The late rock icon Ozzy Osbourne will be saluted at this weekend’s MTV Video Music Awards by an all-star tribute band,
British singer Yungblud is set to join forces with Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and Joe Perry and Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt to perform a medley of Osbourne’s greatest hits.
The VMA ceremony will take place this Sunday, September 7 at New York’s UBS Arena. The show will be hosted by LL Cool J and will air live on CBS, MTV and Paramount+ at 8pm E.T./5pm P.T.
Lady Gaga leads the nominations this year with 12, but close behind are Bruno Mars, who received 11 nominations, and Kendrick Lamar, who has 10.
Osbourne, who made his name as the frontman of Black Sabbath before embarking on a solo career, died in July at the age of 76.
Last month, Yungblud spoke to The Independent about his friendship with Osbourne and the impact the metal legend had on his life.
“Ozzy was my North Star for everything I’ve ever done – he was a symbol of individualism and of being completely yourself without compromise,” the musician, born Dominic Harrison, said.
Osbourne died just weeks after a farewell event in his hometown of Birmingham, where Yungblud performed alongside legendary acts including Metallica, Guns N’ Roses and Alice in Chains, who all came together to celebrate Black Sabbath’s legacy.
Yungblud was widely praised for his extraordinary cover of the Sabbath song “Changes,” with many Sabbath fans suggesting he had brought the heavy metal pioneer to the attention of younger generations.
He admitted to being struck by nerves before he walked onstage at Villa Park, where the event took place: “You’re walking out to 20,000 people who are probably gonna hate me or just not know [who I am]...” He said he was “genuinely surprised” by the positive reception to his performance.
He continued: “I think rock is a beautiful genre because it doesn’t give its crown up easily – rock is all about musicianship and honoring what’s come before. So I knew it was an opportunity to show the world how much I love rock and how much I love Ozzy Osbourne.”
This year’s VMAs will see the introduction of two new categories: “Best Country” and “Best Pop Artist.” Last year’s ceremony was dominated by Taylor Swift, who took home seven awards.
Sabrina Carpenter also went home happy, winning Song of the Year for “Espresso” shortly after making out with an alien.
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