John Michael Osbourne, known the world over as Ozzy Osbourne, has left this mortal coil on Tuesday, July 22nd, at the age of 76. The family of the undisputed Godfather of Heavy Metal confirmed the unfortunate news through his socials this afternoon:
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 (@OzzyOsbourne) July 22, 2025
We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time.
Sharon, Jack, Kelly, Aimee and… pic.twitter.com/WLJhOrMsDF
The news comes just weeks after Osbourne's final concert "Back to the Beginning," a day-long event in Birmingham featuring a bevy of rock and metal royalty. The show raised an estimated 140 million GBP (around 190 million USD), according to Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello, the event's musical director.
The show, which was also available to livestream, will be getting a documentary film treatment to be released next year via Mercury Studios.
Ozzy is known as the original frontman for Black Sabbath, who pioneered heavy metal with their 1969 debut album. After his dismissal from the band a decade later, Ozzy embarked on a solo career which saw him cement his legacy, platforming guitar gods such as Randy Rhoads, Zakk Wylde, and Gus G. His final two albums saw Osbourne collaborate with Andrew Watt, whose resume includes Post Malone, Miley Cyrus, and Lady Gaga.
Ozzfest, his music festival organized in collaboration with his wife and longtime manager Sharon, helped innumerable nu acts find their footing and get their music to more ears, including Fear Factory, Sepultura, Coal Chamber, Powerman 5000, Soulfly, and many more. The festival's last run was a New Year's Eve celebration in 2018, with Rob Zombie, Jonathan Davis, Body Count, and Marilyn Manson taking the mainstage, while Zakk Wylde's tribute band Zakk Sabbath, Wednesday 13, and DevilDriver shared the second stage.
His contributions to music are difficult to truly measure. Without Ozzy, without Sabbath, there is no heavy metal as we know it today. The roots of the mighty oak of heavy music are those of Ozzy Osbourne's work, and it is from those roots which this genre have grown over the last half-century. Will life go on without our beloved Prince of Darkness? Sure, but it will rock a considerably less without him.
Our thoughts are with the Osbourne family and Ozzy's legions of fans in this time.
