Ozzy Osbourne is “taking it one day at a time” amid new health struggles, but he still hopes to perform live again one day.
In a new interview with Rolling Stone UK, the 74-year-old metal icon reveals that a tumor was discovered in one of his vertebrae during a fourth spinal surgery. The operation was mean to repair damages from a 2019 fall that dislodged metal rods from a procedure in the early 2000s.
“It’s really knocked me about,” Osbourne said. “The second surgery went drastically wrong and virtually left me crippled. I thought I’d be up and running after the second and third, but with the last one they put a f—ing rod in my spine. They found a tumor in one of the vertebrae, so they had to dig all that out too. It’s pretty rough, man, and my balance is all f—ed up.”
Over the summer, the rocker — who also has Parkinson’s disease — canceled his headlining set at October’s Power Trip festival in Indio, Calif., which would’ve found him performing alongside Guns N’ Roses, Iron Maiden, AC/DC and Metallica, among others. He last took the stage in 2022 for brief performances in Los Angeles and England.
Osbourne announced his retirement from touring earlier this year, but he hopes to take the live stage again someday despite his health struggles.
“I’m taking it one day at a time, and if I can perform again, I will,” he tells Rolling Stone UK. “But it’s been like saying farewell to the best relationship of my life. At the start of my illness, when I stopped touring, I was really pissed off with myself, the doctors, and the world. But as time has gone on, I’ve just gone, ‘Well, maybe I’ve just got to accept that fact.’”
He added, “I’m not going to get up there and do a half-hearted Ozzy looking for sympathy. What’s the f—ing point in that? I’m not going up there in a f—ing wheelchair. I’ve seen Phil Collins perform recently, and he’s got virtually the same problems as me. He gets up there in a wheelchair! But I couldn’t do that.”
Osbourne, who said in September that he’s working on a new album, notes that a final performance would give him a chance to say goodbye and express his gratitude to fans.
“For whatever reason, that’s my goal to work to. To do those shows. If it’s at Ozzfest or somewhere, or even a f—ing gig at the Roundhouse,” he says. ““If I can’t continue doing shows on a regular basis, I just want to be well enough to do one show where I can say, ‘Hi guys, thanks so much for my life.’ That’s what I’m working towards, and if I drop down dead at the end of it, I’ll die a happy man.”
During the interview, Osbourne also touched on his relationship with the other members of Black Sabbath, including bassist Geezer Butler.
“It’s sad, man. We all grew up together, and he can’t pick up the f—ing phone like a man and see how I’m doing,” said rocker continued, who has received support from Tony Iommi and former Sabbath drummer Bill Ward.
Butler took to social media to respond to Osbourne’s comments after the interview was published.
“I don’t want to engage in a tit for tat. Having made 2 attempts to wish Ozzy well, without a reply, I figured it best to privately keep him in my thoughts,” Butler wrote on Instagram.
