Ghost pay tribute to 'the life and laughter' of Ozzy Osbourne at Madison Square Garden gig
Ghost vowed to "carry forward" the "light" Ozzy gave to the world during a moving tribute in New York City.
Ghost celebrated the "life and laughter" of Ozzy Osbourne at their show at New York's Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night (22.07.25).
The theatrical rock band played a sold-out concert at the iconic venue on the same day the music legend passed away, at the age of 76, and frontman Tobias Forge paid his respects to the Prince of Darkness, not how he ironically "gave us a lot of light".
Addressing the crowd, he said: “Good evening, New York City! How are you? It’s one of those days now. We’re going to dedicate tonight’s show to the memory of the life and laughter of Ozzy Osbourne.”
The packed audience then led chants of “Ozzy! Ozzy! Ozzy!”
Tobias said: “For being the Prince of Darkness, he sure gave us a lot of light. So we’re going to tap into that and carry it forward, through a time of darkness.”
Alongside a clip from the tribute, Ghost penned on Instagram: "We wish to inform you that Ghost dedicated their sold out New York ritual at Madison Square Garden to the Prince of Darkness himself: Ozzy Osbourne."
Tobias got to perform the Black Sabbath frontman's solo hit Bark At The Moon at Ozzy's final concert, Back To The Beginning, in Birmingham on July 5.
Tobias told NME of being inspired by Ozzy and Sabbath: “Ozzy as a frontman and Ozzy as a solo artist is something I put a divide between, because I grew up in the ‘80s where he was much more of a rockstar than Black Sabbath were. I gravitated towards that, but I also grew up listening to the old Black Sabbath records.
“Nowadays, I love most Black Sabbath releases. Even the ‘80s and ‘90s albums, I love them for what they are, and the Dio era also has a very special place in my heart, too. ‘Vol. 4’, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and Sabotage have been absolute milestones for me for as long as I’ve been writing music. They’ve been very influential, even though it might not be super evident. I’ve always listened to them, and I’ve always been inspired by them.”
