Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath frontman and heavy metal legend, dies at 76

Ozzy Osbourne, the wild leader of Black Sabbath and a star of reality TV, has died at the age of 76.

His family announced the rock legend's passing in a statement to the U.K. Press Association: “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 felt loved. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time.”

The announcement comes only weeks after Osbourne played with Black Sabbath in Birmingham, England, where he grew up. He caught up with his old comrades, including bassist Geezer Butler, drummer Bill Ward, and guitarist Tony Iommi. It was a concert named Back to the Beginning, and it was Black Sabbath's first show in 20 years. Black Sabbath's official website said it was Osbourne's "final bow."

Everyone knew that Osbourne had been unwell for a while. In a November 2023 interview with Rolling Stone magazine, he talked about his struggles with Parkinson's illness and having to have spine surgery over and over again.

"I'll take it one day at a time, and if I can perform again, I will," the 74-year-old singer remarked.

Famed for his outrageous antics on stage, including biting the head off a bat, as well as substance abuse, Osbourne was respected by the rock establishment and reviled by the religious right, who believed him to be a devil-worshipper.

In his latter years, he found a second career as himself on the hit TV sitcom "The Osbournes."

John Michael Osbourne was born Dec. 3, 1948, in Birmingham, the fourth of six children of a poor family. There wasn't much to suggest that he would become famous, let alone an idol to millions.

He dropped out of school when he was 15 and then worked a number of jobs, including as a construction worker and a slaughterhouse worker. Then he tried to break into homes. That career ended badly, with a six-week prison sentence after his father refused to pay a fine, according to Osbourne’s 2009 autobiography “I Am Ozzy.”

When Osbourne started performing at local bars, he didn't aim to change the world. He joined the Polka Tulk Blues Band in 1968 because they needed a front man. The band at the time included Iommi, Butler, and Ward.

They changed its name to Earth. But as their sound turned heavier and their lyrics delved into horror and the occult, they opted for yet another name change, inspired by the title of a Boris Karloff film: “Black Sabbath.”

Some people say that Black Sabbath's 1969 self-titled first album was like the Big Bang for heavy metal. It happened at the height of the Vietnam War and ruined the hippie celebration, bringing with it a sense of danger and doom.

"War Pigs," "Iron Man," and "Fairies Wear Boots" are some of the iconic metal songs from the band's second album, "Paranoid." "Paranoid" only made it to No. 61 on the Billboard Hot 100, but in many ways it became the band's most well-known song. Readers of Rolling Stone magazine chose these albums as two of the 10 best heavy metal albums of all time.

Osbourne was sacked from Sabbath after ten years, supposedly because he was doing drugs.

But he quickly started a solo career that, with support from virtuoso guitarist Randy Rhoads at first, proved more popular than Black Sabbath. Osbourne's songs from the 1980s that people still remember are "Crazy Train," "Flying High Again," "Shot in the Dark," "Bark at the Moon," and "No More Tears." Osbourne's "Close My Eyes Forever," a duet with former Runaways guitarist Lita Ford, reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1988.

Osbourne got back together with Black Sabbath from time to time throughout the years, although most of the time he worked on his own projects. Osbourne's wife and manager, Sharon, started Ozzfest in 1996. It's an annual hard-rock festival and tour that Osbourne has headlined several times, either by himself or with Sabbath.

In the early 2000s, the singer found a whole new audience when he starred alongside Sharon and two of their children -- Jack and Kelly -- in the hit MTV reality series "The Osbournes," which ran from 2002 to 2005. He and his son Jack worked together again for the reality program "Ozzy & Jack's World Detour," which came out in 2016.

Osbourne's troubles with drinking and drugs, which led to his divorce from his first wife, Thelma Mayfair, stayed with him for the rest of his life.

Osbourne married his second wife, Sharon, in 1982 and had three children, Aimee, Kelly, and Jack.

The singer was married to Thelma Riley from 1971 till 1982.  He had two children with his first wife, Jessica and Louis. He also took in her son Elliot, who was from a previous marriage.