Ozzy Osbourne Is Done with “Rock Star” Lifestyle: “I Don’t Want to Die in a Hotel Room”

Ozzy Osbourne is set to play his final show with Black Sabbath and as a solo artist on July 5th, but the Prince of Darkness says he’s been done with the “rock star lifestyle” for a while now.

The metal icon has a reputation as one of the wildest rockers of all time, from snorting ants to urinating on a memorial at the Alamo to tossing a TV out a window to biting the head off a bat. However, that has all changed in recent years with age and a myriad of health issues.

The 76-year-old Rock & Roll Hall of Famer told The Guardian in a new interview, “I’d love to say ‘never say never,’ but after the last six years or so … it is time. I lived on the road for 50-odd years, and I’ve kind of got used to not picking up my bags and getting on the bus again. I don’t smoke dope or do any of the rock star lifestyle any more. I’m kind of like a homebody.”

He added, “I never go out. I never hang out in bars – I don’t drink. So what the fuck is out there for me? I hate going shopping with my wife. I feel like stabbing myself in the neck after half an hour. But it’s time for me to spend some time with my grandkids, I don’t want to die in a hotel room somewhere. I want to spend the rest of my life with my family.”

Ozzy — who will likely perform seated during the July 5th show — doesn’t plan on playing full sets at the historic event at Villa Park in Birmingham, England.

“We’re only playing a couple of songs each,” remarked Ozzy. “I don’t want people thinking, ‘We’re getting ripped off’, because it’s just going to be … what’s the word? … a sample, you’re going to get a few songs each by Ozzy and Sabbath.”

Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi was hesitant to book the concert, adding that the charitable aspect of the show finally convinced him. “I’m the one that said, ‘I don’t know if we should do it’, because we did a farewell tour and I didn’t want to get into that thing like all the other bands are doing, saying it’s the last tour and then reappearing again,” said Iommi in the same interview feature. “But I’ve been convinced, because we’re doing it for a reason.”

Proceeds from the concert will benefit Parkinson’s disease research and various children’s charities. The all-star lineup also includes Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Tool, Slayer, Alice in Chains, Mastodon, Gojira, and many more rock and metal luminaries.