Ozzfest will return to the US in 2027.
The reactivating heavy metal festival, founded by Sharon Osbourne and her late husband Ozzy in the mid-90s, has confirmed that it will make its way Stateside next year.
The news follows the announcement of a UK edition for 2027, which will take place at Villa Park in Ozzy’s hometown of Birmingham, where he played his last show before his death in July 2025. No performers have been announced for either edition at time of publication.
Sharon, 73, has spoken multiple times about bringing Ozzfest back following her husband’s death last July, aged 76. Talking to Hammer earlier this year, she said that the upcoming UK edition will be one or two days long, depending on fan interest. She promised more details “soon”.
In addition, she told Billboard in January that the event will return with a lineup that transcends its past niche of rock and metal, with a focus on young talent.
“It was something Ozzy was very passionate about: giving young talent a stage in front of a lot of people,” she said. “We really started metal festivals in this country. It was [replicated but] never done with the spirit of what ours was, because ours was a place for new talent. It was like summer camp for kids.”
The Osbournes started Ozzfest after fellow travelling festival Lollapalooza refused to give Ozzy a spot on their lineup. The inaugural edition was a two-day tour with dates in Phoenix, Arizona and San Bernardino, California. Ozzy headlined with support from Slayer, Danzig, Biohazard, Sepultura and more.
As nu metal began to gather steam in the late 90s, Ozzfest became famous for putting up-and-coming artists on its bill. Such acts as Slipknot, Limp Bizkit and System Of A Down performed at the festival around the release of their debut albums.
Ozzfest expanded to have international offshoots in markets including the UK, Germany, Belgium and Japan before hosting its final incarnation – a single show in Inglewood, California – in 2018.
In 2023, Sharon explained why Ozzfest went away, saying on her family podcast The Osbournes that other managers got greedy.
“It was a very weird beast,” she said, “because all the bands were our mates, but the managers were greedy, and for some reason they thought that we were making billions on it and we weren’t. We made a profit. But it was not like – we couldn’t retire on it. And managers and agents wanted more and more and more, and it just wasn’t cost-effective anymore. We stopped because it just wasn’t cost-effective.”
However, the following year, she added that “of course” Ozzfest can return one day. “You can do it for a baby stage, but you still need the headliners,” she said. “It’s always great to have the baby stage, I mean, that’s what it’s all about – breaking new bands. That’s why we did it.”
Ozzy’s retirement show, Back To The Beginning, took place at a sold-out Villa Park and was live-streamed by more than five million people worldwide. Ozzy performed both with his solo band and Black Sabbath: the heavy metal pioneers’ first show since 2017, and their first with their all-original lineup since 2005. The support lineup included Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Tool, Gojira, Anthrax and Mastodon. Proceeds from the event went to the charities Cure Parkinson’s, Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity and Acorns Children’s Hospice.
A Back To The Beginning concert film will hit cinema screens later this year.
(LouderSound)
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