Black Sabbath posted its first comments on the death of former frontman and metal icon Ozzy Osbourne.
“Ozzy Forever,” the legendary British rockers wrote on Instagram, along with a photo of Osbourne at their farewell final concert on July 5th in Villa Park in the singer’s hometown of Birmingham, England.
In a separate post, Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi also offered a tribute on behalf of the rest of the band.
“I just can’t believe it,” Iommi said on X. “My dear dear friend Ozzy has passed away only weeks after our show at Villa Park.
“It’s just such heartbreaking news that I can’t really find the words. There won’t ever be another like him. [Terrence] Geezer [Butler], Bill [Ward] and myself have lost our brother.
My thoughts go out to Sharon and all the Osbourne family,” he added. “Rest in Pease, Oz. Tony…”
Geezer tweeted, “Goodbye dear friend – thanks for all those years – we had some great fun. 4 kids from Aston- who’d have thought, eh? So glad we got to do it one last time, back in Aston. Love you.”
Bill Ward wrote via his X account, “Where will I find you now? In the memories, our unspoken embraces, our missed phone calls, no, you’re forever in my heart. Deepest condolences to Sharon and all family members. RIP Sincere regrets to all the fans. Never goodbye. Thank you forever. Bill Ward.”
…Sabbath’s succinct but heartfelt comment drew more than 12,000 comments and more than 340,000 likes in just 30 minutes — and was part of an avalanche of online tributes.
Among them was a shoutout from Rolling Stone magazine, which called Osbourne “the singular metal legend whose Black Sabbath virtually invented heavy metal.”
Even Machete star Danny Trejo shared his grief on X.
“Today we lost one of the wildest souls to ever walk this Earth,” Trejo wrote. “Ozzy wasn’t just The Prince of Darkness, he was pure light to those of us lucky enough to meet him. A heart bigger than any stage he ever rocked.”
Another tribute came from actor Adam Sandler.
“Whether we were in our basements with our brothers, in the woods with our buddies, in the car, at a keg party, on a boat, on a football practice, at a sleepover… Nobody was more badass to crank up on our speakers than the one and only prince of darkness,” Sandler wrote. “Loved him.”
additional source: NY Post
One Response
Today is the worst day
in the history of Heavy Metal music.