Judas Priest’s Rob Halford Not Thrilled About Missing Black Sabbath’s Final Concert With Ozzy Osbourne

Since announcing Ozzy Osbourne’s last concert with Black Sabbath in February, every heavy metal band looked to be part of the celebration. Scheduled to take place on July 5th at Villa Park in Birmingham, the concert will feature more than just Ozzy and Black Sabbath. The concert will include Metallica, Slayer, Alice in Chains, Tool, Guns N’ Roses, Anthrax, and numerous others. But one person missing from the lineup was Rob Halford of Judas Priest. And according to the singer, he was “gutted” over missing the historic event. 

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Knowing the impact Ozzy had on heavy metal, it seemed like a moment nobody wanted to miss. With fans rushing to get tickets, the event quickly sold out. While more than willing to perform at the Back to the Beginning concert, Halford told Metal Hammer that same night, Judas Priest would be performing a gig with Scorpions. 

Celebrating the 60th anniversary of the rock band, Halford said he had no idea about the Ozzy concert until the last minute. “I had no idea it was happening. We’ve known this guy Ossy Hoppe – he’s like a god in Germany for metal – [and] 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?’ I was just like, ‘Done! We’ve got no plans it’s all good’.”

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The One Phone Call That “Gutted” Rob Halford

With Halford agreeing to perform, it wasn’t long after that he received a call from Sharon Osbourne herself. “It all got announced… and suddenly I get this phone call [from Sharon Osbourne, saying]: ‘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.’” 

Not wanting to back out of the performance, Halford had to turn down the celebration even when Sharon offered to fly him to Birmingham and back on a private jet. Although a good idea, the singer worried about the unknown. “My mind went to Phil Collins when he did Live Aid, where he got on the Concord from London to Philadelphia to play two gigs in two places.” He continued, “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… I was absolutely gutted.”

While not able to attend Ozzy’s final concert, Halford and the rest of Judas Priest are sure to be there in spirit.

(Photo by Medios y Media/Getty Images)