Sharon Osbourne announced the return of Ozzfest during her appearance at MIDEM 2026 in Cannes, France, on February 6. She shared plans to revive the iconic metal festival as a touring event, with Live Nation managing the production. “Yes, absolutely. Yeah, we’re gonna do it,” Sharon said. The last Ozzfest took place in 2018, just a month before Ozzy fell ill, at The Forum in Los Angeles.
The 2027 edition of Ozzfest will feature a mix of music genres, moving away from its traditional focus. Sharon mentioned in January that she wants to shake things up: “I’d like to mix up the genres,” she revealed.
The decision to bring Ozzfest back came from conversations with her late husband, Ozzy. “Ozzy and I would talk about it, and he’d say, ‘Do you think Ozzfest would work without me?’ And I’m, like, ‘Yeah, it’s a brand. It will work without you.’ And he said, ‘We should do it,’” she explained.
Sharon also told Billboard that Ozzfest was created to support emerging artists. “It was something Ozzy was very passionate about: giving young talent a stage in front of a lot of people,” she said. “We really started metal festivals in this country.”
Ozzfest kicked off 30 years ago as the first national hard rock festival. It helped launch bands like System Of A Down and Slipknot. The last Ozzfest was on December 31, 2018, featuring Rob Zombie, Marilyn Manson, Jonathan Davis from Korn, and Body Count. Zakk Sabbath, a tribute band led by Zakk Wylde, also performed on a second stage.
Over the years, Ozzfest has evolved, becoming a single show in Dallas in 2008, skipping 2009, and hitting just six cities in 2010. In 2017, it teamed up with Slipknot’s Knotfest for a successful two-day event that attracted over 17,000 fans.
