British heavy metal legends JUDAS PRIEST have paid tribute to Ozzy Osbourne after the BLACK SABBATH singer died earlier today at the age of 76.

The fellow West Midlands pioneering metal band took to social media to write: “Our hearts are broken like millions around the world. Words can’t express the love and loss we are all feeling.

“Sharon, may God surround you and your beautiful family with love, peace and light.

“Ozzy, you will never leave us — your music is eternal. God blesses you now more than ever after you blessed us all through your magnificent life.

“Rob, Glenn, Ian, Richie & Scott“.

Ozzy died Tuesday morning (July 22),his family announced in a statement.

“It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time,” the family said.

No cause of death was given, but Osbourne had battled a number of health issues over the past several years, including Parkinson’s disease and injuries he sustained from a late-night fall in 2019.

Earlier in the month, PRIEST released a cover of BLACK SABBATH‘s “War Pigs” ahead of the “Back To The Beginning” concert, which marked the original SABBATH lineup’s last-ever performance.

PRIEST was unable to appear at “Back To The Beginning” on July 5 in Birmingham, United Kingdom because the band was scheduled to perform at SCORPIONS‘ huge hometown 60th-anniversary concert at the Heinz Von Heiden Arena in Hannover, Germany on the very same day.

This past May, PRIEST singer Rob Halford said that he was “absolutely gutted” to have to miss the last BLACK SABBATH concert. Rob told Metal Hammer: “I had no idea [the SABBATH show] was happening. It all got announced and was a big deal — [the Hannover concert featuring] SCORPIONS and PRIEST — and suddenly I get this phone call [from Ozzy Osbourne‘s wife and manager Sharon Osbourne]: ‘Robbie, I know you’ve got this gig with SCORPIONS, but could you consider coming over to do a thing with Ozzy and the guys. He’d love to see you.'”

Halford explained that trying to make both performances happen would be “dangerous”, adding: “Even with a private plane, there’s a word called ‘technical’, where something could go wrong, or the weather that time of year could cause problems… I was absolutely gutted.”

Acknowledging that K.K. Downing was going to perform at the Villa Park concert, Halford said that the founding PRIEST guitarist would represent “the spirit of the band”.

In August 2023, Halford picked BLACK SABBATH‘s classic 1970 self-titled debut album as one of the albums he’d be willing to listen to in perpetuity if he found himself stranded and alone on an island. He said: “I would have to go with BLACK SABBATH, the original ‘Black Sabbath’ album that I think is the motivator for all great things in heavy metal.”

Back in 2020, Halford broke down his top 10 favorite albums in an interview with Rolling Stone and explained how they helped make him who he is. Among the records included on the list was BLACK SABBATH‘s debut. At the time, Halford said about his choice: “They were local guys from the same neighborhood, the same neck of the woods as PRIEST. We literally grew up together, inventing this great music that we love and cherish so much called heavy-metal music.

“I chose the ‘Black Sabbath’ album just because, like so many bands, your first one or two records really establish who you are as a band,” he explained. “It’s a bit like PRIEST with ‘Rocka Rolla’ and ‘Sad Wings Of Destiny’; ‘Sad Wings Of Destiny’ becomes the one we love so much because it becomes defining. With ‘Black Sabbath’, here was the first example of what heavy-metal music should sound like, just the texture, the tone, the structure of all of the material, Ozzy‘s very unique voice. It’s just become a very important record in the discography of BLACK SABBATH.”

Halford joined SABBATH for two gigs to support Ozzy Osbourne on his last shows for the “No More Tours” tour in November 1992 in Costa Mesa, California after SABBATH‘s singer at the time, Ronnie James Dio, refused to take the stage. Rob also performed with SABBATH members Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward on August 26, 2004 at the Camden, New Jersey stop of Ozzfest after Ozzy came down with an “attack of bronchitis” and was unable to take part in the concert.

Asked which SABBATH tune he’d most enjoying performing with the band, Halford told The Georgia Straight: “Ooo, that’s a good question. Um, I’d probably say the actual song ‘Black Sabbath’, which is, to me, the most evil song that’s ever been written. [Laughs]. It’s very fucking scary. There’s something very malevolent about that song. It’s just the whole — it’s the way it starts, and then it’s almost deathly quiet, and then that opening line: ‘What is this I see before me?’ You know, I just get goosebumps thinking about it now. And when I sang that song live, it makes you feel really… Wow… I can’t describe it. It’s just very overwhelming, the emotion is very overwhelming. And when you see Ozzy singing it you can see him change, you know, his whole demeanor, he just changes as a person to sing that song. It’s really spooky.”

Photo credit: Andy “Elvis” McGovern