While Ozzy Osbourne hinted at plans to return to the stage in a previous episode of The Osbournes Podcast, his wife and manager, Sharon Osbourne, recently shared positive thoughts on bringing the Ozzfest back. When asked about the possibility of organizing another edition of the festival, she replied:
“Yeah, sure. Of course.”
The Managers Want Money, She Says
Following that, Kelly Osbourne mentioned that the return of the festival often depended on how realistic bands and their managers were about payment. Sharon agreed and said she thought the managers of the bands in Ozzfest were after their money:
“It’s great. That’s what we wanted — everybody to do spin-offs and do their own festivals, and it’s great. It’s great for fans; it’s brilliant. But why is it when it comes to us that everybody thinks that we are trillionaires, and so that every manager who wants their band on our festival wants one of the fucking trillions they think we’ve got to put on the festival?”
The Festival Ended Because Of Greed
Created by Sharon in 1996, Ozzfest became a major event in the rock and metal world, especially in the late 1990s and early 2000s. But it never returned after the last one on New Year’s Eve 2018 in Inglewood, California. Explaining the reason, the music manager shared:
“It was a very weird beast 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.”
A Band Caused Problems Right Before A Show For Money
Sharon also recalled an early Ozzfest incident when a band held up their performance for more money:
“Years and years ago, one of the bands — it was the second Ozzfest we did, or the third — wouldn’t go on stage until I agreed to give them 10,000 more dollars. And they were holding everything up, and I said, ‘Of course, of course, I’ll give it to you.'”
She revealed that the band in question was Danzig and mentioned not giving in to their demand for extra payment. The band eventually decided to perform without the additional funds, which Sharon saw as their attempt to take advantage.
