Ozzy Osbourne is a rock singer and former member of black Sabbath popular mostly in the late 80s and 90s, he has oporated under several record labels over his long carrier including Epic Records, Jet Records, Legendary Records and Columbia records. Osbourne presents himself usually in a way that defies usual convention but conforms to his genre’s trappings, with long hair and black clothing. He however juxtoaposes this with his bumbling every man down to earth persona as shown in the reality show the Osbourne’s. This makes him a more interesting character and highlights him as somebody different from most other rock starts hegemony. In February 2020, following a Parkinson’s desease diognosis he released his latest and my favourite track of his, ordinary Man as part his album ordinary Man, the album blended Ozzie’s usual stylings with a more modern indie and rap sensebility. Most of the tracks feature young rapper post Malone. This is interesting since it will merge the two fandoms and ultimately generate more sales. This with also undoubtedly introduce many younger listeners to Ozzie’s work via the post Malone connection and vice versa, introducing older fans to the work and style of post Malone. This is a good example of sinigey or vertical integration between the two artists. Overall I found this to be an interesting example with good overall creative results. However the title track does not feature post Malone. The track ordinary Man was written and sung by Osbourne and features a verse sung by Sir Elton John. The track features Osbourne looking back and ruminating upon his life in the wake of his diognosis. It takes a very soft rock or even ballard approach. Elton’s verse is once again a good example of horizontal integration. This also applies to John’s own career direction at the moment. He is also in a phase of looking back what with the release of the biopic rocketman last year and his autobiography ME so this track is a relevant and interesting collaboration for both ageing stars. The music video takes an equally melancholic tone. It depicts Ozzy Osbourne sitting in a cinema watching a montage of archival footage of his life. These range from drug and drink related ones, to a mugshot of his arrest and some of him performing. These help sell the theme of regret and looking back, even if it does get a little repetetive by the end. I think I will take the idea of looking back and flashbacks for my own video.
https://youtu.be/dBF78tA443A
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