The Prince of Darkness passed away at age 76 after one last gig in Birmingham’s Villa Park
The family of heavy metal singer Ozzy Osbourne have announced that he has died at the age of 76. The news comes just weeks after he performed for the final time with Black Sabbath’s reunion gig at Birmingham’s Villa Park.
Today, July 22, a statement from his family read: “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.”
Tributes have been shared across social media by various famous faces who are paying their respects to the late singer. For the latest TV and showbiz gossip sign up to our newsletter.
He had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019, but decided to push on and perform one last gig. In an interview with Rolling Stone before the massive reunion gig he said: “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.”
He had undergone an intensive rehabilitation programme to prepare for headlining a massive Birmingham concert titled Back To The Beginning on July 5. You can read more about Ozzy’s ongoing health battle here.
Ahead of the performance, Ozzy’s wife Sharon revealed: “Ozzy’s working with his therapist every single day. He’s doing really well, actually. Ozzy’s number one thing in life is his fans, so he’s working hard to be ready for them, to make this show the perfect way to end things.”
Sharon was just 18-years-old when she met Ozzy in 1979, they then got married in 1982 before having three children together- Aimee, Kelly and Jack.
The pair built their brand together and at the time of his death, Ozzy Osbourne’s net worth stood at $220 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. This reflects his shared fortune with his wife Sharon, who managed his career for decades and played a huge role in his success.
The family were also known for their MTV reality show, The Osbournes, which was a fly on the wall programme which followed them around in their daily lives. It began in 2002 and ran for three years until 2005. From there, the family as a whole were catapulted in to the mainstream media.
The Black Sabbath frontman announced on July,10 that he had planned to release a memoir titled Last Rites later this year.
The book, which has been described as “the shocking, bitterly hilarious, never-before-told story of Osbourne’s descent into hell”, is slated for release on 7 October.