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John Michael Osbourne was born on December 3, 1948 in Birmingham, England. Throughout an extraordinary career, which has so far spanned over four decades, Osbourne has made major contributions to the worlds of music and popular culture. As co-founder, lead singer, and songwriter for Black Sabbath (1970-79) he was, in effect, a chief architect of the genre now known as "heavy metal", creating the powerful new sound and provocative performance style that would forever expand the definition of rock music. Black Sabbath have sold more than 25 million records in the U.S. alone. In 1980, Osbourne debuted as a solo artist to widespread popular claim. Over the next two decades, his career continued to gain momentum with a series of highly successful albums, and he has brought his notorious live show to sold-out arenas in virtually every corner of the world. As a solo artist, Osbourne has sold more than 35 million records worldwide, bringing his cumulative sales to more than 60 million albums. Osbourne gained worldwide success with the smash MTV series "The Osbournes", a melding of reality show, soap opera, and sitcom that follows the lives of Ozzy and his family. It became the highest rated original program in MTV's history. As the founder and star attraction of the annual "Ozzfest" tour, he continues to win legions of new fans while at the same time building the hard rock audience by introducing standing-room-only crowds to emerging artists in the genre. Ozzy transcends all boundaries and categories and is now among the elite few who can lay claim to being eternally "cool", viable, and vital in a pop world under constant upheaval and change. Put simply, Ozzy rocks! He is the godfather of Heavy Metal.
