Ozzy Osbourne just called out Kanye West. The rock star, 75, shared in a since-deleted Instagram post that West sampled his music without his approval. West, 46, sampled a live performance of Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs” for his new single, “Talking / Once Again.”
In an Instagram post on Friday, Osbourne wrote in all caps in both the caption and a screenshot of the text that read: “@KAYNEWEST ASKED PERMISSION TO SAMPLE A [SECTION] OF A 1983 LIVE PERFORMANCE OF ‘WAR PIG’ FROM THE US FESTIVAL WITHOUT VOCALS.”
“REFUSED PERMISSION BECAUSE HE IS AN ANTISEMITE AND HAS CAUSED UNTOLD HEARTACHE TO MANY,” continued the Black Sabbath singer. “HE WENT AHEAD AND USED THE SAMPLE ANYWAY AT HIS ALBUM LISTENING PARTY LAST NIGHT.” Osbourne concluded, “I WANT NO ASSOCIATION WITH THIS MAN!”
The “Iron Man” artist was referring to the Thursday night listening party for the single’s release at Chicago’s United Center. “Talking / Once Again,” which is a collaboration with rapper Ty Dolla $ign, also features the Ye rapper’s elder daughter, North, 10, and has been speculated as a track on his upcoming album Vultures.
The LP was set to be released on Friday, but at the time of publication, it has not been released. Osbourne claims follow the rapper’s controversies of bullying and antisemitic comments from previous years.
In October 2022, West shared a screenshot of a text exchange between himself and Diddy in a now-deleted Instagram post. The text screenshot allegedly appeared to show West claiming that Combs was controlled by Jewish people. “Jesus is Jew,” he wrote in the caption, reported NBC News.
In a now-deleted message, West wrote that he was going to go “death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The American Jewish Committee (AJC) called out the “Bound 2” performer’s language for perpetuating “antisemitic tropes like greed and control,” writing in a statement: “Kanye West should figure out how to make a point without using antisemitism. Over the last week, the musician has fomented hatred of Jews.”
More recently, in November 2023, West delivered a surprise performance of his new song “Vultures” in Dubai. Instagram Stories of the performance featured him rapping offensive lyrics from the track like, “How am I antisemitic? I just f—ed a Jewish bitch.”
Two weeks later, West issued a public apology in Hebrew. “I sincerely apologize to the Jewish community for my unplanned outbursts caused by my words or actions, it was not my intention to hurt or disrespect, and I deeply regret any pain I may have caused,” read his statement, which was shared via Instagram (and translated into English).
“I am committed to starting with myself and learning from this experience to ensure greater sensitivity and understanding in the future,” West continued. He added that being forgiven “is important to me” and that he is “committed to making amends and promoting unity.”