Roger Waters Stands by Insensitive Ozzy Osbourne Comments in New Interview

Roger Waters reaffirmed the comments he made about Ozzy Osbourne following the singer’s death, insensitive remarks that drew criticism from Osbourne’s own family.

Following Osbourne’s death last summer, Waters said in an interview with the Independent Ink podcast, “Ozzy Osbourne, who just died, bless him in his whatever state that he was in his whole life. We’ll never know. The music, I have no idea. I couldn’t give a fuck.” Waters then added, “I don’t care about Black Sabbath, I never did. Have no interest in biting the heads of chickens or whatever they do. I couldn’t care less, you know.”

Those remarks drew the ire of the Osbourne family, with Jack Osbourne writing on social media, “Hey Roger Waters, fuck you. How pathetic and out of touch you’ve become. The only way you seem to get attention these days is by vomiting out bullshit in the press. My father always thought you were a cunt. Thanks for proving him right.” 

(The Osbourne family also briefly released a shirt mocking Waters; “Another Prick in the Wall,” the shirt read next to an image of Osbourne urinating on Waters’ The Wall: Live in Berlin album.)

In a new interview with Piers Morgan, Waters was asked about his Osbourne remarks, and whether he regretted the unempathetic timing in which he said them. 

“Those comments, I’m not denying that I said them, came in the middle of a long interview,” Waters admitted before doubling-down, “Do I have to like every rock group that ever was or people who bite the heads off bats?”

Asked whether he would apologize to Sharon Osbourne during the Morgan interview, Waters said frankly he would not. “I obviously had no idea that Sharon Osbourne would be watching a podcast,” Waters said. “Not that I have any time for Sharon Osbourne, she’s a raging Zionist… and she’s accused me of all kinds of things… because she’s part of the Israeli lobby.”

As for the rest of Osbourne’s family, Waters said, “Listen Jack… if he wants to have a chat, I’ll have a chat with him. And I won’t be nasty to him.”

From Rolling Stone US.