP Ozzy Osbourne we met several times years ago he called me “Big man” when he asked me if I liked Rock music I said “Soul & Reggae was my thing” he said “Give me a day big man and you will love Rock music” a character a funny man and a legend who we will not see the likes of ever again’.

The rocker was able to bid an emotional farewell to his fans on stage this month as he reunited with his original Black Sabbath bandmates Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward for the first time since 2005.

‘You’ve no idea how I feel – thank you from the bottom of my heart,’ Osbourne told the crowd in his final speech.

The star was a titan of music who somehow survived controversies that would end the careers of many others, and weathered health problems that would leave most of us on our backs.

The singer, who sold more than 100 million records, will forever be synonymous with the heavy metal band he formed in his home city of Birmingham in 1969.

With hits that included Iron Man, War Pigs and Paranoid, Black Sabbath’s pushing of occult themes proved both hugely popular and controversial, with a future pope even condemning Osbourne for his ‘subliminal satanic influence’.

‘RIP Ozzy Osbourne. Thank you to a legend,’ they said in a touching post.

CryptoBatz is a collection of 9,666 blockchain dwelling bats, founded and creatively direcetd by Ozzy Ozbourne.

‘CryptoBatz is a chance to own a completely unique piece of collectible art created by one of the most legendary rock icons of our lifetime,’ the website reads.

Premier League club Aston Villa have said they are ‘deeply saddened’ at the death of one of their most famous fans, Ozzy Osbourne.

Over the years, Ozzy, who grew up near Villa Park – where the side play their home matches- became synonymous with the club.

He was spotted on many occasions adorning the club’s claret and blue home shirt, and was immortalised in January before their Champions League game against Celtic with a huge tifo display of his iconic pose which read: ‘Up the Villa’.

Poignantly, the rockstar also played his last gig at Villa Park.

The club’s post on X read: ‘Growing up in Aston, not far from Villa Park, Ozzy always held a special connection to the club and the community he came from.

‘The thoughts of everyone at Aston Villa are with his wife Sharon, his family, friends, and countless fans at this extremely difficult time.‘Rest in peace, Ozzy.’

Ozzy Osbourne played a central role in what is regarded as one of the finest British concerts of all time.

In the gardens of Buckingham Palace, he played the Black Sabbath hit, ‘Paranoid’, at the 2002 Party in The Palace – an event to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee.

With guitarist Tony Iommi, supported by music legend Phil Collins on drums, he would later proclaim it as one of the best moments of his performing life.

At the end of the gig, every performer took to the stage to sing Beatles classic, ‘All You Need is Love’ before Paul McCartney brought the event to a close.

Images from that night show Ozzy with his arm around Rod Stewart, with Ricky Martin to his left.

In an emotional post this evening, Rod said: ‘Bye, Bye Ozzy. Sleep well, my friend.‘I’ll see you up there – later rather than sooner.’

In a touching post, the station wrote: ‘Rock legend. The Prince of Darkness. Black Sabbath frontman. RIP Ozzy Osbourne’.

Rapper Flavor Flav shared his thoughts on the death of Ozzy Osobourne, writing: ‘Man… real heart broken over the passing of OZZY OSBOURNE… we go way back and it was a real honor to watch him get inducted into the @rockhall last year.

‘Sending my love and prayers to Sharon and his kids and whole family. RIP’

American rapper and actor Ice T wrote: ‘RIP Ozzy. Right after the recent huge Black Sabbath final concert.

‘Sad.. In my opinion the Creators of Heavy Metal’

Piers Morgan has shared a touching anecdote about Ozzy Osbourne’s love for his wife, Sharon.

The journalist interviewed the rockstar on many occasions throughout his dazzling music career and it appeared that the pair shared a professional admiration and respect for one another.

During one of the instances Mr Morgan spoke with Ozzy, he revealed that he asked the musician what the best moment of his life was, to which Ozzy replied: ‘Meeting Sharon.’

Sharing a picture of the three of them together, Mr Morgan added: ‘RIP Ozzy Osbourne. One of the greatest rock stars in history, and a wonderful character. Truly one of the funniest people I’ve ever known.

‘My heart breaks for [Sharon]’.

In a tribute on Instagram, Campbell says: ‘You didn’t just shape a culture, you defined it. You led from the front and never looked back.

‘My thoughts are with Sharon and the entire Osbourne family during this time’.

The American heavy metal band thanked Ozzy Osbourne for ‘all that you did for metal’ in a tribute posted on social media.

He posted on Instagram: ‘So sad to hear the news of Ozzy Osbourne passing away.

‘He was a dear friend and a huge trailblazer who secured his place in the pantheon of rock gods – a true legend.

‘He was also one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. I will miss him dearly. To Sharon and the family, I send my condolences and love. Elton xx.’

Yungblud has shared an emotional tribute on his Instagram to the late Ozzy Osbourne, who he hailed as ‘the greatest of all time’.

The English singer-songwriter had a very strong relationship with Osbourne, who he first met in 2022, and it appeared that their relationship grew into an almost father-son type bond.

Sharing his heartbreak to Instagram, Yungblud, whose real name is Dominic Harrison, posted the tribute which had pictures of them together at Osbourne’s last gig in Birmingham.

He wrote: ‘I didn’t think you would leave so soon the last time we met you were so full of life and your laugh filled up the room. 

‘But as it is written with legends, they seem to know the things that we don’t. I will never forget you – you will be in every single note I sing and with me every single time I walk on stage.

‘Your cross around my neck is the most precious thing I own. You asked me once if there was anything you could do for me and as I said then and as I will say now for all of us the music was enough.’

You took us on your adventure – an adventure that started it all.‘I am truly heartbroken. You were the greatest of all time.’

The Rolling Stone posted on X: ‘I am so very sad to hear of the death of Ozzy Osbourne

‘What a lovely goodbye concert he had at Back To The Beginning in Birmingham.’

Alongside a clip of the late star, the band wrote: ‘We ‘love’ you too, Ozzy,’ in a post to X following the singer’s death.

Ozzy Osbourne was famed as a provocative and powerful performer on stage and a wild hedonist off it.

The Black Sabbath singer and successful solo artist was known for his controversial live shows.

Drug and alcohol use often fuelled manic behaviour in front of his adoring audiences, and also his most crazed moments in between shows.

These are some of the most memorable and infamous moments from the hell-raising life of the late heavy metal pioneer.

In 1982, Osbourne was wearing one of his wife’s dresses for a photoshoot close to The Alamo in Texas, the site of a heroic sacrifice by the Texan troops against the invading Mexicans.

The rock star drunkenly relieved himself on a cenotaph commemorating the dead, later donating thousands to the group which maintains The Alamo.

In the midst of an alcohol and drug haze, Osbourne said that he set about slaughtering 17 cats with a shotgun.

The rocker said he was found by his wife under a piano, armed with a knife in one hand and a shotgun in the other.

Osbourne toured with Motley Crue in the 1980s, and it was during this time that he is rumoured to have shocked his fellow rockers after ‘spotting’ a line of ants.

Bassist Nikki Sixx claimed that Osbourne took a straw and, as if snorting cocaine, hoovered the line of ants up his nose.

In 1982, Osbourne was on stage at a gig in Des Moines, Iowa, during a US tour.

A fan threw a bat on stage, and in the frenzy of performance Osbourne – believing it to be rubber – bit its head off. There remains debate as to whether the bat was alive or dead when it was thrown on stage.

Osbourne had history with the decapitation of winged creatures, beginning with an incident which stunned CBS Records executives.

Celebrating a new album in 1981, the Black Country-born rock star was intending to release two doves in a symbolic act at the record label. Instead, he grabbed a dove and bit its head off, before being thrown out of the building.

David Draiman, lead singer of American heavy metal band Disturbed, paid his respects to Ozzy Osbourne on X, calling the Black Sabbath icon his ‘teacher,’ ‘father,’ and ‘friend.’

‘I love you @OzzyOsbourne and I will miss you terribly,’ he wrote.

‘The saddest news this evening. All the Osbourne family have always been so kind to me. The loveliest people,’ he wrote in the caption.

Commenting on Ozzy’s most recent Instagram, the band wrote: ‘RIP Ozzy. Thank you for the music.

‘Much love to your family, friends and everyone else you have impacted in this world. You will be missed’.

In a post to X, Beatle’s singer John Lennon’s son Sean Ono Lennon wrote: ‘One of the greatest of all time. @OzzyOsbourne R.I.P.’

Following the news of Ozzy’s death, PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange said: ‘Ozzy Osbourne was a legend and a provocateur, but PETA will remember the ‘Prince of Darkness’ most fondly for the gentle side he showed to animals – most recently cats, by using his fame to decry painful, crippling declawing mutilations.

‘Ozzy may have been the singer, but his wife, Sharon, and his daughter, Kelly, were of one voice when it meant protecting animals. Ozzy will be missed by animal advocates the world over.’

Legendary heavy metal band Metallica have responded to the news of Ozzy Osbourne’s death.

Posting on X, the band shared an image of them with Osbourne from 1986 along with an emoji of a broken heart.

Coverdale, founder and lead singer of the rock band Whitesnake, who was reportedly once considered for the role of Black Sabbath frontman, has paid tribute to Ozzy Osbourne on X.

In a post to X, singers Jedward paid tribute to Ozzy Osbourne.

‘Rip Ozzy Osbourne sending love to Sharon and Kelly and Jack and the whole family,’ they wrote.

The final photo of Ozzy Osbourne before his death at the age of 76 has been released.

The star could be seen beaming on stage during a farewell concert at Villa Park Stadium, the home of his beloved Aston Villa, less than three weeks before his passing.

The rocker reunited with all his original Sabbath bandmates Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward for the first time since 2005 to bid an emotional farewell to his decades of performing live on stage.

In the snap, Osbourne took in the adulation of a sell-out crowd while sitting in a black throne, dressed in all black.

Looking emotional, he told his adoring supporters: ‘You have no idea how I feel.’

In a statement following his death, Osbourne’s 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.’

Ozzy Osbourne has died ‘surrounded by love’ at the age of 76, a statement from his family said.

The Black Sabbath frontman had performed from a throne on stage at Villa Park in Birmingham less than three weeks ago.

In a statement, his family said tonight: ‘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.

‘Sharon, Jack, Kelly, Aimee and Louis.’

The rocker was able to bid an emotional farewell to his fans on stage this month as he reunited with his original Black Sabbath bandmates Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward for the first time since 2005.