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Artist News Gigs & Festivals
Ozzy Osbourne announces retirement from touring
By Andy Malt | Published on Thursday 2 February 2023
Ozzy Osbourne has announced that he is retiring from touring as his body is “still physically weak” after four years of treatment for a spine injury.
The Black Sabbath frontman originally announced his ‘No More Tours 2’ farewell tour in 2018, but following his injury in 2019 was forced to postpone dates in the UK and Europe several times. A diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease in 2020 further delayed his return.
Yesterday he told fans in a statement on social media that the shows would now not go ahead at all. “This is probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to share with my loyal fans”, he wrote. “As you may all know, four years ago this month I had a major accident where I damaged my spine”.
“My one and only purpose during this time has been to get back on stage”, he went on. “My singing voice is fine. However, after three operations, stem cell treatments, endless physical therapy sessions, and most recently groundbreaking cybernics treatment, my body is still physically weak”.
“I am honestly humbled by the way you’ve all patiently held onto your tickets for all this time, but in all good conscience, I have now come to the realisation that I’m not physically capable of doing my upcoming European/UK tour dates, as I know I couldn’t deal with the travel required”, he continued.
“Believe me when I say that the thought of disappointing my fans really fucks me up more than you will ever know. Never would I have imagined that my touring days would have ended this way”.
He added that there is still hope that he will be able to perform again in some capacity, saying: “My team is currently coming up with ideas for where I will be able to perform without having to travel from city to city and country to country”.
Osbourne’s last UK performance was at the closing ceremony of the Commonwealth Games in his hometown of Birmingham last summer. He appeared on stage with Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi to perform a medley of Sabbath songs ‘Iron Man’ and ‘Paranoid’.
