Ozzy Osbourne’s final concert raised $190 million (£140 million) for charities, according to the event’s musical director Tom Morello.
Osbourne, 76, has been beset by health issues, including Parkinson’s, in recent years but vowed to perform one last show. The epic “Back to the Beginning” concert at Villa Park in Birmingham saw the singer reunite with his band Black Sabbath to headline a bill that also featured Metallica, Guns N’ Roses and a cavalcade of other heavy metal superstars.
It was announced before the event, which was live streamed around the world to an audience of 5.8 million, that proceeds would be split between Cure Parkinson's, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Acorn Children’s Hospice.
On Instagram, Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello posted an image of Osbourne performing from a throne with the caption: “‘Back to the Beginning’ More than 190 million dollars will be donated to houses and hospitales [sic] for children.”
Morello added: "Boom. We set out to not just create the greatest day in the history of heavy metal."
He also thanked Osbourne for trusting him with his role, writing: “THANKYOU [Ozzy Osbourne] for trusting me to be the Musical Director of the 'Back to the Beginning' show. It was over a year of hard work but heavy metal was the music that made me love music and it was a labor of love.”
In a five-star review of the concert, The Independent’s Mark Beaumont wrote: “Loud Aid? Well, if you were to pit the last few decades of Download festival against each other in one almighty Wall of Death, it might look something like this.
“With merging and collaborating metal acts swapping over on a revolving stage, it’s a fast-spinning Lazy Susan of metal history. Yet there’s precious little ego and plenty of heartfelt humility among the huge names on display. Everyone handles their Sabbath covers like sacred texts, to be splattered with their own brands of vivifying savagery but never completely chewed up and spat in the fire.”
Osbourne told The Independent in 2022 that he was determined to perform in front of a crowd for a final time despite his health issues, saying: “I will get back on stage if it f***ing kills me, because if I can’t do it then that’s what’s gonna happen anyway, I’m gonna f***ing die. I love to see them audiences.”
He added: “If I have to crawl up there, I will do it. You ain’t seen the last of Ozzy Osbourne, I can f***ing tell you that.”
