Ozzy Osbourne Through the Years: Black Sabbath to Father, Reality Star

Ozzy Osbourne sold more than 100 million records worldwide between his solo career and his days as a member of Black Sabbath prior to his death in 2025. The England native got his start in 1967 when he joined bassist Geezer Butler’s first band, Rare Breed, as a vocalist. Although the group didn’t last long, the duo formed Black Sabbath in 1969 along with guitarist Tony lommi and drummer Bill Ward. The rock group is often credited with pioneering the heavy metal genre. The “Crazy Train” singer recorded eight studio albums with Black Sabbath before he was ejected from the band in 1979 amid struggles with substance abuse. Osbourne then set out on his solo career, releasing 13 studio albums between 1980 and 2022. (He reunited with Black Sabbath multiple times, including one last show in July 2025.) Throughout his ups and downs, Ozzy had wife Sharon Osbourne by his side and later their three children became his biggest supporters. His family was on hand when he died in July 2025 at the age of 76. Scroll through to see Ozzy's life over the years:

Ozzy and Butler were briefly part of the band Rare Breed. The group broke up after playing two shows.

Black Sabbath was formed.

The “Godfather of Heavy Metal” wed Riley. In his book I Am Ozzy, the “Mr. Crowley” singer called his first marriage to Thelma Riley “a terrible mistake.”

Ozzy admitted that he didn’t remember the birth of his children Louis and Jessica in the 2011 documentary God Bless Ozzy Ozbourne. (Ozzy shares Elliott, Louis and Jessica with Riley.)

The songwriter was fired from Black Sabbath amid struggles with substance abuse. 

Ozzy and Sharon tied the knot in Hawaii. While a guest on the British talk show Loose Women in November 2017, the Coming Home author recalled how her husband had proposed to her.

"It was really, really sweet,” she shared. “He went to H. Samuels, in High Wycombe, and he got me a wedding band instead of an engagement ring, he didn't know. …. He asked my father's permission and then he came back to my house and got on one knee.”

Sharon and Ozzy welcomed their first child together, daughter Aimee. 

The duo expanded their brood with the birth of daughter Kelly. 

The Osbourne family was completed after their son, Jack, was born.

The Grammy winner rejoined Black Sabbath and helped record the group’s final studio album, 13. Ozzy also joined the band on their farewell tour, which ended in 2017. 

The Osbournes premiered on MTV. Aimee, who was 16 at the time, decided not to participate in the reality series.

During an August 2020 interview on Q1043’s "Out of the Box", the “Raining Gold” singer said that she opted out of the show “to give myself a chance to actually develop into a human being as opposed to just being remembered for being a teenager."

She added: "It definitely worked great for the rest of my family, but for me and who I am I just knew it was never something that I was going to be able to consider realistically.”

The Osbournes came to an end after four seasons. 

“I’m really lucky for my kids that we stopped it when we stopped it,” Sharon said of the show during a September 2022 appearance on SiriusXM’s “The Jess Cagle Show.”

She continued: “It was getting [to be] too much. I’m glad we stopped it before social media became what it was because people can be so cruel."

Ozzy recounted the story of his life in the documentary God Bless Ozzy Ozbourne, on which his son Jack served as a producer. 

The I Am Ozzy author embarked on his second farewell tour, No More Tours II. 

Ozzy revealed in October that he’d injured himself badly during a fall in his shower earlier that year.

“I went to the bathroom in the night, lost my balance and landed flat on my face. I saw this big white flash when I hit the floor and I thought, ‘You’ve finally done it now’” he told the Daily Mail at the time. 

In January, the “Mama, I’m Coming Home” singer revealed that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease the previous February.

“It’s been terribly challenging for us all,” he said during an appearance on Good Morning America. “I did my last show New Year’s Eve at The Forum. Then I had a bad fall. I had to have surgery on my neck, which screwed all my nerves.”

Ozzy revealed in a January joint interview with Sharon and Jack for Variety that he had been sober for about seven years.

Jack, for his part, opened up about his own journey with alcoholism and getting sober for the piece. “I was suffering from a lot of depression in my early teens, and I was drinking a lot. And then we did The Osbournes and it gave me a rather large piggy bank, so my parents had less control,” he recalled. 

The Blizzard of Oz rocker announced that he was cancelling the European leg of No More Tours II after two years of postponing.

Ozzy cited his 2019 shower fall as the reason he was “not physically capable” of doing the tour, noting that he had “damaged [his] spine” during the incident. 

"I'm f--king not dying," Ozzy said on Sirius XM's "Ozzy's Boneyard" in February after canceling his tour. He added that he's "still in constant pain" amid his 2019 spinal injury. "I do the best I can to stay away from the pain medication, but there are times when I go, 'I've got to take something,'" he told listeners.

Ozzy was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in October 2024 as a solo artist. "I’d like to thank whoever voted me into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for my solo work. Thank you from the bottom of my heart," Ozzy told the audience after being presented with the award by Jack Black. "My fans have been so loyal to me over the years. I cannot thank them enough.”

He proceeded to thank his family for standing by his side throughout his career. "More than that, my wife Sharon saved my life,” Ozzy added. “And my grandbabies and my babies. I love them all." (Ozzy was previously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006 as a member of Black Sabbath.)

Ozzy reunited with Black Sabbath for his final concert in his hometown of Birmingham, England, on July 6. The sold-out show marked his official retirement from music. A few weeks later, Ozzy died on July 22 at the age of 76.

“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,” his family said in a statement. “He was with his family and surrounded by love.”