“I’m like, ‘Where does this stuff come from?’”: Sharon Osbourne says claims that Black Sabbath’s final show raised £140 million for charity are “just ridiculous”
Sharon Osbourne says reports that Black Sabbath generated £140 million for charity through their Back to the Beginning farewell show are “just ridiculous”.
The sold-out show was also livestreamed on pay-per-view, with 100% of the proceeds going to Acorns Children’s Hospice, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Cure Parkinson’s. The pay-per-view was priced at £24.99, and The Guardian reported last month that more than five million people tuned in.
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5 million multiplied by £24.99 is a little under £125 million, so in the ball park of the figure quoted, before accounting for physical ticket sales, merch sales and so on.
Following the event, Billboard magazine also reported that the event had raised over $190 million, while Tom Morello – who served as the event’s musical director – posted a selection of photos on Instagram, one of which read: “More than 190 million will be donated to houses and hospitals for children.”
Now, in a new interview with Pollstar, Sharon Osbourne – Ozzy Osbourne’s wife and long-time manager – says the figures quoted aren’t exactly accurate.
“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.’
“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 work out how much was made], 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.”
Though she’s hesitant to comment on how much the event made before the official figures are available, Sharon says the event was a “huge success”.
“It was a phenomenal event,” she says. “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.”
Aside from hosting Black Sabbath’s swansong performance, Back to the Beginning saw performances from a plethora of heavy metal’s elite, including Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Mastodon, Yungblud, Lamb of God and so many more.
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