BREAKING: Black Sabbath Guitarist TONY LOMMI R..See more
Tony Iommi Opens Up: Seeing Ozzy One Last Time
Birmingham, July 2025 — Just 17 days after Black Sabbath’s deeply emotional farewell concert Back to the Beginning, founding guitarist Tony Iommi is finally breaking his silence, opening his heart about seeing Ozzy Osbourne one last time — and what the singer whispered to him moments before their worlds changed forever.
Speaking to ITV News on July 23, Iommi admitted the news of Ozzy’s death on July 22 2025 at age 76 hit him like a thunderclap. “It was a shock for us … when I heard yesterday, it couldn’t sink in,” he shared. “I thought, ‘It can’t be.’ I only had a text from him the day before. It just seemed unreal, surreal. In the night I started thinking: ‘God, am I dreaming all this?’”
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Holding On for One Final Goodbye
Iommi revealed that Ozzy’s appearance during rehearsals was deeply concerning: frail, fatigued, and visibly struggling. Yet the singer pressed on. “I think he really just held out to do that show,” Iommi said. “He must have had something in his head that said, ‘Well, this is the last thing I’m ever gonna do.’”
That concert, held on July 5 at Villa Park in their hometown of Birmingham, marked the original Black Sabbath lineup’s first reunion in over two decades. Despite Parkinson’s disease confining Ozzy to a bat-themed throne, he delivered a poignant farewell to fans.
Iommi acknowledges the performance was a mix of triumph and frustration: Ozzy couldn’t stand, struggled to move, but poured every ounce of spirit into giving fans one last moment with him. “It meant everything to him … but we didn’t expect this to close so quick with Oz; we didn’t expect him to go,” Iommi added.
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The Singer’s Final Words
Backstage after that final set, Ozzy approached Iommi. Though frail, he managed to offer reassurance in his famously understated manner: “It went all right, didn’t it?” Iommi recalled softly. That simple exchange, brief yet profound, now echoes in his memory as Ozzy’s last communication to him.
For someone who nearly defined the unpredictable, wild persona of rock for six decades, the restraint and tenderness of that moment stand out. Iommi describes feeling a mixture of gratitude — that they had one more moment to share the stage — and sadness at how fleeting it all turned out to be.
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A Brother Remembered
In a heartfelt social post after Ozzy’s passing, Iommi wrote:
“My dear dear friend Ozzy has passed away only weeks after our show at Villa Park. … there won’t ever be another like him. Geezer, Bill and myself have lost our brother.”
He also fondly recalled sharing school days in Birmingham with Ozzy — a mischievous, funny, unfiltered personality who made them laugh backstage while giving everything on stage. “Ozzy was Ozzy … there’s never gonna be another Ozzy,” he said.
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Final Reflection
Tony Iommi’s reflections reveal how intertwined he and Ozzy’s lives were: not only as bandmates who changed the face of heavy metal, but as lifelong friends. He speaks with a heavy heart about a last message from Ozzy, a shared stage farewell, and an unforgettable goodbye that marked the end of an era.
In Iommi’s words, the message is clear: the final performance was Ozzy’s conscious farewell — a testament to his determination, heart, and ability to say goodbye on his own terms. And for Tony, that final whispered reassurance remains one of rock’s most poignant final notes.
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Tribute continues
Geezer Butler and Bill Ward have also shared deeply emotional tributes, underscoring the loss of a brother and a musical icon. Butler fondly described Ozzy as their “Prince of Laughter” to those close to him, emphasizing the warmth behind the showmanship .
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Tony Iommi’s words bring us closer to understanding not just the timing of Ozzy’s final moments, but the meaning behind them — and offer a deeply human glimpse inside a friendship defined by music, laughter, grit, and unwavering loyalty.
