Sharon Osbourne on Ozzy’s Farewell Show, ‘Proving Everybody Wrong,’ Black Sabbath, More (The Pollstar Interview)

On July 17,  Pollstar interviewed Sharon Osbourne, with whom we’ve had a long relationship, with the intention of getting a wrap not only on her husband Ozzy’s July 5 farewell concert “Back To The Beginning,”  a signoff for both Black Sabbath and his own touring career, at their hometown stadium, Villa Park in Birmingham, England.  With Ozzy’s passing just five days later, the interview with Sharon Osbourne took on a significantly heavier weight. 

The concert itself was a rousing success, selling out at 40,000 tickets, with millions more watching online and in rock clubs worldwide. A who’s who of metal titans, many of whom were first showcased nationally on Sharon and Ozzy’s own Ozzfest, including Anthrax, Disturbed, Mastodon, Halestorm, Lamb Of God, Alice In Chains, Pantera, Tool, Slayer, Guns ’N Roses, Metallica and, of course, Ozzy and Sabbath.

In the wake of the concert, which saw Ozzy deliver his trademark wail seated in a throne befitting the Prince Of Darkness, Sharon was thrilled, if more than a little pissed about reports that overstated how much money the concert had raised for Cure Parkinson’s research, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Acorn Children’s Hospice. In typical spitfire form, Sharon Osbourne weighed in on not only the concert, but Ozzy’s unlikely success which, in turn, is a befitting legacy to her own hard-won skills as a manager, businesswoman, and wife.

The Tribute Of Ozz
How A Humble Birmingham Kid Became The Prince of Darkness & Face of Heavy Metal

Sharp, savvy, and fiercely loyal, Sharon Osbourne, the daughter of another legendary manager in Don Arden, not only overcame industry doubts and disrespect for the genre and Ozzy himself, but also the challenges of being married to the unpredictable — but certainly loving—conductor of the ultimate Crazy Train. Largely behind her ideas and driving will, Sharon and Ozzy became multi-media sensations, won the hearts of Americans and fans worldwide, and ultimately both became household names. 

Ozzy’s passing was one hell of an exclamation point of one of the most significant careers in music, period. After some discussion, we decided to go ahead and run this interview in its entirety, with love for Ozzy and sympathy and respect to Sharon, the Osbourne family, and the entire Ozzy team.

Pollstar: Appreciate you taking the time to talk to me before we all ride off into the sunset.
Sharon Osbourne: My pleasure.

I just wanted to do a little bit of a wrap on the whole thing. We’ve been talking for about 30 years now.
Oh, no, Ozzy’s been on the road 57 years.

I’m just talking about how long you and I have been talking. 
Oh, my God, yes. It’s that long. It is, yes.

 I imagine you guys are pretty fried, but can you talk to me about how the farewell went?
 I’m really happy that we are talking, because one of the things that’s frightening me is all this false press about [how], we’ve made $140 million and all of this, and I’m like, “God, I wish we could have, for one gig.” It’s just ridiculous, the different stories. I went on the internet the next morning and it was like, $140 million, $160 million. And I’m like, “Where does this stuff come from?” And people like Billboard have printed it.

I think Billboard had it at $190 million.
Oh, $190 million? Thank you, Billboard, for getting it wrong. Just ridiculous.

Let’s just call it a success. It takes a long time to count all that out.
It takes a really long time, because we’ve had all of the bands that we had come in and their expenses, and it’ll take a good six weeks to get the final number. Because we’re selling merch for another two weeks from the gig. So, we’ve got another two weeks of sales yet to add to it. It’ll be another four weeks and it’ll be done.

These reports are not helpful for the Children’s Hospital to see, waiting for their $190 million.
Oh my God! It’s the Children’s Hospital, a children’s hospice, and Parkinson’s research. Everybody thinks that they’re going to cure everything with this much money, but it’s not the real world.

You can just keep us posted, and let’s just call it a success. How about that?
It was a huge success, because it was a phenomenal event. It was the first time, I think, that anybody’s gone into retirement and done it, where the show is streamed and it goes to charity. So it’s the first time anybody has said goodnight like that, it’s the perfect way, when you’ve had such a long career, to end it. I never wanted Ozzy to just disappear without some big event. And it’s the best way then to go home to where it all started, to go to his favorite stadium in the world (Villa Park), which is [home to] his beloved Aston Villa (soccer) team, and it was just perfect. It was the perfect storm, put it that way.

Who produced/promoted and did the production side of it?
Live Nation.

Who’s the person?
Andy Copping.

Did you book it with his team?
Yeah, and Tom Morello was a huge part of it, because he was our musical director, and Tom Morello was so much a part of putting this all together.

That’s so cool. And, as far as metal, man, that was very tastefully booked.
Yeah, I think so too. It was all the big icons. I mean, we could have gone on and on with more bands, but there just wasn’t any more time.

And you live-streamed and coordinated all that, which was a massive thing. I mean, it was on the level of Live Aid and that sort of thing.
Yeah, we’d been working on it; Andy and I had been talking about this two years ago, and then it became a reality. It was just amazing the way it happened.

So you had what as far as attendance? I saw 45,000 tickets; I don’t know what to trust anymore.
Yeah, the stadium holds 44,000, but with the production kills for the staging, we sold 40,000 seats.

I saw a figure of 5.8 million online streaming?
Yeah, that’s the thing. I mean, the streaming was 275,000 bought it. But Mercury (Studios, which produced and was saying that a lot of rock clubs all over the world bought it and played it in-house. So there were 200, 300 people watching it in one facility.

It was all over Twitter or X and I’m sure other social media, but X was just pounding with different performances, it was very immediate. I don’t know of a concert that came at me from all directions like that. I wish I could have been there, but I feel like I was, in a way.
Yeah, it was just amazing the way social media was over this. It was incredible.

Metal fans, and Ozzy’s fans specifically, they’ve always been underestimated, always been under-appreciated, for their power. That’s why I’ve always loved to cover metal, as a guy who covers live, because if you want to see them, you got to go to the shows.
Oh my God, the metal fans are the most loyal fans in the world! When they’re a fan, you’ve got them for life. They don’t go anywhere.

Any favorite performances from the day?
Oh God, there were so many. Metallica, Guns, and I loved Yungblud’s performance.

Yeah. “Changes.”
That’s being released as a single. He’s releasing that.

I love that song.
It’s a beautiful song.

So, all in all, is Ozzy happy with the way that day went?
He turned around and he said to me that night, he said, “I had no idea that so many people liked me.”

How could he not?
Ozzy’s always been in his own bubble.

Well, that’s true, please send him my best. It was great to see Zakk [Wylde] up there again.
Oh, wasn’t it fantastic? Just amazing.

And the tribute to Randy Rhoads was perfect.
Wasn’t it fantastic? Just amazing!

And Sabbath kicked ass too. I think it was the way to do it, not for just Ozzy, but for Sabbath as well.
Yeah, really. And for Ozzy to play with Bill [Ward] again, he was very, very emotional about that.

I bet. Anything you can tell me about that day, anything else that would be good for the story?
The thing is, you tell me, what festival runs on time? Ours was ten minutes ahead of time. It was the production crew; everybody was just experts. They were brilliant. They were absolutely brilliant. And our head of production is a guy called Jake Berry.

Yeah, I know Jake. I did a book with Jake.
Yeah, he’s a great guy. He’s one of the top guys in the business, he and Opie [Skjerseth], they’re the best.

Was Opie on this crew as well?
He couldn’t, because he was with AC/DC. But Jake was just superb, and all of his team of people. It was emotional, because a lot of our old crew guys were with us who had been with us for years, so was very, very emotional that way too. It wasn’t just what you saw on stage, but the guys behind the stage had been with us for years and years.

It’s just a testament to what pros everybody is around metal. And my hat’s off to you guys for that. So what are you going to do now, Sharon?
I’m going to be working on Ozzy’s movie. We are doing a movie on Ozzy’s and my life together, so that’s what I’m going to be working on next.

So when did you start managing Ozzy?
I started working with Ozzy in ’79.

Unbelievable. And you know what? People didn’t think he had a comeback, or any kind of career, really, ahead of him, a lot of people, right?
Well, put it this way, he was signed to Warner Brothers with Black Sabbath, and they were signed individually, and not just as the band. They were signed as individual artists. So, when Ozzy was in the studio doing Blizzard [Of Ozz] we sent the album to Mo Ostin [then Chairman/CEO of Warner Bros.] and we said, “Are you going to pick this album up?” And he sent back a letter saying, “Nice, try, Ozzy. But I’m afraid we’re going to have to pass this time, and so you are free to take it elsewhere.”

And the rest is freaking history. I know your dad (Don Arden) was a legendary manager, but did you have any other acts before that?
Yeah, I used to manage a guy by the name of Gary Moore. He was the guitar player in Thin Lizzy.

He’s phenomenal.
Phenomenal artist. So yeah, I had Gary Moore. He was the first guy I ever managed by myself.

How rewarding was it when that Blizzard hit the streets and it was embraced at the level that it was?
You know what? It was glorious, because everybody, everybody went, “No, he can’t leave Black Sabbath. No singer leaves and has a hit. Doesn’t work that way in this industry. No, no, it won’t work.” And he proved everybody wrong. Everybody. And it was just one of those great underdog stories.

What was the label of Blizzard?
We went to Epic and we’ve been there since 1980, and we’re still under contract to them.

I’ve always said that was one of the great career management jobs of all time. Particularly, being married to Ozzy Osbourne, the management job was incredible.
Listen, it was. How bad was it that I was managing Ozzy and Randy Rhoads at the same time? It was just an incredible time of my life.

Touring was such a part of it, because you took this thing to the masses and it was all routed and you worked with the agents so well, and promoters. You built a hell of a reputation yourself during that time period.
We were both underdogs in those days. It was like, “Oh, she just works for her father.” And with Ozzy it was, “He’s finished. He got fired from Black Sabbath. He’s over.” And it was “the underdog makes good,” and nobody expected it, but the fans.

They still love him to this day. And you’ve gone around and round with the fans, too, but I think in the end, you’ve got their respect more than anything.
I don’t know. I don’t know about that. Fans, I don’t know.

I see, I read the boards, man. They know that you got him out there.
As long as they respect Ozzy, that’s all I care about.

Any favorite places to play in America? Any shows that stand out? I’m sure that you’ve been to so many of these, that you had your favorites, right?
Oh my God. Chicago, Detroit, New York. I mean, just the salt of the earth. Just true, true working-class fans, just like Ozzy;

And any favorite promoters you liked to play for?
Louis Messina. Ronnie from New York. I mean, it’s the good old guys I love.

Ron Delsener used to tell a story of Ozzy throwing up in his new car in the Lincoln Tunnel.
Listen, every time Ronnie would come to a show, Ozzy would spray him with water gun. Ronnie took so much shit from Ozzy.

Do you care to say your least favorite?
Least favorite promoter?

I don’t know if I should do that to you on the last go-round.
Oh, no. I’ll tell you, John … oh my God, he went and did the Woodstock. The second Woodstock. What’s his name?

John Scher?
Oh, he’s a piece of shit. I head butted him when I was about 24.

Oh, I heard it that you kicked him in the nuts.
 I did, after I head butted him. Yeah. He’s a piece of shit.

Oh my God.
Yeah. I tell you what, he could kiss my raggedy old arse.

You’re killing me.
Please, put it in there.

So, you’re going to work on this movie, and then do you think you might get back involved in managing?
No, no, I couldn’t do that, because I don’t want to travel all that much. To be a really good manager, you’ve got to be there. Not just in London, New York, and L.A. You’ve got to be there, everywhere. And I don’t want to do that with my life.

Yeah, I hear you. You have to work hard at it. So, it’s been a hell of a career. And you talked about being on Epic for so long, and I’ve always said one of the greatest traits is loyalty, and you are a very loyal person. It shows that people are to you, as well.
Yeah. Listen, [Sony Music Group Chairman] Rob Stringer used to run Epic in the UK and I’ve known him since he was a kid We’ve grown up together, and so many of these guys, [UMG Chairman/CEO] Lucien Grange and I grew up together, [UMG EVP] Michele Anthony, all these people, we were like the team.

They got it, though. Somebody like Michele, totally got on Ozzy and you, and this relationship with the fans, and that’s what it takes really, an understanding of it.
 It is. And it’s understanding the mentality of the fans because you would get like [former CBS Records exec Walter] Yetnikoff in the old days, thought that we were scum, and the music was scum. He hated it, and he would refuse to have a picture taken with Ozzy. He thought that it was the lowest of the low.

Who gets the last laugh, right?
Oh, shit, yeah. When he was getting drunk under the fucking table, Ozzy was headlining stadiums. And there was somebody who was like holier than thou, and he was doing all the same drugs Ozzy was doing.

And then there was Irving [Azoff], who’s my boss.
Oh my God. I love Irving, because he gets it. Irving gets it.

He gets the power of live and the relationship with the artist.
And he gets what goes on in the street. He gets the fans. He really does.  I absolutely adore him. I adore [his wife] Shelli, their family, what they’ve all achieved. All of them are incredible people, an incredible family.

Any other shout-outs before we call it a career?
Oh, shoot. There are so many wonderful artists. But, I tell you what, there’s getting fewer and fewer characters in this industry. It used to be packed. Whether you liked them or not, they were great characters. And it’s now run by nerds, the industry.

When I talk to the kids that are coming out of these music programs and the young ones in the business, all they seem to care about is data, and statistics, and trends, and all of that, AI and computer stuff. It’s like this as an industry. Yeah, the numbers matter most of all, but it’s about instinct and your gut.
Oh my God, is it ever? And these kids don’t get it. They’re king of the nerds. God bless them, but they’re king of the nerds. It’s all stats.

I’d rather be the Prince of Darkness than the king of the nerds. I’ll tell you that.
Oh my God. Yeah. They forget about emotion. They forget about the gut. What the gut’s telling you, how it feels. Do you love it? Do you hate it?  Sorry, that will always be number one. Do you get goosebumps when you listen to this track? Is a fucking computer going to tell you that?

That’s so true, man. And the day that doesn’t happen is the day I walk away from it.
Oh, yeah. Yeah. When you hear a piece of music and you’re driving in your car and you pull over and you go, “Who the fuck am I listening to?”

The tributes like we saw the other night at your farewell show, those are honest and authentic in their own way.
Yeah. You look at those guys, it was so wonderful. Alice In Chains, Anthrax, all of these guys, they’ve worked their arses off on their music their entire careers. These guys never stop learning.

So many of them you gave a platform to on the Ozzfest. I remember going over those names of bands with you, and we would just laugh about it, like Snot and whoever else. It’s like, “Okay, well, they’re probably good.”
Yeah, exactly. Exactly!

Well, it’s been a pleasure. I’m so glad you gave me the time today.
Thank you. And don’t be a stranger.

I won’t be. I love you to death, and I love Ozzy too. 
Thank you. Thank you. That means a lot. Thank you. Okay. God bless you.