Zakk Wylde reveals the last text message he got from Ozzy Osbourne

Zakk Wylde, who has served as Ozzy Osbourne’s lead guitarist since 1987, opened up in a recent Guitar World interview about his last emotional interaction with the Prince of Darkness. He saw Ozzy for the final time at the “Back to the Beginning” concert on July 5th.

The guitarist shared the bittersweet final messages they exchanged after the show, recalling: “Everybody and their mother were in the backstage dressing room and I just wanted to give him a break. I figured we’d see him later on – the next day or whatever. But no.”

He added, “The last text I got from Oz was saying, ‘Zakky, sorry, it was like a madhouse back there. I didn’t see you.’ He goes, ‘Thanks for everything.’ It was just us talking, saying, ‘I love you, buddy.’ That was it.”

Though they didn’t have a chance to say a final goodbye in person, Wylde expressed that he holds no regrets, as the memories of that night are “ingrained in my head.”

Speaking about being a part of Black Sabbath’s historic farewell show, Wylde said he felt “blessed and grateful, man. Anything other than that would be selfish. And on top of it, to go out with what’s the biggest-grossing charity event of all? That’s unbelievable. He helped a whole lot of people instead of making a profit. My God, what an incredible master. What an incredible life.”

This comes after Geezer Butler reflected on the band’s last show, revealing, “He was helped into the rehearsal room by two helpers and a nurse and was using a cane – being Ozzy, the cane was black and studded with gold and precious stones.”

Butler also described the shock of seeing Ozzy’s declining health, saying, “I knew he wasn’t in good health, but I wasn’t prepared to see how frail he was.”

Ozzy Osbourne’s funeral will take place on July 30th, with a large procession leading his hearse through Birmingham’s city center, across Black Sabbath Bridge, and on to a private ceremony.