The rumors of Ozzy Osbourne‘s death have been greatly exaggerated. That was the message the “Prince of Darkness” had during the recent episode of his family’s ongoing podcast, The Osbournes. Now on its 16th episode, the show featured a whole segment where Ozzy skewered YouTube channels trying to gain some notoriety by creating videos that claim the metal icon is dead.
“[They have YouTube clips saying] ‘People who have died today’. And they put it on that I died. The thing on YouTube, it’s got ‘celebrities who have died today’, and there’s a picture of me. And I go, ‘I’m not dead. I’m not really dead. Just a little flesh wound.’”
Ha. Monty Python and the Holy Grail reference. Nice.
In all seriousness though, Ozzy’s health issues over the years have caused countless people to wonder a) how much left he’s got in the tank as a performer and, perhaps morbidly, b) how much time he’s got left in general. No one wants to imagine an Ozzy-less world, so I shudder to think about that second one.
As for his future as a performer, that was thrown into question earlier this year when the man himself said his “touring days are over.” He eventually reneged on that statement not long afterward, and during the podcast he reiterated his stance that the world ain’t seen the last of Ozzy Osbourne.
“I’m not dead. I’m not going any-fucking-where. And I’m gonna go up and do some more gigs before I’m finished anyway.”
Ozzy’s been working on his health for a while now. Most recently he’s been working on getting his mobility back, which was a major issue given the back injury he suffered in the early 2000s.
We’ll have to see if 2024 is the year we get Ozzy back on stage in some limited capacity. As a septuagenarian (he’s 75 years old) that partied and done drugs all over the world in his earlier years, the dude’s still cognizant and willing to get out there for his fans. Fingers crossed shit works out.