When Ozzy Osbourne takes the stage at Villa Park in Birmingham on July 5 for what’s been announced as his final live performance alongside Black Sabbath, it won’t just be a farewell to the Prince of Darkness—it’ll mark the end of an era that shaped generations of rock and metal.
For Jacoby Shaddix, frontman of Papa Roach, the moment is personal.
“Ozzy is one of those guys that I regard as one of the greats,” Shaddix tells SNSMix.com. “He’s been to hell and back and proved you can pull your life back together and have success. So many highs in his career and been so influential – great writer, great performer. He’s one of those guys that I’ve admired and respected my whole life..”
The connection between Shaddix and Osbourne goes beyond admiration. Papa Roach came up during the Ozzfest era, when the metal festival circuit was a proving ground for the next generation of aggressive music.
“We were doing Ozzfest back in the day, somewhere in Kansas—it was pouring rain during our set,” Shaddix recalls. “We were getting drenched, and I looked over and Ozzy was standing by the monitor engineer—completely drenched, just smiling, watching our set. It was such a cool moment to be honored by his presence.”
For bands like Papa Roach, those Ozzfest years weren’t just gigs—they were rites of passage. The festival became a crucible where acts like Slipknot, System of a Down, and Limp Bizkit broke into the mainstream. Black Sabbath’s presence on those bills wasn’t ceremonial—it was foundational. Ozzy and Sabbath were living proof that heavy music had longevity, rebellion, and most importantly, soul.
Now, as Ozzy prepares for his final bow—after years of health battles that forced him off the road—his influence continues to reverberate through bands like Papa Roach, who credit much of their staying power to the blueprint Sabbath helped write.
While Papa Roach moves forward with a new album in the works and another leg of their Rise of the Roach tour, there’s no denying that the upcoming Sabbath finale feels like a seismic shift.
As Sabbath returns to their hometown for the last time, the torch they lit decades ago continues to burn in the hands of artists like Shaddix—still plugged in, still ripping, and still showing up.
