Ozzy Osbourne is considering returning to step out of retirement if an anonymous source close to the British tabloid The Sun is believed. ‘The Prince of Darkness’ is reportedly planning to tour from a “throne” or a wheelchair, like Axl Rose did with Guns N’ Roses after injuring his foot in 2016.
In early February, Ozzy announced that he was retiring from active touring, as his ongoing health struggles posed too big an obstacle for him to be able to return to the taxing life on the road.
In the same statement, the beloved rock and metal icon canceled all of his upcoming shows scheduled for the year admitting that he never would have “imagined that my touring days would have ended this way.”
Earlier this month, however, Ozzy admitted he was annoyed by some of the reactions to his original announcement, clarifying that he’s “f***ing not dying“, adding:
“If I could tour, I’d tour. But right now I can’t book tours because right now, I don’t think I could pull them off.”
Now, a source simply titled a “friend” of the musician tells The Sun:
“Ozzy is refusing to give up on his hope of getting on stage despite his statement last month. “He has declared: ‘I am gonna f***ing get back on stage’.
“He still has issues with his balance and cannot stand unaided for long periods of time on his legs.
“It frustrates him that doing a full 90 minute show, filled with his famous stage stomping and crowd interactive moves, is off the table.
“But he is considering doing gigs in a throne, like what Axl Rose did in 2016 with Guns ‘N Roses. He was really impressed by that move. And he feels Phil showed that audiences do resonate with you.
“Ozzy worries that he may not be able to sit still, which could be challenging. But there is talk of bringing in some special effects and even stage machinery to have the chair move around. He feels a lot of options are on the table, but Oz is not ruling out Vegas or LA runs.”
In addition to this, the source noted that Sharon Osbourne is concerned about the idea and that she thinks Ozzy should first heal enough to be able to walk on his own before thinking about going back on the road:
“That is Ozzy’s determination. However, Sharon [Ozzy’s wife and manager] is concerned about her husband being put through a heavy duty work load around gigs. Firstly, she has deep concerns about his balance and wants him to get back to walking properly, before even discussing comebacks. And she is particularly worried about him losing his balance and suffering injuries.
“Oz has spoken too about Sharon’s fears of his Parkinson’s condition prompting him to suffer falls like Michael J Fox.
“Sharon has been his biggest protector, but Ozzy is just so frustrated with being stuck in the house most of the time that he is looking at all options.”
