Birmingham Gathers to Honor Ozzy Osbourne, Heavy Metal Icon

Birmingham, Jul 30 (AP) – The "home of metal" is preparing to pay tribute to one of its most beloved figures. On Wednesday, thousands of Black Sabbath fans will gather to bid farewell to iconic frontman Ozzy Osbourne as his hearse proceeds through Birmingham, the English city where he was raised and where the legendary band was formed back in 1968. The procession will travel down Broad Street, a key artery of the city, culminating at the Black Sabbath bench on the Broad Street canal bridge, an homage established in 2019. Osbourne, who passed away last Tuesday at 76, will be honored with a festive cortege accompanied by a live brass band, with family members in attendance. Following the announcement of his death, fans have flocked to various Birmingham landmarks in homage to Osbourne, acknowledging the city's status as the birthplace of heavy metal. Among his contemporaries, Osbourne stood tall as the genre's godfather. “Ozzy was more than a music legend — he was a son of Birmingham," expressed city official Zafar Iqbal. “We know how much this moment will mean to his fans.” To accommodate the gathering, Broad Street has been closed to through traffic since early Wednesday morning, with buses and trams redirected until after the funeral concludes. Recently, Osbourne and his fellow Black Sabbath members, Terence Butler, Tony Iommi, and Bill Ward, were bestowed the Freedom of the City, honoring their contributions to Birmingham's cultural heritage. Black Sabbath is celebrated for pioneering the heavy metal sound, and Osbourne led the band through its most successful phase in the 1970s, earning the moniker “Prince of Darkness” due to his notorious stage antics, often driven by substance use. The band's journey began in 1968 as the members aimed to escape factory labor. Their debut album in 1970 broke into the UK top 10, setting the stage for a series of successful releases like 1971's “Master of Reality” and “Vol. 4” in 1972. They became one of the most impactful metal bands globally, with album sales surpassing 75 million. At their final concert on July 5, 42,000 fans witnessed the band reunite at Villa Park, home to the Aston Villa football club, where Osbourne performed perched on a black throne. In recent years, Osbourne's health declined, particularly after his 2019 Parkinson's disease diagnosis. He also saw solo career success and garnered new fans through the early 2000s reality TV hit “The Osbournes,” co-starring his wife Sharon and their youngest children Kelly and Jack. (AP)

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