**FAREWELL BRONZE: Judas Priest to Unveil Ozzy Osbourne Statue at Gainbridge Fieldhouse Honoring His Leadership and Legacy**
*By Diana Treadwell, Rock Renaissance Daily – July 8, 2025*
In a moment that promises to go down in metal history, legendary British heavy metal band **Judas Priest** will unveil a **bronze statue of Ozzy Osbourne** at Indianapolis’s **Gainbridge Fieldhouse** this September. Dubbed the **”Farewell Bronze,”** the monument is intended to honor Osbourne’s towering influence on the genre, his storied career, and—most symbolically—his often overlooked leadership during key transitional years in the evolution of heavy metal.
Though fans across the globe continue to revere Osbourne for his groundbreaking role as the frontman of **Black Sabbath** and his boundary-pushing solo career, this particular tribute focuses on Ozzy’s less publicized role as a **unifier and mentor**—especially during the turbulent 1980s, when metal was fractured by commercialism, substance abuse, and infighting.
“**Ozzy’s legacy isn’t just in the music. It’s in the brotherhood, the resilience, the guidance he offered so many of us—whether we were ready for it or not,**” said **Rob Halford**, Judas Priest’s iconic frontman, during a press conference at the Fieldhouse on Monday morning. “This statue isn’t just for the Prince of Darkness—it’s for the general, the spiritual leader, the glue that held the metal community together.”
### A Monument Forged in Metal—and Brotherhood
Standing 11 feet tall and cast in polished bronze, the statue is a surreal, almost mythic representation of Osbourne in his classic stage stance—arms outstretched like wings, head tilted back, mouth open in a frozen scream. Sculptor **Geneva Holloway**, who previously created the **Lemmy Kilmister Memorial** in London’s Camden Town, designed the piece with input from both Judas Priest and Osbourne’s longtime wife and manager, **Sharon Osbourne**.
“He hated the idea at first,” Sharon admitted with a smirk. “He thought it was mad. But then Rob sent him a letter—handwritten, mind you—talking about how much Ozzy meant to him personally. After that, Ozzy just said, ‘Well if it helps people remember what we stood for, then sod it—let them make the bloody statue.’”
The statue’s unveiling will coincide with the **“Forged in Fire” festival**, a one-night celebration featuring Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Ghost, Halestorm, and a special appearance by Osbourne himself—his first since announcing his permanent retirement from touring last year due to health concerns.
### Leadership in Leather and Chaos
While Ozzy’s wild antics have been mythologized—biting the head off a bat, urinating on the Alamo, snarling his way through decades of interviews—his influence as a guiding figure within the metal community has rarely received the same attention. But Judas Priest bassist **Ian Hill** says it was Ozzy’s support behind the scenes that gave bands like theirs the strength to evolve without losing their roots.
“There were times when we thought we were finished,” Hill said. “New wave stuff was coming in, grunge was on the horizon, and the industry was constantly trying to water us down. Ozzy would call us—completely unannounced—and just say, ‘Stay heavy. Let them catch up to you.’ That stuck with us.”
It wasn’t just words, either. Osbourne frequently invited up-and-coming bands to open for him on tour, paid their crew expenses when labels wouldn’t, and even once helped negotiate the return of Judas Priest’s master tapes after a lengthy dispute with their record company.
“He never wanted credit,” Halford added. “He just wanted to see the genre live. He knew that if we didn’t look after each other, no one else would.”
### The Legacy That Refuses to Fade
Osbourne’s retirement announcement last year, triggered by a litany of health issues including Parkinson’s disease and spinal complications, sent shockwaves through the rock world. But if the music has slowed, the mythos has only grown. His post-retirement years have been surprisingly prolific: a bestselling memoir, collaborations with Post Malone and Billie Eilish, and the launch of “**Ozzy’s Electric Church**,” a digital archive of classic metal performances and interviews.
The statue, then, is not just a farewell—it’s a reminder.
“He’s not a ghost of metal’s past. He’s the foundation we’re still standing on,” said Lzzy Hale of Halestorm, who credits Osbourne’s career as the blueprint for her own. “Every time I scream into a mic, part of that scream belongs to Ozzy.”
Even **Bruce Dickinson** of Iron Maiden—often viewed as Osbourne’s spiritual rival—has offered praise, announcing he will perform a “fully orchestrated tribute” to Osbourne during the festival. “We may have roared from different corners of the jungle,” Dickinson said in a statement, “but Ozzy was always the lion who roared first.”
### A Statue for the People
Perhaps the most striking aspect of the Farewell Bronze is the interactive base. Beneath Ozzy’s boots lies a ring of inscribed plaques, each one engraved with a lyric from a metal band influenced by Osbourne—from Slipknot to Evanescence to Metallica. Fans will be able to scan QR codes on the pedestal to hear stories from musicians, friends, and fans about how Ozzy impacted their lives.
“**It’s not just a statue. It’s a living altar to heavy metal, to rebellion, to survival,**” said Holloway. “And it’s open to everyone.”
That spirit of openness is why Judas Priest chose **Gainbridge Fieldhouse**, typically home to NBA’s Indiana Pacers, for the monument. As Halford explained, “We wanted it in a place that was big, visible, and not walled off from the world. Metal was never meant to be hidden in cemeteries or corner bars—it was made to echo through the rafters.”
### One Final Bow?
Though Osbourne has repeatedly said he is done touring, rumors are swirling that the Prince of Darkness may deliver a surprise performance at the unveiling. Sharon has neither confirmed nor denied the speculation. “If he feels good that day and the crowd’s electric,” she teased, “you never know what might happen.”
Whether or not Ozzy takes the mic one last time, the message is clear: **his voice, his spirit, his legacy—they’re immortal**.
As the sun sets over Indianapolis on September 14, and the bronze Osbourne catches its first glint of twilight, one truth will ring louder than a Marshall stack:
**Heavy metal lives—and it owes its soul to the Prince of Darkness.**
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