“Well, nobody else would f**king do it, would they?”: Ozzy Osbourne on taking matters into his own hands on Kanye West’s unauthorised sample use
Earlier this month, the Black Sabbath icon took to social media to call out the rapper.
![[L-R] Ozzy Osbourne and Kanye West](https://guitar.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Ozzy-Kanye@2000x1500.jpg)
Credit: Kanye West
After Ozzy Osbourne recently called out Kanye West when the rapper and erstwhile presidential candidate sampled an old recording without permission, he’s discussing it for the first time in an interview.
On 9 February, the metal legend shared on social media that he’d denied a request from West to use a sample of one of Ozzy’s festival performances of Black Sabbath‘s Iron Man from 1983, describing him an “antisemite” who has “caused untold heartache to many.”
READ MORE: Ozzy Osbourne nominated for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2024
However, he said that West “went ahead and used the sample anyway” at a listening event for his new collaborative album with Ty Dolla $ign, Vultures 1, which would be released a day later.
And now, Osbourne tells Rolling Stone of his decision to go after West, “Well, nobody else would fucking do it, did they?”
He says he wasn’t happy with some of West’s comments and actions, which he views as antisemitic, explaining, “With the current state of affairs, you don’t need anybody starting people on discrimination of any kind. It’s wrong. It’s just wrong.”
Osbourne adds, “There’s enough fucking aggravation, and he shouldn’t say anything [like what he has]. It’s wrong if you don’t say anything about him. I don’t want any of my work in any shape or form to be associated with anything like that.”
West had included the Iron Man sample in the track Carnival. But after Osbourne’s social media post and threats from him and Sharon, his wife and manager, to bring legal action against the rapper, West replaced the sample before the album went to streaming platforms.
And, at another listening party, West played his 2010 track Hell of a Life instead of Carnival, with the track featuring a legally cleared sample of Iron Man.
Meanwhile, Sharon – who is Jewish herself – told TMZ that West “fucked with the wrong Jew this time.”