Ozzy Osbourne's family join mourners for farewell to rocker in Birmingham

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BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — The “home of metal” is honoring one of its most cherished sons.

Thousands of Black Sabbath fans were paying their respects Wednesday to frontman Ozzy Osbourne as his hearse made its way through the streets of Birmingham, the English city where he grew up and where the band was formed in 1968.

The hearse carrying Osbourne, who died last Tuesday at the age of 76, was making its way down Broad Street, the city’s major thoroughfare, to the Black Sabbath bench, which was unveiled on the Broad Street canal bridge in 2019.

“Ozzy, Ozzy, Ozzy, oi, oi, oi,” fans screamed as the hearse arrived.

Six vehicles carrying the Osbourne family, who paid for the procession, followed. The family emerged briefly, with his wife of 43 years Sharon visibly moved.

Long-time fan Antony Hunt said it has been an “emotional” day and that he wanted to be in the city to pay his respects.

“What’s amazing is there’s so many, such a wide variety of age groups, from little, little children, teenagers to people in their 60s, 70s, so it’s great to see that,” he said.

Since Osbourne’s death was announced, fans have made pilgrimages to sites around Birmingham, which has embraced its reputation as the birthplace of heavy metal. Among his peers, the singer was metal’s godfather.

“Ozzy was more than a music legend — he was a son of Birmingham,“ said city official Zafar Iqbal. “We know how much this moment will mean to his fans.”

Osbourne and his Black Sabbath bandmates, Terence Butler, Tony Iommi and Bill Ward, were recently awarded the Freedom of the City in recognition of their services to Birmingham.

Black Sabbath’s story began in Birmingham in 1968 when the four original members were looking to escape a life of factory work. Without doubt, the sound and fury of heavy metal had its roots in the city’s manufacturing heritage. Osbourne never forgot his working-class roots, and his Brummie accent remained.

Black Sabbath has been widely credited with defining and popularizing the sound of heavy metal — aggressive, but full of melodies.

Osbourne was the band’s frontman during its peak period in the 1970s.

His antics, on and off stage, were legendary, and often fueled by drink and drugs. He was widely known as the “Prince of Darkness.”

The band’s eponymous debut album in 1970 made the U.K. top 10 and paved the way for a string of hit albums, including 1971’s “Master of Reality” and “Vol. 4” a year later. It went on to become one of the most influential and successful metal bands of all time, selling more than 75 million albums worldwide.

At the final show on July 5, 42,000 fans watched the band perform for the first time in 20 years at Villa Park, home of the city’s biggest soccer club, Aston Villa, with Osbourne seated on a black throne. Osbourne had been in poor health in recent years, especially after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019.

Osbourne, who also had a successful solo career, found a new legion of fans in the early 2000s reality show “The Osbournes” in which he starred alongside Sharon and two youngest children, Kelly and Jack.