Black Sabbath bridge and bench in Birmingham, England, covered with tributes to Ozzy Osbourne.
JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images
Ozzy Osbourne will be honored with a funeral procession, complete with a brass band, that will march through his hometown of Birmingham, England, on Wednesday.
The procession will start at 1 p.m. local time, the Birmingham City Council said, with a hearse carrying Osbourne’s body through the streets of the city. The procession will end, fittingly, at the Black Sabbath bridge and bench, which has become a memorial site for Osbourne in the week since his death.
Music during the event will be provided by the local group Bostin’ Brass. And for those who can’t attend, the live camera feed of the Black Sabbath bench will be up and running as always.
The Osbourne family has also stepped in to help cover some of the costs associated with the event. The family has yet to announce details regarding Osbourne’s private funeral.
Birmingham’s honorary lord mayor, Zafar Iqbal, issued a statement calling Osbourne “more than a music legend — he was a son of Birmingham,” and adding: “[I]t was important to the city that we support a fitting, dignified tribute ahead of a private family funeral. We know how much this moment will mean to his fans. We’re proud to host it here with his loving family in the place where it all began, and we are grateful that they have generously offered to pay to enable this to happen and support the city is giving him the farewell he deserves.”
Osbourne died July 22 at the age of 76, just weeks after his all-star farewell concert in Birmingham. The concert featured performances from an array of metal greats, including Metallica and Guns N’ Roses, while Osbourne also performed for the last time as both a solo artist and with the original members of Black Sabbath.
From Rolling Stone US.
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