Judas Priest ‘gutted’ to miss final Ozzy Osbourne show says singer

Rob Halford has opened up about why Judas Priest are one of the few veteran metal bands not booked to play at Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath’s swan song in Birmingham this summer.

The 73-year-old singer revealed he’s “gutted” to miss out.

It was announced in February that Osbourne and Sabbath will reunite for a huge farewell concert at Villa Park on July 5. The lineup will also include some of the biggest acts in metal including Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Gojira, Alice in Chains, Mastodon, Anthrax and Halestorm.

However by the time arrangements were made, Judas Priest had already been booked to perform at a 60th anniversary concert for German act the Scorpions taking place the same day in Hannover, more than 600 miles away.

Speaking to Metal Hammer, Halford said of the Sabbath concert: “I had no idea it was happening!"

He went on to explain: "We’ve known this guy Ossy Hoppe - he’s like god in Germany for metal. He came in to see me at one of our last shows and says, ‘Would you consider doing something really special and important?

“I’m putting on the Scorpions for their 60th anniversary, in their hometown. Would you work with the band?’ And I was just like, ‘Done! We’ve got no plans it’s all good.’"

“It all got announced and was a big deal – Scorpions and Priest – and suddenly I get this phone call [from Ozzy’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 revealed that Sharon Osbourne had offered to fly him back to Birmingham on the day for a guest appearance.

“My mind went to Phil Collins when he did Live Aid, where he got on the Concorde from London to Philadelphia to play two gigs in two places," Halford joked. "He was there before he left, thanks to the timezones!"

However, the Judas Priest frontman said that ultimately the plan to rush between the two concerts had proved too “dangerous.”

“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,” said Halford. “I was absolutely gutted.”

Former Priest guitarist KK Downing is among the additional performers scheduled to perform at the Sabbath event. Halford said he hoped the musician would represent “the spirit of the band”, who formed in Birmingham in 1969, a year after Sabbath.

“All my mates are going to be there though, great bands and artists,” Halford added.

“It’s a wonderful and epic moment for Sabbath and heavy metal – it re-emphasizes that Birmingham is where metal came from.”

Ozzy Osbourne, 76, had been plagued by many health issues in recent years, but has remained active well into his seventies. He reunited with his Black Sabbath bandmates for their final album, 13, in 2013.

Back in 2022, Osbourne told The Independent he was determined to get back on stage one last time.

“I will get back on stage if it f***ing kills me, because if I can’t do it then that’s what’s gonna happen anyway, I’m gonna f***ing die,” he said. “I love to see them audiences.”