JACK OSBOURNE praises his father's "amazing work ethic”
08-01-2026
During an new appearance on the Leave No Doubt Fatherhood podcast, Jack Osbourne spoke about what it was like to grow up as Ozzy Osbourne‘s son and how it affected his parenting style with his four kids. Asked what things he took away from the way he was brought up by the legendary heavy metal singer, Jack said: “The first thing that always comes to mind is my dad had amazing work ethic. Everyone always thinks, ‘Oh, a rock star. He must be wild.’ I think a lot of images pop up for people, like Axl Rose (GUNS N’ ROSES) waiting four hours to get on stage and riots starting, and this and that, and don’t get me wrong, my dad would have his moments, but because of the way he grew up — super working class; both his parents worked in factories; he got one pair of shoes a year-type thing when he was a kid, and he did not grow up with any wealth, any abundance, nothing. And so I think, for him, respecting work and respecting the privilege of his job — and he always knew that as quick as it comes, it can also go. And so that was something that always stuck out to me and something he would always share with me. He would always say, ‘The same people you meet going up, you meet going down, so be good to people you work with, and show up when you say you’re gonna show up and do your job.’ And something that he always said — this always sticks out to me — he was, like, ‘If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again,’ is what he would always say. And I think that was very much ingrained to him from his father of, like, strong work ethic. ‘Cause my grandfather worked nights at a toolmaking factory — his whole life.”
Jack went on to admit that “there were times when” Ozzy “wasn’t the greatest parent. He came from a time where fathers didn’t really parent back then,” the 40-year-old explained. “They went to work, they did the deal. And when we were kids, there’d be arguments, and as a teenager, you’d fight with your dad kind of shit. And I remember one time he looked at me, he was, like, ‘What have you got to complain about? You’ve never wanted for anything. You’ve got everything,’ whatever. And I was, like, ‘I want a dad. I want a relationship with you.’ ‘Cause he had his own struggles, he had his own addiction issues that he struggled with for most of his life. And that is a huge wedge in any parental kind of arena. But I think so much of parenting is you learn from your parents’ mistakes ultimately, and you pick and choose, ‘Hey, I liked that my parents did that,’ ‘I didn’t like that my parents did that.’ And that’s okay, ’cause our parents did the same shit. And my dad didn’t raise me at all like his dad raised him. And same with my mother — she very much was very different from her parents. And that’s kind of, whether people realize it or not, I think that’s the gift we give our kids. If they’re aware enough, we give ’em that playbook to operate from when they’re ready to be parents.”
In December 2025, Jack and his wife, Aree Gearhart, announced that they are expecting their second baby together.
Jack later revealed that he told his late father he would be a grandad again before Ozzy‘s death in July 2025.
Jack shares three children — Pearl, Andy and Minnie — with his ex-wife, Lisa Stelly.
Jack and Aree got engaged in December 2021 and welcomed their first baby, Maple, the following July.
Last September Jack blasted Roger Waters after the PINK FLOYD co-founder claimed in an interview that he “never did” care about BLACK SABBATH and “couldn’t give a fuck” about Ozzy.
While speaking with The Independent Ink, Waters said: “Ozzy Osbourne, who just died, bless him in his whatever state that he was in his whole life. We’ll never know. Although he was all over the TV for hundreds of years with his idiocy and nonsense. The music, I have no idea. I couldn’t give a fuck.”
Waters added: “I don’t care about BLACK SABBATH, I never did. Have no interest in biting the heads of chickens or whatever they do. I couldn’t care less, you know.”
On Tuesday (September 2), Jack took to his Instagram Stories to write: “Hey Roger Waters, fuck you. How pathetic and out of touch you’ve become. The only way you seem to get attention these days is by vomiting out bullshit in the press. My father always thought you were a cunt. Thanks for proving him right.”
During a 2004 chat with Rolling Stone, Osbourne said that the PINK FLOYD classic “Money” was one of his favorite rock songs, adding that it stirred up vivid recollections from his wilder years. “Reminds me of my LSD days. I’m glad I survived,” he reminisced.
Waters reportedly gave a mean review of BLACK SABBATH‘s debut song, “Evil Woman”, in 1970, saying at the time: “Well, well, well… I’m speechless — well, almost… You keep thinking it’s going to start. You think that for the first minute, but then, if you are really perceptive, you realize it isn’t going to start, and that’s all there is.”
According to BBC News, BLACK SABBATH‘s farewell concert made a total of £33.8 million (approximately € 39 million).
New figures from the University of Birmingham show £27.6 million (approximately € 32 million) of the total amount raised by the “Back To The Beginning” event at Villa Park in Birmingham, United Kingdom was retained in the West Midlands region, which consists of seven metropolitan boroughs, including the city of Birmingham.
Dr. Matt Lyons, who conducted the analysis, told BBC News: “As regional economists from the University of Birmingham, we thought we would do our bit to honor Ozzy‘s legacy by estimating the economic impact of his last gig.
“The impact of the Prince Of Darkness obviously goes far beyond the financial impact his gigs and TV shows have netted.
“Ozzy is a global legend, and his gift of incredible music, and now his final economic impact, will go on to benefit his home city far into the future.”
42,000 tickets were sold for the concert, with 20% of them being purchased by international fans, paying prices ranging from £197.50 to £834.
Last month, Sharon shot down as “ridiculous” reports that “Back To The Beginning” raised nearly $200 million.
In the days after “Back To The Beginning”, the event’s musical director, Tom Morello, shared an Instagram post stating that roughly $190 million (140 million British pounds, € 161 million) would be donated to charity from the concert. Billboard magazine later also reported that the event had raised $190 million, while The Guardian reported that the pay-per-view livestream of the event reached nearly six million fans, generating an estimated $150 million in revenue. At the time, it was expected that the funds would be distributed equally to Birmingham Children’s Hospital, Acorn Children’s Hospice and Cure Parkinson’s — an organization dedicated to finding a cure for the disease Osbourne had lived with since 2019.
In an interview with music industry trade publication Pollstar, conducted on July 17 — just five days before Ozzy‘s death — his wife and manager said that claims of “Back To The Beginning” raising nearly $200 million were highly inaccurate.
“One of the things that’s frightening me is all this false press about (how), we’ve made $140 million and all of this, and I’m like, God, I wish we could have, for one gig,” Sharon said. “It’s just ridiculous, the different stories. I went on the internet the next morning and it was like, $140 million, $160 million. And I’m like, Where does this stuff come from?”
“It takes a really long time (to arrive at the final number that will be donated to charity), because we’ve had all of the bands that we had come in and their expenses, and it’ll take a good six weeks to get the final number,” she continued.
When Pollstar writer Ray Waddell noted that “these reports are not helpful for the Children’s Hospital to see, waiting for their $190 million”, Sharon responded: “Oh my God! It’s the Children’s Hospital, a children’s hospice, and Parkinson’s research. Everybody thinks that they’re going to cure everything with this much money, but it’s not the real world.”
Sharon went on to say that the concert, which also featured a solo performance from Ozzy, as well as appearances by METALLICA, SLAYER, PANTERA, GUNS N’ ROSES and TOOL, among many others, was “a huge success.” She said: “It was a phenomenal event. It was the first time, I think, that anybody’s gone into retirement and done it, where the show is streamed and it goes to charity. So it’s the first time anybody has said goodnight like that, it’s the perfect way, when you’ve had such a long career, to end it. I never wanted Ozzy to just disappear without some big event.”
Billboard reported last month that the concert was watched by 40,000 ticketholders and 5.8 million individuals online, with each of the above-mentioned charities also raising tens of thousands of pounds in additional donations by raffling off tickets to the show, auctioning off iconic art and band photographs donated by BLACK SABBATH, and through individual contributions from fans as they streamed into the concert, which took place at Villa Park in Birmingham, England.
At “Back To The Beginning”, Ozzy played a five-song set with his solo band — consisting of guitarist Zakk Wylde, bassist Mike Inez, keyboardist Adam Wakeman and drummer Tommy Clufetos — before being joined by fellow original BLACK SABBATH members Tony Iommi (guitar),Geezer Butler (bass) and Bill Ward (drums) for four classic SABBATH songs: “War Pigs”, “Iron Man”, “N.I.B.” and “Paranoid”.
Ozzy‘s solo set consisted of four songs from Osbourne‘s 1980 solo debut album “Blizzard Of Ozz” — “I Don’t Know”, “Mr. Crowley”, “Suicide Solution” and “Crazy Train” — along with his 1991 “No More Tears” ballad “Mama, I’m Coming Home”.
The 76-year-old heavy metal singer sang while seated on a black throne and appeared overcome with emotion at times. “You have no idea how I feel. Thank you from the bottom of my heart,” he told the crowd.
At the end of SABBATH‘s set, Ozzy said: “It’s the last song ever. Your support has enabled us to live an amazing lifestyle, thank you from the bottom of our hearts.” Osbourne was then presented with a cake, while fireworks lit up the stadium from overhead.
A message on screen then read, “Thank you for everything, you guys are fucking amazing. Birmingham Forever,” before the sky lit up with fireworks.
Ozzy died on July 22 of a heart attack, his death certificate revealed. The certificate also reportedly said the musician suffered from coronary artery disease and Parkinson’s disease.
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