Geezer Butler, Bill Ward, Ozzy Osbourne and Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath. Lester Cohen/WireImage
Ozzy Osbourne has announced that he will reunite with Black Sabbath for his star-studded final-ever concert.
The Prince of Darkness, 76, retired from touring in 2023 due to health issues, but will be back on stage one last time at Villa Park in his hometown of Birmingham, England, on July 5.
Osbourne confirmed via Instagram on Wednesday, February 5, that he will reunite the classic lineup of Black Sabbath with guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward for the first time since 2005 for this “Back to the Beginning” concert.
“Back to the Beginning” will donate all proceeds to the Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Acorn Children’s Hospice, with tickets going on sale via LiveNation on Friday, February 14, at 10 a.m. GMT.
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Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax and Pantera are among the more than two dozen acts scheduled to play the “greatest heavy metal show ever” before Black Sabbath takes the stage. Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello will serve as the concert’s musical director.
Attendees will also see sets from Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins, Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst, Disturbed frontman David Draiman, Judas Priest guitarist K. K. Downing and Alice in Chains as well as Slash and Duff McKagan from Guns N’ Roses, among many others. More acts will be added to “Back to the Beginning” in the coming months.
Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi, Bill Ward and Ozzy Osbourne of Black Sabbath, circa 1970. Chris Walter/WireImage
“It’s my time to go Back to the Beginning….time for me to give back to the place where I was born,” Osbourne announced. “How blessed am I to do it with the help of people whom I love. Birmingham is the true home of metal. Birmingham Forever.”
Birmingham’s historic venue Villa Park is the home of Premier League soccer club Aston Villa and has held massive concerts from Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi and Pink in the past.
Osbourne is returning to live performing after suffering serious spinal damage from an accident in 2019, which stopped him from touring for several years.
The heavy metal icon was scheduled to get back on the road for his No More Tours II trek in 2023, but had to scrap all of those shows due to continuing health problems.
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“This is probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to share with my loyal fans. As you may all know, four years ago, this month, I had a major accident, where I damaged my spine,” Osbourne told fans via Instagram in February 2023. “My one and only purpose during this time has been to get back on stage. My singing voice is fine. However, after three operations, stem cell treatments, endless physical therapy sessions, and most recently groundbreaking Cybernics (HAL) Treatment, my body is still physically weak.”
Inductee, Ozzy Osbourne speaks onstage during the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony on October 19, 2024 in Cleveland, Ohio. Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Osbourne subsequently told Rolling Stone he wasn’t giving up on returning to stage at least one more time, even if it was impossible for him to tour again.
“I’m taking it one day at a time, and if I can perform again, I will,” he said in November 2023.
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The original lineup of Black Sabbath formed in Birmingham in 1968 and released their pioneering self-titled debut album in February 1970. Osbourne fronted the band during its most successful commercial period but quit to go solo in 1979.
Black Sabbath carried on with ex-Rainbow singer Ronnie James Dio, former Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillan and Tony Martin fronting the group at various points through the 1990s, before Osbourne reunited the classic lineup for a long-awaited tour in 1997.
Drummer Ward later quit Black Sabbath in 2012 due to a contract dispute, leaving only three-fourths of the band’s original lineup intact for their 2016 farewell tour.
