Ozzy Osbourne isn’t mincing words. The Prince of Darkness recently sat down with Billboard and reignited a years-old feud with Iron Maiden frontman, Bruce Dickinson. The tension stems from Iron Maiden’s 2005 appearance on Ozzfest, Ozzy’s traveling metal festival.
Apparently, Dickinson wasn’t shy about voicing his displeasure with the tour, taking public swipes at Ozzy himself and the event. Now, Ozzy’s firing back, calling out Dickinson’s behavior as “stupid”.
But it seems the Osbourne camp isn’t holding a grudge against the entire band. Sharon Osbourne chimed in before Ozzy, praising the rest of Iron Maiden while pointing the finger squarely at the singer, adding, “When you’ve got a singer that is so eaten up with jealousy for the headliner, it never goes well.”
The 2005 Ozzfest Drama
It could remembered that things got heated on the 2005 Ozzfest tour. Iron Maiden reportedly felt overshadowed by Ozzy, who was the headliner, and tensions rose throughout the month. Backstage grumblings escalated, with Dickinson criticizing the tour’s focus and taking not-so-subtle jabs at Ozzy’s reality TV show.
Sharon, never one to back down, decided to take action. During a concert, Iron Maiden’s performance was disrupted by a series of power cuts. Audience frustration boiled over, leading to objects being thrown at the band. The situation ultimately resulted in Iron Maiden leaving the stage early.
In the aftermath, Sharon defended her actions, expressing love for Iron Maiden as a band but calling out Dickinson’s disrespect. Ozzy, aligned with his wife’s approach, voiced his surprise at Bruce’s behavior, suggesting a more direct conversation could have resolved the issue.
“It’s So Pathetically Childish”
While Sharon took a strong stance against Dickinson, Ozzy himself seems less invested in the feud. He revealed that Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris approached him to apologize, but Ozzy claims he wasn’t aware of the backstage tension. He expresses frustration with the indirect communication, suggesting a face-to-face conversation would have been preferable.
However, Ozzy remains loyal to his wife. He acknowledges the financial benefit of Ozzfest for Iron Maiden and criticizes Dickinson’s alleged cowardice in taking issue with him directly. Ozzy calls such behavior “pathetically childish”.
The back-and-forth continues, with Iron Maiden’s manager refuting claims of attacking Ozzy and Black Sabbath. Bruce Dickinson himself distanced himself from the accusations, although he did criticize reality TV. Further complicating the story, Steve Harris later walked back his apology, clarifying it wasn’t an admission of wrongdoing on Dickinson’s part.