The promoter of the festival, Andy Copping, had the following to say about the add:
“We’re unbelievably excited to have Ozzy as one of the headliners next year. Already hailing from the midlands, Ozzy Osbourne is no stranger to Download, and after Black Sabbath closed the festival in 2016, how could I not ask The Prince Of Darkness to come back all on his own? The Download family are without a shadow of a doubt, in for a treat.”
“They’ve retired but I haven’t. It’s like I’m jumping off one boat on to another.
People forget, I was with Sabbath from 68 to 79, but I’ve been on my own from 79 until now. I’ve been on my own thing for a lot longer than when I was with Sabbath. I love what Sabbath did for me and I love what I did for Sabbath, but it’s not the be-all, end-all of my own whole career.
People around my age go, ‘I’m 65 now. I’m retired.’ Then they fucking die. My father got a bit of cash from the job he had, did the garden and died. And I’m going, ‘That’s a bit of an anticlimax after working so many years in a factory.’
I ain’t retiring. People still want to see me, so what’s there to retire from?”
