During a recent conversation with Rolling Stone, Ozzy Osbourne reflected on his decision to refuse permission for Kanye West to sample an Osbourne song.
The controversy stems from a listening party hosted by West and Ty Dolla $ign at the United Center in Chicago. The event, held earlier this month, anticipated their ‘Vultures’ LP release. During the party, a track sampled Osbourne’s live performance of ‘Iron Man’ from his solo concert at the US Festival in 1983.
Although Ozzy initially mentioned on social media that West sought to sample ‘War Pigs,’ it was, in fact, ‘Iron Man’ that was used. In his interview, Osbourne did not mince words, saying:
“Well, nobody else would f*cking do it, did they?”
Ozzy’s Firm Stance
The rocker highlighted his reasons for publicly denouncing the rapper’s actions, emphasizing his opposition to discrimination and hate, explaining:
“With the current state of affairs, you don’t need anybody starting people on discrimination of any kind. It’s wrong. It’s just wrong. There’s enough f*cking aggravation, and he shouldn’t say anything [like what he has]. It’s wrong if you don’t say anything about him. I don’t want any of my work in any shape or form to be associated with anything like that.”
The Instagram Call-Out
Osbourne’s disapproval became public when he called out West on Instagram for utilizing his song without permission during the Chicago event. He labeled West an anti-Semite and expressed his desire to disassociate from the rapper entirely, writing:
“Kanye West asked permission to sample a section of a 1983 live performance of ‘Iron Man’ from the US Festival without vocals & was refused permission because he is an anti-Semite and has caused untold heartache to many. He went ahead and used the sample anyway at his album listening party last night. I want no association with this man!”
Sharon Osbourne’s Reaction And West’s Public Response
This move drew considerable attention, further fueled by Sharon Osbourne’s comments. Given her Jewish heritage, Sharon’s response was deeply personal, leading to a cease and desist letter being sent to West’s team. In a conversation with Billboard, she elaborated on their decision to deny the sample request, citing a refusal to be linked with hate spreaders.
Later, the rapper addressed the situation via his Instagram Story, posting a Halloween photo of Ozzy and Sharon dressed as him and his wife, Bianca Censori, along with a provocative message. In the aftermath, West altered his musical approach for the New York listening event and the subsequent album release. ‘Carnival,’ initially featuring the disputed ‘War Pigs’ sample, was replaced with ‘Hell of a Life’ for the party and omitted the sample for the album launch.
