Robert Plant explains why he declined invite to Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath’s ‘Back To The Beginning’ gig

Robert Plant has revealed the reason he declined an invite to Ozzy Osbourne‘s last ever live show, Black Sabbath‘s ‘Back To The Beginning’ gig.

• READ MORE: Ozzy Osbourne, 1948-2025: culture-smashing revolutionary that redefined rock and reality TV

Heavy metal pioneer Ozzy died last month at age 76, which came shortly after he took to the stage for his final-ever live show at the huge ‘Back To The Beginning’ event in Birmingham on July 5, which was attended by a host of rock royalty.

However, former Led Zeppelin frontman Plant was not among them, and has since told Mojo that while Tony Iommi did extend an invitation, he declined it at the time, without specifying whether he was asked to perform at the gig, only saying that he was asked to “attend”.

He was speaking to the publication about his upcoming album with Saving Grace, which the band will celebrate with a European and North American tour this autumn, and shed light on his intent to move away from large-scale venues on the forthcoming trek.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Black Sabbath (@blacksabbath)

“For me,” he explained, “because I’ve been from a very questionable Live Aid to the O2, to Obama and the White House and all those things, I was beatified. I felt the tug of doing this – Saving Grace needed just to move on up in glory, as Mavis [Staples] would say. We’ve got to be very careful now that we make sure it stays closer to Bert Jansch than Axl Rose,” he said.

He continued to shed light on feeling more “free” to play smaller venues with Saving Grace, which may have impacted his decision to decline ‘Back to the Beginning’. The landmark show was watched by millions around the globes and roughly 40,000 attendees live in Villa Park – with Plant seemingly referring to the performance as “doing the football stadium with some old mates.”

“The gigs are small enough so that if nobody wants to go, it’s not the end of the world. And so, by having that laissez-faire, easy-going, whatever it’s called – suicidal! – attitude, instead of doing the football stadium with some old mates, there it was: we were free. We could mess about.”

“I said, Tony, I’d love to come, but I can’t come,” Plant said. “I just can’t. I’m not saying that I’d rather hang out with Peter Gabriel or Youssou N’Dour, but I don’t know anything about what’s going on in that world now, at all. I don’t decry it, I’ve got nothing against it.

“It’s just I found these other places that are so rich.”

Saving Grace are set to play play dates across New York, Vancouver, Chicago, Los Angeles and more later this year, with four intimate shows in London set for next month. You can visit here for tickets and check out a list of dates below.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Robert Plant (@robertplantofficial)

Robert Plant’s upcoming shows are

SEPTEMBER 

28 – Kingston, LDN, Circuit (Show one at 5pm, show 2 at 7pm)
29 – Kingston, LDN, Circuit (Show one at 5pm, show 2 at 7pm)

OCTOBER
30 – Wheeling, WV – Capitol Theatre Wheeling

NOVEMBER
2 – Charlottesville, VA – The Paramount Theater of Charlottesville
3 – Washington, D.C. – Lincoln Theatre
5 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Paramount
6 – Boston, MA – Boch Center Shubert Theatre
8 – Port Chester, NY – Capitol Theatre
10 – Toronto, Ontario – Massey Hall
12 – Chicago, IL – The Vic
13 – Chicago, IL – Old Town School of Folk Music
15 – Denver, CO – Ellie Caulkins Opera House
18 – Seattle, WA – The Moore Theatre
19 – Vancouver, British Columbia – Vogue Theatre
21 – Oakland, CA – The Fox
22 – Los Angeles, CA – United Theater on Broadway

Plant was among those who paid tribute to Ozzy following his death, saying he had “truly changed the planet of rock”.

Elsewhere, it was announced earlier this month that the flowers and tributes laid by fans in Ozzy’s hometown Birmingham were being preserved by the Central Bid Birmingham to be sent to the late singer’s family.

Reports have since emerged that a man has been arrested for theft of tribute flowers one of the memorial sites.

The exhibition ‘Ozzy Osbourne: Working Class Hero’, which showcases his most prestigious international honours, will remain open at the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery until January 2026. Additionally, a biopic of Ozzy and Sharon’s lives is in the works at Sony Pictures, with negotiations with a director ongoing. The project was first announced in 2021.

The post Robert Plant explains why he declined invite to Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath’s ‘Back To The Beginning’ gig appeared first on NME.