Ozzy Osbourne kicks off farewell tour with Stone Sour at PPL Center in Allentown on Aug. 30
From a press release:
Five decades. 18,262 days. More than 2,500 shows. On his upcoming farewell world tour, Ozzy Osbourne – Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee and Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter – will celebrate more than five decades as a performer, both as a solo artist and as the lead vocalist of Black Sabbath.
This tour, expected to take Osbourne around the world with dates into 2020, will mark the end of global touring for the legendary artist, though he will continue to perform select live shows.
Following two Florida festival dates in April, “No More Tours 2,” a reference to his 1992 “No More Tours” trek, will begin its North American run at the PPL Center in Allentown on Thursday, Aug. 30 at 7:30 p.m. Osbourne will be joined by longtime collaborators Zakk Wylde (guitar), Blasko (bass), Tommy Clufetos (drums), and Adam Wakeman (keyboards), and platinum-selling hard rock band Stone Sour will open the show.
Tickets, which are $39.50-$250, go on sale next Saturday, Feb. 17 at 10 a.m. and can be purchased at the PPL Center box office (701 Hamilton St., Allentown), online at pplcenter.com and livenation.com, or by phone at 610-347-TIXX.
“People keep asking me when I’m retiring,” Osbourne says. “This will be my final world tour, but I can’t say I won’t do some shows here and there.”
Prior to the full North American tour, which also stops at the BB&T Pavilion in Camden, New Jersey on Wednesday, Sept. 12, Osbourne will officially launch “No More Tours 2” in Mexico in May before heading to South America for solo shows in three countries. Next up will be a six-week European leg of headlining solo dates and festival performances that’s set to begin June 1 in Moscow, Russia.
“I’ve been extremely blessed to have had two successful music careers,” Osbourne says. “I’m looking at this final tour as being a huge celebration for my fans and anyone who has enjoyed my music over the past five decades.”
For the tour, Osbourne has teamed with the Love Hope Strength Foundation. At Love Hope Strength, their mission is to save lives one concert at a time. They believe that all people deserve quality cancer care, a marrow donor if needed and, most importantly, hope. Founded by cancer survivors, LHS leverages the power of music to expand the marrow registry through their “Get on the List” campaign. LHS offers real hope to people currently living with cancer.
At 69 years old, Osbourne is a multi-platinum recording artist, a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, and a three-time Grammy-winning singer and songwriter who has sold more than 120 million albums worldwide. His career has spanned more than 50 years as a successful solo artist and as the founding vocalist of Black Sabbath, which formed in 1968, and his music is as relevant today as ever, still being heard daily on television, in movies, on the radio, and at stadium sports events.
In 2011, Osbourne reunited with Black Sabbath and, in June 2013, after more than three decades of waiting, the band released their critically acclaimed album “13” (Vertigo/Republic), which entered the charts at No. 1 in 13 countries. Produced by seven-time Grammy-winning producer Rick Rubin, “13” features original Sabbath members Osbourne, Tony Iommi, and Geezer Butler. In 2014, the group won a Grammy Award in the Best Metal Performance category for the album’s first single, “God Is Dead?”
In May 2014, Osbourne was honored with the Stevie Ray Vaughan Award for his dedication and support of the MusiCares MAP Fund at the 10th anniversary MusiCares MAP Fund benefit concert. Later that year, he was presented with the Global Icon award at the 2014 MTV Europe Music Awards in Glasgow. This year also marks 20 years since Osbourne created his name-sake hard rock/metal touring festival Ozzfest, which has had a hugely successful run across North America, Europe, and Japan.
In January 2016, Black Sabbath began “The End” farewell tour, signifying the final performances of the legendary heavy metal band. The last shows took place at the Genting Arena in their home city of Birmingham, England in February 2017.
See NEPA Scene’s photos of Zakk Wylde playing with Black Label Society in Philadelphia last week here and see photos of Stone Sour performing in Bethlehem last year here.
