1948–2025
Latest News: Ozzy Osbourne’s Cause of Death Revealed
Officials have identified a heart attack as the primary cause of death for British metal legend Ozzy Osbourne.
According to a death certificate obtained by The New York Times, the 76-year-old died of “out of hospital cardiac arrest” and “acute myocardial infarction.” Coronary artery disease and Parkinson’s disease with autonomic dysfunction were listed as contributing causes.
Osbourne announced his Parkinson’s diagnosis five years ago but revealed he had battled the disease since 2003. The Black Sabbath singer didn’t play a live show for almost seven years before taking the stage for a farewell charity concert with his band this past month. According to Billboard, the performance set a new record among charity concerts by raising about $190 million.
Osbourne died just over two weeks later on July 22. Thousands of fans lined the city streets of Birmingham, United Kingdom, the following week for a public procession also attended by the late rock star’s wife, Sharon Osbourne, and his children. The family also planned to have a “small private funeral,” according to People.
Who Was Ozzy Osbourne?
Grammy-winning singer Ozzy Osbourne rose to fame in the 1970s as the frontman of the seminal heavy metal band Black Sabbath, delivering such iconic songs as “War Pigs,” “Iron Man,” and “Paranoid.” After the band fired him in 1979, the British singer embarked on a successful solo career, earning attention for his outrageous public acts and drawing the ire of conservative groups. Osbourne later garnered a new legion of fans by starring with his family in the unlikely hit reality show The Osbournes from 2002 to 2005. The legendary rocker, who had Parkinson’s disease for more than two decades, died at age 76 in July 2025.
Quick Facts
FULL NAME: John Michael Osbourne
BORN: December 3, 1948
DIED: July 22, 2025
BIRTHPLACE: Birmingham, United Kingdom
SPOUSES: Thelma Riley (1971–1982) and Sharon Osbourne (1982–2025)
CHILDREN: Jessica, Louis, Elliott, Aimee, Kelly, and Jack
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Sagittarius
Early Life
John Michael Osbourne, better known as Ozzy Osbourne, was born into a working-class family in the English city of Birmingham, United Kingdom, on December 3, 1948. The fourth of six children, he acquired the nickname Ozzy in elementary school, where he struggled with dyslexia. These and other challenges prompted Osbourne to leave school at age 16, at which point he worked a series of menial jobs, including a stint in a slaughterhouse.
Osbourne soon moved on to more illicit activities, committing a series of petty crimes that culminated with a brief prison sentence for burglary. Throughout this turbulent period in his life, however, the teenager nurtured a deep love for music. After his release from prison, he began exploring his potential as a vocalist.
Music Career: Black Sabbath and Solo Artist
In 1968, Osbourne teamed up with bass player Terence “Geezer” Butler, guitarist Tony Iommi, and drummer Bill Ward to form rock group the Polka Tulk Blues Band, which they soon renamed Earth. While Earth earned some local notoriety, it wasn’t until the group began experimenting with the hard-driving, amplified sound that would later characterize the heavy metal genre that they caught the attention of record producers. Since the band’s moniker was already in use by another group, they adopted the name Black Sabbath, a reference to the classic Boris Karloff film.
Released by Vertigo Records in 1970, Black Sabbath’s self-titled debut album was largely panned by critics but sold well in England and abroad. With standout tracks like the title song, “The Wizard,” and “Evil Woman,” Black Sabbath reached the Top 10 in the United Kingdom and No. 23 on the American album chart. The group’s sophomore effort, Paranoid (1971), included the seminal metal anthems “War Pigs,” “Iron Man,” “Fairies Wear Boots,” and “Paranoid” and took Black Sabbath to new heights, topping the charts in the United Kingdom and reaching No. 12 in the United States.
The band’s use of religious symbolism and mythic themes lent a gothic cast to their public personae. It also earned them constant criticism from right-wing groups, negative publicity that simply fueled the band’s popularity with its fan base, mostly young men. As was the case with their first two albums, their subsequent efforts Master of Reality (1971), Vol. 4 (1972), and Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973) all found chart success, eventually achieving platinum status in the United States on the strength of such metal classics as “Sweet Leaf,” “After Forever,” “Snowblind,” and “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath.”
With the release of 1975’s Sabotage, the band’s fortunes took a turn for the worse. Despite the strength of songs such as “Symptom of the Universe” and “Am I Going Insane,” the album failed to achieve the same status as its predecessors. Punctuating this shift, they were also forced to cut their subsequent tour short when Osbourne was injured in a motorcycle accident.
The band’s steady intake of drugs and alcohol—mostly by Osbourne—also added to the strain, along with the loss of fans to the burgeoning punk-rock movement. Following the releases of Technical Ecstasy (1976) and Never Say Die (1978), Osbourne’s bandmates had had enough of their lead singer’s erratic behavior and fired him in 1979. Much later, Osbourne pointed to his desire to strike out on his own as a reason behind the split in an interview with In the Studio with Redbeard.
Although Black Sabbath carried on with various frontmen in the decades to come—including Ronnie James Dio, Dave Donato, Ian Gilliam, Glenn Hughes, and Tony Martin—the group never reached the same heights it had achieved during the original Osbourne era when they wrote and recorded some of heavy metal’s most memorable songs.
Solo Success: Blizzard of Ozz and More
Unlike some artists, who fade into obscurity after leaving the groups that made them famous, Osbourne delivered a solo debut, 1980’s Blizzard of Ozz, that was a resounding commercial success. Featuring the singles “Crazy Train” and “Mr. Crowley,” the album reached the Top 10 in the United Kingdom and No. 21 in the United States, where it would eventually notch multiplatinum status. His 1981 follow-up, Diary of a Madman, performed equally well. The ensuing tour, however, was laden with misfortune, including a plane crash that killed guitar player Randy Rhoads and two other members of their entourage.
Throughout the 1980s, Osbourne continued to cultivate the image of the troubled loner and angry rebel, with his antisocial theatrics contributing to his public notoriety. Among his antics, he showered his audiences with raw meat and bit the head off a live bat onstage. Not everyone found his persona and dark music so appealing, and he was frequently singled out by religious conservatives who hoped to demonstrate the negative impacts of rock music on society.
Despite these and other challenges—notably a 1986 stint in rehab—Osbourne continued to achieve commercial success, with the albums Bark at the Moon (1983), The Ultimate Sin (1986), and No Rest for the Wicked (1988) all going multiplatinum in the United States. He ushered in the 1990s with his sixth solo offering, No More Tears (1991), which peaked at No. 7 and had four singles hit the Top 10 of Billboard’s rock singles chart.
In 1992, Osbourne announced the No More Tears Tour would be his last. However, the popularity of the subsequently released double-live album, Live & Loud (1993), caused Osbourne to rethink his retirement. Contributing to his reversal was the arrival of his first Grammy Award when Live & Loud’s version of “I Don’t Want to Change the World” was named Best Metal Performance with Vocal in 1994. Osbourne returned to the studio for 1995’s Ozzmosis, and the following year, he began to tour as part of Ozzfest, a traveling metal festival that was the brainchild of the musician’s wife and longtime manager, Sharon Osbourne.
By the end of the decade, Osbourne’s star was on the wane, and he continued to struggle with the substance abuse problems that had plagued him throughout his career. However, he found his way back into the spotlight in 2001 with the release of his eighth studio album, Down to Earth, which reached No. 4 in the United States and No. 19 in the United Kingdom.
Reuniting with Black Sabbath
Having won another Grammy, this time for Best Metal Performance, with his old band in 2000, Osbourne reunited with Black Sabbath for a 2005 tour. The following year, the heavy metal legends were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. At the induction ceremony, Metallica—one of the countless groups for whom Black Sabbath was a primary influence—performed “Iron Man” in honor of the band.
Despite the years of abuse to his body, Osbourne displayed impressive staying power by continuing to tour as part of Ozzfest. He returned to the studio to record Black Rain (2007), which topped out at No. 3 on the U.S. charts and followed with the equally well-received Scream (2010).
In 2012, Osbourne reunited with his Sabbath bandmates to perform a series of concerts and record a new studio album, 13, which earned its release the following year. The record produced the Grammy-winning song “God Is Dead?” and earned a nod for Best Rock Album at the subsequent Grammy Awards.
In 2015, the band announced plans for one final tour, fittingly dubbed The End. They also released an 2016 album of that name, comprised of unreleased tracks from13 and several live performances. The tour wrapped up in the band members’ hometown of Birmingham, United Kingdom, in February 2017.
One year later, Osbourne announced the dates for the North American leg of No More Tours 2, the final tour of his career. Although he noted he wanted to spend more time with his family, the legendary headbanger insisted he wasn’t retiring as a musician and would continue playing smaller gigs and remain involved with Ozzfest.
In 2020, Osbourne released his 12th solo studio album, Ordinary Man, featuring collaborations with Elton John, Post Malone, and Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash. The metal legend’s final album arrived in 2022’s Patient Number 9. The project wracked up four Grammy nominations—a single-year career best for Osbourne—and won two trophies, for Best Rock Album and Best Metal Performance for “Degradation Rules.” One of the final honors of his decades-long career was Osbourne’s induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist in 2024.
The Osbournes Reality Show
As the rock star worked to find his footing in the public eye in the new millennium, Osbourne boosted his celebrity status by appearing on reality television. Debuting in early 2002, The Osbournes centered on the domestic life of Osbourne, his wife, and two of their children. The TV show became an instant hit. The comic appeal of the aging headbanger completing such humdrum tasks as taking out the garbage charmed even those conservatives who had once vilified Osbourne. However, it did also take a more serious turn that summer, when Sharon Osbourne was diagnosed with colon cancer. The show lasted until 2005, earning a Primetime Emmy, becoming one of MTV’s all-time highest-rated shows, and sparking a new brand of reality TV focused on the lives of celebrities.
In 2016, Osbourne and his son Jack returned to the familiar realm of reality TV with Ozzy & Jack’s World Detour. Lasting three seasons, the show captured the two globetrotters visiting iconic landmarks and off-the-beaten-path attractions with Kelly Osbourne eventually joining them.
In September 2020, A&E Network debuted the TV special Biography: The Nine Lives of Ozzy Osbourne, a documentary charting his path from childhood poverty to one of rock’s elder statesmen and a lovable 21st century television dad. It included interviews with friends and fellow musicians including Rick Rubin, Ice-T, Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie, Jonathan Davis, Post Malone, and more.
Wife Sharon Osbourne and Children
Osbourne married his manager, Sharon Osbourne (nee Levy), on July 4, 1982. The couple had known each other since 1970 when Ozzy was 21 and Sharon was 18. After becoming his manager in 1979, Sharon helped the singer launch and sustain his successful solo career. It was around this time that their relationship also grew romantic, though Ozzy was still married to his first wife at the time.
Following their wedding, Ozzy and Sharon had three children together: Aimee, born in 1983; Kelly, born in 1984; and Jack, born in 1985. Kelly and Jack appeared with their parents on The Osbournes, but Aimee demurred.
Since the beginning, Ozzy and Sharon had a tumultuous relationship. They fought regularly, often fueled by their heavy substance abuse, but they always found their way back together. Not even Ozzy’s intoxicated attempt to strangle Sharon one night could force the couple apart.
But then, in May 2016, after more than three decades together, Sharon and Ozzy announced their plans to divorce. According to Us Weekly, the split came after Sharon learned of Ozzy’s alleged affair with a celebrity hairstylist. However, two months later, the couple who had endured so many ups and downs together decided to try to make the relationship work. In July, Ozzy appeared on Good Morning America with their son, Jack, and said the marriage was not over. “It’s just a bump in the road,” he said. “It’s back on track again.”
Indeed, the Osbournes remained married until Ozzy’s death in July 2025. Just earlier that month, they celebrated their 43rd wedding anniversary.
Ozzy’s first wife was Thelma Riley. During the former couple’s marriage, which lasted from 1971 through 1982, they welcomed a daughter named Jessica and a son named Louis. Osbourne also adopted Riley’s son Elliott.
At the time of his death, Osbourne had five grandchildren.
Health Problems and Death
Osbourne faced multiple health problems during the later stage of his life.
In 2003, he suffered a broken neck vertebra, broken collarbone, and six broken ribs from a quad-bike accident and had metal rods placed in his back during surgery. By 2019, the singer underwent multiple spinal surgeries, including one to repair the rods damaged in a fall that same year.
Then, in a January 2020 interview with Robin Roberts of Good Morning America, Osbourne revealed he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease a year prior. The next month, he shared he was actually diagnosed with the disorder in 2003. Soon after the announcement, he canceled the North American leg of his No More Tours 2 tour, citing the need to travel to Europe for treatment and recovery.
Osbourne’s health kept him off the stage until July 2025, when he reunited with Black Sabbath for a farewell charity concert in Birmingham, United Kingdom. The event raised $190 million and featured a star-studded lineup of guest performers including Steven Tyler, Axl Rose, Sammy Hagar, and Metallica. Osbourne provided vocals for a five-song set in what would be his final live performance.
Only weeks later, on July 22, Osbourne’s family confirmed to The Sun that the singer died at age 76. A public procession was held in his hometown of Birmingham on July 30, with thousands of fans showing up to mourn the singer.
The New York Times later reported a death certificate showed Osbourne died of a heart attack, with coronary artery disease and Parkinson’s disease listed as contributing factors.
Net Worth
Celebrity Net Worth estimated Osbourne’s total fortune at around $220 million at the time of his death.
Quotes
- When I heard “She Loves You,” my world went up like a shooting star. It was a divine experience. The planets changed. I used to fantasize that Paul McCartney would marry my sister.
- I’ve cheated death so many times. If tomorrow you read “Ozzy Osbourne never woke up this morning,” you wouldn’t go, “Oh, my God!” You’d go, “Well, it finally caught up with him.”
Black Sabbath Greatest Hits 1970 - 1978
Black Sabbath CD (2009 Remaster)
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