Ozzfest is officially taking shape for its 2027 comeback, but the heavy metal event will feature a tighter schedule than initially expected. According to Jack Osbourne, the resurrected festival will operate strictly as a one-day gathering, scrapping previously discussed ideas for a multi-day format.
Speaking on SiriusXM‘s “Page Six Radio” on August 19, the son of Ozzy Osbourne shared behind-the-scenes details about the monumental task of organizing the massive return.
When asked about the experience of putting the festival back together, Jack Osbourne stated (via Blabbermouth):
“It’s been interesting, ’cause it’s kind of like finding the old car in the shop and being, like, ‘All right, let’s get this engine going.’ But it’s cool. There’s a lot of excitement around it. And we’re gonna announce pretty soon — I think in the next couple of weeks we’re gonna announce kind of who the main headliner is and where we’re doing it. So it’s been nice.”
Addressing the exact structure of the upcoming festival, he clarified that the 2027 edition will not span an entire weekend. While Sharon Osbourne had previously entertained the possibility of a two-day event at Villa Park, the current strategy focuses on a packed, single-day schedule.
“[It’s] not gonna be a multi-day thing. We’re gonna kind of stick to our roots of… We did a couple of two-day Ozzfests years ago, but it’s just gonna be one day,” he revealed.
Locking in the roster of performers has proven to be a complex hurdle. Jack Osbourne acknowledged that navigating the modern live music industry is much more difficult today compared to the festival’s original run, primarily due to rising artist fees and the sheer volume of competing tours.
He said: “I do. It’s just really difficult now. It’s really difficult to kind of, like, ‘All right, who’s doing what?’ ‘Cause a lot of huge bands now are doing their own festivals, they’re doing their own thing, so it’s, like, ‘All right, who’s not got their own festival? Who’s available? Who’s reasonably priced?’ Because with all these huge festivals, artists are, like, ‘Yeah, I’ll do it for, like, 10 million dollars.’ You’re, like, ‘Eh.’”
Despite the financial and logistical roadblocks, organizers are prioritizing artists who share a historical tie to his father’s musical legacy. Questioned on whether the curation process targets bands with an authentic connection to the festival’s roots, he confirmed the strategy:
“100%. Yeah, yeah. And there’s a lot of the huge artists now in the genre, they all kind of were on Ozzfest at a certain point. We had everyone from Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie, Disturbed, Slipknot. I mean, they all kind of came up… Well, not Rob Zombie and Manson, but Disturbed and Slipknot and System of a Down.”
While celebrating established heavyweights, the revived brand will maintain its core mission of breaking fresh talent. Just as the original provided a platform for rising acts, the upcoming installment will feature dedicated slots for undiscovered musicians.
“Yeah, that’s still gonna be a big part of the lineup, is new artists. And we’re gonna probably have a spot for at least one unsigned artist,” he added.
During the recent episode of “The Osbournes Podcast“, Sharon explained: “We wanna do two days in Aston Villa and then come to America. And we wanna hear from everyone where we should go in America. And also we’ve gotta find a lot of young, new talent, because that’s what [Ozzy] would want.”
She’s also left the door open to something bigger down the line, should the demand be there. “Yeah. And then see how it does. And then if people want it, we’ll be there [in the] following years,” she said, hinting that a full touring format could return in 2028 and beyond.
She added: “It was more fun. When you go to other festivals, everybody’s so uptight. But that was always the thing about our festival. There was never anybody jockeying for position or thought they were better than anyone else. It was a summer camp.”
Speaking earlier this year at the MIDEM 2026 conference in Cannes, Sharon revealed that Ozzy himself had encouraged her to carry the festival on without him: “Well, the last one we did was 2018. It was just a month before Ozzy got sick, and that was at the Forum in L.A. And there was no plans to stop it. We were still gonna do it, but Ozzy couldn’t. And 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.’”
More recently, Sharon spoke to Metal Hammer about the plans and confirmed that Villa Park would indeed be the starting point for Ozzfest’s return.
“It’s going to be at Villa Park again,” Sharon said, referring to the venue where Ozzy performed his final show. “Whether it’ll be two nights [in Birmingham], that’s up for the fans to tell me.”
As for the artists who could appear at the revived festival, Sharon remained tight-lipped.
“Of course we’re speaking to people,” she said. “I can’t let that out yet, but it’ll be soon.”
These latest updates arrive shortly after the official venue announcement. The 2027 edition will be hosted at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, the home stadium of Aston Villa F.C. The location carries deep emotional weight, as it served as the site of Ozzy Osbourne‘s final concert on July 5, 2025. That historic “Back To The Beginning” hometown show saw Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath perform alongside a stacked lineup of rock and metal icons.
Originally launched by Sharon Osbourne and Ozzy Osbourne in 1996, Ozzfest grew from a traveling summer festival into a global heavy metal institution. Over its decades of operation, the festival helped launch the careers of countless young groups while consistently hosting the biggest names in heavy music.
