Just weeks after performing his final show with Black Sabbath, heavy metal legend Ozzy Osbourne has died at 76. The Prince of Darkness died after a prolonged battle with multiple health issues, including Parkinson’s disease and spinal injury.
“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,” read a statement from the Osbourne family announcing the news.
The British rocker rose to fame in the 1970s with his band, Black Sabbath. The band is credited for pioneering the doom metal genre with hits like “Iron Man”, “Paranoid” and “War Pigs.” They accrued immense popularity thanks to their industrial sound and sensational stage antics. In 1982, Ozzy infamously bit the head of a dead bat while on stage at Iowa, mistakenly thinking it was a stage prop. The incident became very imprinted in the rocker’s wild image, adding to his edgy allure.
With the help of his second wife Sharon Osbourne, the singer established the highly successful metal music festival Ozzfest after quitting Black Sabbath. In the 2000s, he, Sharon, and their two kids, Kelly and Jack, paved the way for modern family reality shows when they starred in MTV’s massively popular “The Osbournes”. The show’s expletive-laden language and crazy hijinks made the entire family household names, and Ozzy’s image transformed from mercurial rock god to a volatile but endearing patriarch.
Ozzy reunited with Black Sabbath in 2013. But the aging rocker had been battling several issues, from Parkinson’s diagnosis, alcohol and drug addiction, to a severe fall that required spinal surgery. He pulled through well enough to perform a retirement concert on July 5, which drew many metal heavyweights on stage. That turned out to be a real farewell to the notorious star: he died just three weeks after the star-studded send off.