Rock legend Ozzy Osbourne dies at 76
Fans around the world are mourning the loss of Ozzy Osbourne, who died July 22 at age 76, just 17 days after his final live show. Known as the “Prince of Darkness,” Osbourne helped define heavy metal as frontman of Black Sabbath and became infamous for wild antics—like biting the head off a bat on stage.
But behind the outrageous image was a long battle with addiction. “I’ve never liked the way I felt,” he told Variety in 2021, admitting he used drugs to escape himself. The toll of substance abuse strained his family life. “My kids needed me, but I wasn’t there,” he said.
In a Classic Rock interview, Ozzy recalled a surreal turning point: after taking 10 tabs of LSD, he spent an hour talking to a horse—until it “told me to f*** off.” That, he said, ended his acid use.
Despite decades of excess, Ozzy knew how close he came to the edge. “I should have been dead 1,000 times,” he once said. “There’s nothing special about me… It doesn’t take much to kill you.”
His family announced his passing with heartbreak: “He was with his family and surrounded by love.”