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Ozzy Osbourne, 76, announces final Black Sabbath gig as band reunite for first time in 20 years

Ozzy Osbourne, 76, announces final Black Sabbath gig as band reunite for first time in 20 years

Ozzy Osbourne has announced the final Black Sabbath gig as the band prepare to reunite for the first time in 20 years alongside a host of other big names. 

The original line-up of heavy metal legends Black Sabbath will play together at a one-off concert in Birmingham, UK, this summer, it was revealed on Wednesday.

Ozzy’s wife Sharon was at the announcement at Birmingham’s Villa Park, the concert venue, alongside the band’s guitarist Tony Iommi.

Sharon proudly held up a Villa football shirt with Ozzy’s name on the back as she posed pitchside.

The show will take place on July 5 at the birthplace of the band and will feature Ozzy, 76, Tommy, bᴀssist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward.

The group that pioneered heavy metal music in the early 1970s with hits such as War Pigs, Paranoid and Iron Man.

Ozzy Osbourne announced the final Black Sabbath gig on Wednesday as the band prepare to reunite for first time in 20 years

Ozzy Osbourne announced the final Black Sabbath gig on Wednesday as the band prepare to reunite for first time in 20 years

Black Sabbath pictured in the 70s - L-R: (back) Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi, (front) Bill Ward, Ozzy Osbourne - posed, group sH๏τ

Black Sabbath pictured in the 70s – L-R: (back) Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi, (front) Bill Ward, Ozzy Osbourne – posed, group sH๏τ 

Since their last gig together in 2005, Black Sabbath has played in partial reunions but never in their original line-up.

Black Sabbath, in what is being billed as its final show, will top a line-up of rock and heavy metal icons including Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Alice in Chains, Lamb Of God and Anthrax at the Villa Park event.

The show will feature sets from Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Gojira, Alice In Chains, Halestorm, Lamb Of God, Anthrax and Mastodon. 

The all-day event will also feature a supergroup of musicians. 

Artists announced so far include Billy Corgan (The Smashing Pumpkins), David Draiman (Disturbed), Duff McKagan, Frank Bello (Anthrax), Fred Durst (Limp Bizkit), Jake E Lee, Jonathan Davis (Korn), KK Downing and Lzzy Hale (Halestorm).

Profits from the show, called Back To The Beginning, will be shared equally between the following charities: Cure Parkinson’s, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Acorn Children’s Hospice, a Children’s Hospice supported by Aston Villa. 

Osbourne, the group’s charismatic frontman who left the band in 1979 due to drug and alcohol problems and went on to pursue a highly successful solo career, said in 2020 he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

The all-star event will celebrate the true creators of heavy metal and will see Ozzy Osbourne play his own short set before joining with Black Sabbath for his final bow. 

Ozzy's wife Sharon was at the announcement at Birmingham's Villa Park alongside the band's guitarist Tony Iommi

Ozzy’s wife Sharon was at the announcement at Birmingham’s Villa Park alongside the band’s guitarist Tony Iommi

Sharon proudly held up a Villa football shirt with the band's name on the back as she posed pitchside

Sharon proudly held up a Villa football shirt with the band’s name on the back as she posed pitchside

He said in a statement: ‘It’s … time for me to give back to the place where I was born. How blessed am I to do it with the help of people whom I love. Birmingham is the true home of metal.’

Formed in Birmingham in 1968 and going on to become one of most successful metal bands of all time, Black Sabbath have sold over 75 million albums worldwide across their legendary career. 

Setting the blueprint for the many routes heavy metal took, Black Sabbath’s influence and importance is as vital today as it was in the early 1970s. 

Tickets go on sale at 10am GMT on Friday 14th February 2025 at LiveNation.co.uk. 

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