July 22, 2025 • 16 mins
Welcome to another special commemorative episode of Hitmaker Chronicles. I'm your host, Garrett Fisher. In what continues to be a heartbreaking period for music, we gather to honor Ozzy Osbourne, the legendary Black Sabbath frontman and solo artist known as the "Prince of Darkness," who passed away at age 76 after a courageous battle with Parkinson's disease. From his working-class Birmingham roots to co-creating heavy metal with Black Sabbath, through his wildly successful solo career and unlikely reality TV stardom, Ozzy's influence on music and popular culture is immeasurable. Join us as we celebrate a true original who changed rock music forever.
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Get more info from Caloroga Shark Media and if you have any comments, suggestions, or just want to get in touch our email is info@caloroga.com
Unlock an ad-free podcast experience with Caloroga Shark Media! Get all our shows on any player you love, hassle free! For Apple users, hit the banner on your Apple podcasts app. For Spotify or other players, visit caloroga.com/plus. No plug-ins needed!
Subscribe now for exclusive shows like 'Palace Intrigue,' and get bonus content from Deep Crown (our exclusive Palace Insider!) Or get 'Daily Comedy News,' and '5 Good News Stories’ with no commercials! Plans start at $4.99 per month, or save 20% with a yearly plan at $49.99. Join today and help support the show!
We now have Merch! FREE SHIPPING! Check out all the products like T-shirts, mugs, bags, jackets and more with logos and slogans from your favorite shows! Did we mention there’s free shipping? Get 10% off with code NewMerch10 Go to Caloroga.com
Get more info from Caloroga Shark Media and if you have any comments, suggestions, or just want to get in touch our email is info@caloroga.com
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:11):
In what has been an unimaginably difficult few weeks for
music lovers everywhere. I'm Garrett Fisher and we're once again
pausing to honor a legend. We've lost. Ozzy Osbourne, the
man who helped invent heavy metal, who terrorized parents and
thrilled millions of fans for over five decades, passed away
Tuesday morning after his courageous battle with Parkinson's disease. He
(00:33):
was seventy six years old, and remarkably, he had performed
with Black Sabbath just two weeks before his passing, at
what was billed as their final concert, a festival called
back to the Beginning in their hometown of Birmingham, England.
As his family said in their statement, it is with
more sadness than mere words can convey that we have
to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away
(00:55):
this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love,
and indeed we share in that grieve because Ozzie wasn't
just a musician. He was a cultural force who fundamentally
changed what rock music could be and do, who proved
that authenticity and wildness could coexist with genuine musical innovation.
(01:16):
James Michael Osbourne was born on December third, nineteen forty eight,
in Birmingham, England, into a working class family, where he
was one of six children. His early life was marked
by the kind of struggles that would later inform his music,
economic hardship, limited opportunities, and a sense of being an
outsider in a world that didn't seem to have much
(01:37):
room for people like him. After dropping out of school
at fifteen, he worked as a manual laborer and briefly
turned to petty crime, even serving six weeks in jail
for burglary, but music provided an escape route. Young Ozzy
was an early Beatles fan and had performed in school operettas,
showing an interest in performance that would eventually reshape his life.
(02:00):
At nineteen, he joined forces with bassis Terrence Geezer Butler
in a local band, and they were soon joined by
guitarist Tony Iomi and drummer Bill Ward, former members of
a group called Mythology. Originally called Earth, they were forced
to change their name when they discovered another band with
the same name, eventually settling on Black Sabbath. After director
(02:21):
Mario Baba's nineteen sixty three horror anthology. This wasn't just
the formation of another band, It was the creation of
something entirely new in popular music. What Black Sabbath invented
in those early days wasn't just heavier than what came before.
It was fundamentally different, addressing themes of darkness, alienation, and
(02:42):
horror that rock music had rarely explored with such intensity
and authenticity. Black Sabbath's self titled debut album was released
in nineteen seventy, fittingly on Friday the thirteenth. The Murky
Morbid LP was widely reviled by critics who didn't understand
what they were hearing, but it became a top ten
hit in Britain and reached number twenty three in the US,
(03:04):
proving that audiences were hungry for something raw and more
honest than the peace and love messaging that dominated much
late sixties music. But it was their follow up Paranoid
that truly established Black Sabbath as a revolutionary force. The
album topped the UK charts and reached number twelve in
the US, containing several tracks that would become metal standards warpigs,
(03:28):
the title track Paranoid, Hand of Doom, and what ultimately
became their signature song iron Man. These weren't just heavy songs.
They were manifestos of alienation and social criticism, delivered with
unprecedented musical power. As critic Deborah Frost wrote when Black
Sabbath was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of
(03:50):
Fame in two thousand and six, black Sabbath simply oozed
upon us, unfestooned by any pretense of art, peace, love, understanding,
or mushroom androitery, and immediately defined heavy metal. That phrase
simply oozed upon us perfectly captures how revolutionary their sound was.
(04:11):
This wasn't music that announced itself with fanfare. It emerged
from the underground like something primal and unstoppable. Throughout the
early nineteen seventies, Black Sabbath continued to define and refine
the heavy metal sound. Albums like Master of Reality nineteen
seventy one, which hit number eight in America and included
(04:32):
the crowd pleasing pot anthem Sweet Leave, and Sabbath Bloody
Sabbath nineteen seventy three, demonstrated their ability to evolve while
maintaining their essential power. Ozzie's vocals were crucial to this success.
His voice could convey both the horror of the lyrics
and an underlying vulnerability that made the darkness feel human
(04:52):
rather than cartoonish. But success came with a price. The
band's legendary substance abuse problems per particularly Ozzie's struggles with
drugs and alcohol, began taking their toll by the mid
nineteen seventies. Albums like Sabotage nineteen seventy five and Technical
Ecstasy nineteen seventy six showed declining commercial performance and creative focus,
(05:15):
though they contained moments of brilliance that influenced countless metal
bands who followed. The internal tensions culminated in nineteen seventy
seven when Ozzie briefly left the band, only to return
for nineteen seventy eight's Never Say Die, an ironically titled
album that seemed to mark the end of an era.
Released during the Punk Revolution, the album felt dated upon arrival,
(05:40):
and the subsequent tour was plagued by problems, including a
riot in Nashville when Ozzie overslept and missed the show.
By early nineteen seventy nine, his Black Sabbath bandmates had
had enough, firing their iconic frontman and replacing him with
Ronnie James Dio. What Happened Next was one of rock
music's greatest second acts. Ozzie's solo career, managed by Sharon Arden,
(06:03):
whom he would marry in nineteen eighty two, not only
restored his commercial fortunes, but actually surpassed his success with
Black Sabbath. His nineteen eighty debut, Blizzard of Oz, reached
number twenty one in the US and went quadruple platinum,
introducing the world to the spectacular guitar work of Randy
Rhoades and containing one of Ozzy's most enduring anthem's Crazy Train.
(06:28):
The album also sparked controversy with Suicide Solution, which prompted
a lawsuit from parents who claimed the song had influenced
their teenage son's suicide. The case was ultimately dismissed, but
it established a pattern that would follow Ozzy throughout his career,
his willingness to explore dark themes that other artists avoided,
(06:48):
and society's complex relationship with art that refused to sanitize
difficult emotions. Tragedy struck in nineteen eighty two when Randy
Rhodes was killed in a plane crash in Florida. Rhodes
had been more than just Ozzi's guitarist. He was a
musical partner who brought classical influences and technical sophistication to
Ozzie's wild vision. His death was devastating personally and professionally,
(07:12):
but Ozzie persevered, eventually finding another crucial collaborator in Zach Wilde,
whose powerful playing would define much of Ozzie's work throughout
the late nineteen eighties and nineteen nineties. Albums like No
Rest for the Wicked nineteen eighty eight, No More Tears
nineteen ninety one, and Osmosis in nineteen ninety five proved
(07:33):
that Ozzie could continue evolving and finding new audiences. His
only major hit single, Closed My Eyes Forever, a nineteen
eighty eight duet with Leedaford, reached number six and introduced
him to MTV audiences who might not have encountered his
heavier material. Perhaps most importantly, Sharon Osbourne's creation of oz
(07:54):
Fest in nineteen ninety six transformed Ozzy from a successful
solo artist into the senate of a cultural institution. When
the Lollapalooza festival declined Ozzy's services, Sharon created a metal
festival built around his participation. What started as a two
day event in Arizona in California became one of the
top grossing touring festivals in the world, launching the careers
(08:17):
of countless metal bands and cementing Ozzy's status as the
godfather of the genre. But perhaps Ozzy's most unexpected cultural
impact came in the early two thousands with The Osbournes,
the MTV reality show that focused on his family life.
The series, which won an Emmy Award in two thousand
and two, revealed a different side of the Prince of Darkness,
(08:39):
a loving, if chaotic father and husband whose family dynamics
were both completely normal and utterly bizarre. New York Times
critic Carinn James described them as a wacky, harmlessly outrageous
variation on every family, as full of warmth as they
are of weirdness. The show was a cultural phenomenon that
(09:00):
introduced Ozzy to audiences who had never heard Black Sabbath,
proving that his appeal transcended music. Here was the man
who had bitten the heads off bats and doves, struggling
with the universal challenges of parenting teenagers and maintaining a marriage.
The juxtaposition was both hilarious and humanizing, showing that even
(09:21):
the most extreme rock stars are ultimately people dealing with
the same basic life challenges as everyone else more in
a moment. Throughout all these career phases, Ozzie's influence on
(09:48):
music continued to grow. Every subsequent generation of metal bands
cited Black Sabbath as a crucial influence, from Metallica and
Slayer to more recent acts like Tool and Alice In Chains,
the heavy, downtuned guitar sound that Tony Iomi pioneered, partly
due to industrial accidents that cost him fingertips, became the
foundation for not just metal, but eventually alternative rock, grunge,
(10:12):
and numerous other genres. Even in his later years, battling
the Parkinson's disease that he publicly revealed in twenty twenty,
Ozzie continued creating albums like Ordinary Man twenty twenty and
Patient Number Nine twenty twenty two showed that his voice
and vision remained powerful, while his sporadic reunions with Black Sabbath,
(10:33):
including there twenty sixteen to seventeen Farewell Tour the End,
proved that the magic between the original members was still potent.
The fact that he performed just two weeks before his
passing at the Back to the Beginning festival in Birmingham,
surrounded by metal legends like Metallica, Guns n' Roses and Slayer,
feels like the perfect end to an extraordinary story. Here
(10:57):
was an artist who had influenced all of these major acts,
being celebrated in his hometown by the musical family he
had helped create. Ozzie's legacy extends far beyond his musical innovations.
Significant as they were, he fundamentally changed how we think
about authenticity and popular music, proving that artists didn't need
to sanitize their darkness or complexity to find massive audiences.
(11:20):
His willingness to explore themes of alienation, mental illness, addiction,
and social breakdown created space for countless artists to address
difficult subjects honestly. He also demonstrated that longevity in rock
music was possible without compromising artistic integrity. While many of
his contemporaries either burned out or sold out, Ozzie continued evolving,
(11:41):
taking creative risks and finding new ways to connect with
audiences across five decades. His late career success with the
Osbournes showed that reinvention could happen at any stage of life.
Perhaps most importantly, Ozzie proved that being an outsider economically, socially,
culturally could be a source of strength rather than limitation.
(12:03):
His working class Birmingham background, his struggles with mental health
and addiction, his refusal to conform to industry expectations. All
of these potential disadvantages became the foundation for a career
that influenced millions of people who felt like outsiders themselves.
His relationship with Sharon deserves special mention, not just as
(12:24):
a love story, but as a creative partnership that redefined
how artists could control their careers. Sharon's management transformed Ozzi
from a talented but chaotic performer into a global brand,
while her creation of Ozfest showed how artists could build
their own platforms rather than waiting for industry gatekeepers to
provide opportunities. The controversies that followed Ozzi throughout his career,
(12:49):
the animal incidents, the arrests, the struggles with substance abuse
might have destroyed a lesser artist, but they somehow only
added to his legend. This wasn't because audiences approved of
self destructive behavior, but because they recognized his willingness to
live authentically, even when that authenticity was messy and complicated.
(13:10):
Looking back on Ozzie's extraordinary life and career, what emerges
is a portrait of someone who never stopped being himself,
regardless of the consequences. From the working class teenager who
discovered he could sing, to the global superstar who struggled
with fame's pressures, to the family man trying to balance
public persona with private reality, to the elder statesman celebrating
(13:33):
with his musical descendants just weeks before his passing. Ozzi
remained fundamentally authentic throughout his music. Gave voice to feelings
that many people experience but rarely hear expressed in popular culture. Alienation, anger, confusion,
the struggle to find meaning in a world that often
seems meaningless. But he also celebrated the power of community,
(13:55):
the joy of rebellion, and the possibility that outcasts could
find their tribe and create something beautiful together. As we
say goodbye to Ozzy Osbourne today, we're not just mourning
the loss of a great musician. We're acknowledging the passing
of someone who fundamentally changed what popular music could express
(14:15):
and accomplish. He showed us that darkness and light could coexist,
that commercial success and artistic integrity weren't mutually exclusive, and
that being true to yourself, however strange or difficult that
self might be, was ultimately the only path worth taking.
His family's request for privacy during this time is both
(14:36):
understandable and touching as they process the loss of not
just a public figure, but a husband, father, and grandfather.
The man who terrified parents for decades was, by all accounts,
devoted to his own family, finding in those relationships the
stability and meaning that sustained him through all the chaos
of his public life. So today we say thank you
(14:57):
to Ozzy Osbourne the Zick, for the courage to be different,
for showing generations of misfits that they could find their
place in the world. From black sabbaths revolutionary heaviness to
his solo careers sustained excellence, From Ozfest's community building to
the Osbourne's unexpected humanity, he created a legacy that will
(15:20):
influence artists and inspire outsiders for generations to come. The
Prince of Darkness has left us, but his influence will
echo forever in every heavy guitar riff, every artist who
refuses to compromise their vision, and every person who's ever
felt like they didn't fit in but found strength in
that difference. Rock music is infinitely richer because Ozzy Osbourne
(15:45):
was brave enough to be exactly who he was, and
the world is a little less colorful now that he's gone.
This is Garrett Fisher for hit Maker Chronicles celebrating the
life and legacy of Ozzy Osbourne. We'll return to our
countdown soon, but today we simply remember a true original
who proved that being yourself, however dark, however strange, however authentic,
(16:09):
is the most powerful thing any artist can do. Long
live the Prince of Darkness. His music will be forever young.
In what has been an unimaginably difficult few weeks for
music lovers everywhere. I'm Garrett Fisher and we're once again
pausing to honor a legend. We've lost. Ozzy Osbourne, the
man who helped invent heavy metal, who terrorized parents and
thrilled millions of fans for over five decades, passed away
Tuesday morning after his courageous battle with Parkinson's disease. He
(00:33):
was seventy six years old, and remarkably, he had performed
with Black Sabbath just two weeks before his passing, at
what was billed as their final concert, a festival called
back to the Beginning in their hometown of Birmingham, England.
As his family said in their statement, it is with
more sadness than mere words can convey that we have
to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away
(00:55):
this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love,
and indeed we share in that grieve because Ozzie wasn't
just a musician. He was a cultural force who fundamentally
changed what rock music could be and do, who proved
that authenticity and wildness could coexist with genuine musical innovation.
(01:16):
James Michael Osbourne was born on December third, nineteen forty eight,
in Birmingham, England, into a working class family, where he
was one of six children. His early life was marked
by the kind of struggles that would later inform his music,
economic hardship, limited opportunities, and a sense of being an
outsider in a world that didn't seem to have much
(01:37):
room for people like him. After dropping out of school
at fifteen, he worked as a manual laborer and briefly
turned to petty crime, even serving six weeks in jail
for burglary, but music provided an escape route. Young Ozzy
was an early Beatles fan and had performed in school operettas,
showing an interest in performance that would eventually reshape his life.
(02:00):
At nineteen, he joined forces with bassis Terrence Geezer Butler
in a local band, and they were soon joined by
guitarist Tony Iomi and drummer Bill Ward, former members of
a group called Mythology. Originally called Earth, they were forced
to change their name when they discovered another band with
the same name, eventually settling on Black Sabbath. After director
(02:21):
Mario Baba's nineteen sixty three horror anthology. This wasn't just
the formation of another band, It was the creation of
something entirely new in popular music. What Black Sabbath invented
in those early days wasn't just heavier than what came before.
It was fundamentally different, addressing themes of darkness, alienation, and
(02:42):
horror that rock music had rarely explored with such intensity
and authenticity. Black Sabbath's self titled debut album was released
in nineteen seventy, fittingly on Friday the thirteenth. The Murky
Morbid LP was widely reviled by critics who didn't understand
what they were hearing, but it became a top ten
hit in Britain and reached number twenty three in the US,
(03:04):
proving that audiences were hungry for something raw and more
honest than the peace and love messaging that dominated much
late sixties music. But it was their follow up Paranoid
that truly established Black Sabbath as a revolutionary force. The
album topped the UK charts and reached number twelve in
the US, containing several tracks that would become metal standards warpigs,
(03:28):
the title track Paranoid, Hand of Doom, and what ultimately
became their signature song iron Man. These weren't just heavy songs.
They were manifestos of alienation and social criticism, delivered with
unprecedented musical power. As critic Deborah Frost wrote when Black
Sabbath was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of
(03:50):
Fame in two thousand and six, black Sabbath simply oozed
upon us, unfestooned by any pretense of art, peace, love, understanding,
or mushroom androitery, and immediately defined heavy metal. That phrase
simply oozed upon us perfectly captures how revolutionary their sound was.
(04:11):
This wasn't music that announced itself with fanfare. It emerged
from the underground like something primal and unstoppable. Throughout the
early nineteen seventies, Black Sabbath continued to define and refine
the heavy metal sound. Albums like Master of Reality nineteen
seventy one, which hit number eight in America and included
(04:32):
the crowd pleasing pot anthem Sweet Leave, and Sabbath Bloody
Sabbath nineteen seventy three, demonstrated their ability to evolve while
maintaining their essential power. Ozzie's vocals were crucial to this success.
His voice could convey both the horror of the lyrics
and an underlying vulnerability that made the darkness feel human
(04:52):
rather than cartoonish. But success came with a price. The
band's legendary substance abuse problems per particularly Ozzie's struggles with
drugs and alcohol, began taking their toll by the mid
nineteen seventies. Albums like Sabotage nineteen seventy five and Technical
Ecstasy nineteen seventy six showed declining commercial performance and creative focus,
(05:15):
though they contained moments of brilliance that influenced countless metal
bands who followed. The internal tensions culminated in nineteen seventy
seven when Ozzie briefly left the band, only to return
for nineteen seventy eight's Never Say Die, an ironically titled
album that seemed to mark the end of an era.
Released during the Punk Revolution, the album felt dated upon arrival,
(05:40):
and the subsequent tour was plagued by problems, including a
riot in Nashville when Ozzie overslept and missed the show.
By early nineteen seventy nine, his Black Sabbath bandmates had
had enough, firing their iconic frontman and replacing him with
Ronnie James Dio. What Happened Next was one of rock
music's greatest second acts. Ozzie's solo career, managed by Sharon Arden,
(06:03):
whom he would marry in nineteen eighty two, not only
restored his commercial fortunes, but actually surpassed his success with
Black Sabbath. His nineteen eighty debut, Blizzard of Oz, reached
number twenty one in the US and went quadruple platinum,
introducing the world to the spectacular guitar work of Randy
Rhoades and containing one of Ozzy's most enduring anthem's Crazy Train.
(06:28):
The album also sparked controversy with Suicide Solution, which prompted
a lawsuit from parents who claimed the song had influenced
their teenage son's suicide. The case was ultimately dismissed, but
it established a pattern that would follow Ozzy throughout his career,
his willingness to explore dark themes that other artists avoided,
(06:48):
and society's complex relationship with art that refused to sanitize
difficult emotions. Tragedy struck in nineteen eighty two when Randy
Rhodes was killed in a plane crash in Florida. Rhodes
had been more than just Ozzi's guitarist. He was a
musical partner who brought classical influences and technical sophistication to
Ozzie's wild vision. His death was devastating personally and professionally,
(07:12):
but Ozzie persevered, eventually finding another crucial collaborator in Zach Wilde,
whose powerful playing would define much of Ozzie's work throughout
the late nineteen eighties and nineteen nineties. Albums like No
Rest for the Wicked nineteen eighty eight, No More Tears
nineteen ninety one, and Osmosis in nineteen ninety five proved
(07:33):
that Ozzie could continue evolving and finding new audiences. His
only major hit single, Closed My Eyes Forever, a nineteen
eighty eight duet with Leedaford, reached number six and introduced
him to MTV audiences who might not have encountered his
heavier material. Perhaps most importantly, Sharon Osbourne's creation of oz
(07:54):
Fest in nineteen ninety six transformed Ozzy from a successful
solo artist into the senate of a cultural institution. When
the Lollapalooza festival declined Ozzy's services, Sharon created a metal
festival built around his participation. What started as a two
day event in Arizona in California became one of the
top grossing touring festivals in the world, launching the careers
(08:17):
of countless metal bands and cementing Ozzy's status as the
godfather of the genre. But perhaps Ozzy's most unexpected cultural
impact came in the early two thousands with The Osbournes,
the MTV reality show that focused on his family life.
The series, which won an Emmy Award in two thousand
and two, revealed a different side of the Prince of Darkness,
(08:39):
a loving, if chaotic father and husband whose family dynamics
were both completely normal and utterly bizarre. New York Times
critic Carinn James described them as a wacky, harmlessly outrageous
variation on every family, as full of warmth as they
are of weirdness. The show was a cultural phenomenon that
(09:00):
introduced Ozzy to audiences who had never heard Black Sabbath,
proving that his appeal transcended music. Here was the man
who had bitten the heads off bats and doves, struggling
with the universal challenges of parenting teenagers and maintaining a marriage.
The juxtaposition was both hilarious and humanizing, showing that even
(09:21):
the most extreme rock stars are ultimately people dealing with
the same basic life challenges as everyone else more in
a moment. Throughout all these career phases, Ozzie's influence on
(09:48):
music continued to grow. Every subsequent generation of metal bands
cited Black Sabbath as a crucial influence, from Metallica and
Slayer to more recent acts like Tool and Alice In Chains,
the heavy, downtuned guitar sound that Tony Iomi pioneered, partly
due to industrial accidents that cost him fingertips, became the
foundation for not just metal, but eventually alternative rock, grunge,
(10:12):
and numerous other genres. Even in his later years, battling
the Parkinson's disease that he publicly revealed in twenty twenty,
Ozzie continued creating albums like Ordinary Man twenty twenty and
Patient Number Nine twenty twenty two showed that his voice
and vision remained powerful, while his sporadic reunions with Black Sabbath,
(10:33):
including there twenty sixteen to seventeen Farewell Tour the End,
proved that the magic between the original members was still potent.
The fact that he performed just two weeks before his
passing at the Back to the Beginning festival in Birmingham,
surrounded by metal legends like Metallica, Guns n' Roses and Slayer,
feels like the perfect end to an extraordinary story. Here
(10:57):
was an artist who had influenced all of these major acts,
being celebrated in his hometown by the musical family he
had helped create. Ozzie's legacy extends far beyond his musical innovations.
Significant as they were, he fundamentally changed how we think
about authenticity and popular music, proving that artists didn't need
to sanitize their darkness or complexity to find massive audiences.
(11:20):
His willingness to explore themes of alienation, mental illness, addiction,
and social breakdown created space for countless artists to address
difficult subjects honestly. He also demonstrated that longevity in rock
music was possible without compromising artistic integrity. While many of
his contemporaries either burned out or sold out, Ozzie continued evolving,
(11:41):
taking creative risks and finding new ways to connect with
audiences across five decades. His late career success with the
Osbournes showed that reinvention could happen at any stage of life.
Perhaps most importantly, Ozzie proved that being an outsider economically, socially,
culturally could be a source of strength rather than limitation.
(12:03):
His working class Birmingham background, his struggles with mental health
and addiction, his refusal to conform to industry expectations. All
of these potential disadvantages became the foundation for a career
that influenced millions of people who felt like outsiders themselves.
His relationship with Sharon deserves special mention, not just as
(12:24):
a love story, but as a creative partnership that redefined
how artists could control their careers. Sharon's management transformed Ozzi
from a talented but chaotic performer into a global brand,
while her creation of Ozfest showed how artists could build
their own platforms rather than waiting for industry gatekeepers to
provide opportunities. The controversies that followed Ozzi throughout his career,
(12:49):
the animal incidents, the arrests, the struggles with substance abuse
might have destroyed a lesser artist, but they somehow only
added to his legend. This wasn't because audiences approved of
self destructive behavior, but because they recognized his willingness to
live authentically, even when that authenticity was messy and complicated.
(13:10):
Looking back on Ozzie's extraordinary life and career, what emerges
is a portrait of someone who never stopped being himself,
regardless of the consequences. From the working class teenager who
discovered he could sing, to the global superstar who struggled
with fame's pressures, to the family man trying to balance
public persona with private reality, to the elder statesman celebrating
(13:33):
with his musical descendants just weeks before his passing. Ozzi
remained fundamentally authentic throughout his music. Gave voice to feelings
that many people experience but rarely hear expressed in popular culture. Alienation, anger, confusion,
the struggle to find meaning in a world that often
seems meaningless. But he also celebrated the power of community,
(13:55):
the joy of rebellion, and the possibility that outcasts could
find their tribe and create something beautiful together. As we
say goodbye to Ozzy Osbourne today, we're not just mourning
the loss of a great musician. We're acknowledging the passing
of someone who fundamentally changed what popular music could express
(14:15):
and accomplish. He showed us that darkness and light could coexist,
that commercial success and artistic integrity weren't mutually exclusive, and
that being true to yourself, however strange or difficult that
self might be, was ultimately the only path worth taking.
His family's request for privacy during this time is both
(14:36):
understandable and touching as they process the loss of not
just a public figure, but a husband, father, and grandfather.
The man who terrified parents for decades was, by all accounts,
devoted to his own family, finding in those relationships the
stability and meaning that sustained him through all the chaos
of his public life. So today we say thank you
(14:57):
to Ozzy Osbourne the Zick, for the courage to be different,
for showing generations of misfits that they could find their
place in the world. From black sabbaths revolutionary heaviness to
his solo careers sustained excellence, From Ozfest's community building to
the Osbourne's unexpected humanity, he created a legacy that will
(15:20):
influence artists and inspire outsiders for generations to come. The
Prince of Darkness has left us, but his influence will
echo forever in every heavy guitar riff, every artist who
refuses to compromise their vision, and every person who's ever
felt like they didn't fit in but found strength in
that difference. Rock music is infinitely richer because Ozzy Osbourne
(15:45):
was brave enough to be exactly who he was, and
the world is a little less colorful now that he's gone.
This is Garrett Fisher for hit Maker Chronicles celebrating the
life and legacy of Ozzy Osbourne. We'll return to our
countdown soon, but today we simply remember a true original
who proved that being yourself, however dark, however strange, however authentic,
(16:09):
is the most powerful thing any artist can do. Long
live the Prince of Darkness. His music will be forever young.
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