OZZIFEST JAPAN Festival to Debut This May

Sharon Osbourne, in partnership with Japanese promoter Hayashi International Promotion (H.I.P.), has confirmed the first-ever OZZFEST JAPAN. The two-day festival will debut Saturday, May 11 and Sunday, May 12, 2013 at the Makuhari Messe arena just outside of Tokyo and will feature headlining performances from Black Sabbath--featuring Ozzy Osbourne, Geezer Butler and Tony Iommi--and Slipknot.

"We are excited for the opportunity to bring OZZFEST to Japan for the first time ever,” says Sharon Osbourne. “We’ve got the perfect combination of Western and Japanese bands. OZZFEST is also thrilled to be presenting Black Sabbath’s first-ever performance in Japan.”

The inaugural OZZFEST JAPAN line-up will be co-headlined by Grammy Award-winning multi-platinum rockers SLIPKNOT, who last performed in Japan in 2008. The remaining acts on the festival’s lineup will be revealed later this year, and according to organizers it will feature performances from a dynamic mix of international and domestic bands with the goal of establishing OZZFEST JAPAN as the leader in the Japanese rock festival market.

Hailing from Birmingham, England, Black Sabbath released their self-titled debut album on February 13, 1970. Their follow up album, the seminal masterpiece, UK #1 album Paranoid featured rock anthems “War Pigs” and “Iron Man,” as well as the title track, “Paranoid.” Black Sabbath has sold in excess of 70 million records worldwide and has been proclaimed by MTV as the “Greatest Metal Band of All Time.” In late 2011, the band announced their much-anticipated reunion and the band is currently recording their first new studio album in 33 years with producer Rick Rubin (it will be released in Spring 2013). The band went on to perform highly acclaimed headlining shows this past summer at the Download Festival in the U.K.and Lollapalooza in the United States.

In the more than 35-year history in Japan, promoter H.I.P. has worked with international superstars including AC/DC, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Guns N' Roses, as well as Japanese powerhouse newcomers Momoiro Clover and internationally acclaimed band Dir en grey.

Despite Japan reigning as the second largest music market in the world, OZZFEST JAPAN 2013 will represent the first major international music festival to ever travel to the country.

"We are thrilled to open a new chapter for this legendary festival in Japan,” H.I.P. President Massy Hayashi says of the significance of bringing OZZFEST to Japan. “I think it will be the perfect chance to bring together the very best international rock music and also give us a chance to show how far Japanese rock has come in recent years.”

As of November 1, ticket prices are as follows: single-day tickets are JPY 14,000, weekend passes are JPY 27,000, weekend passes including an official festival t-shirt are JPY 30,000. All prices include consumption tax, box office commission and ticket printing fees.

The latest information on OZZFEST can be found at www.ozzfestjapan.com.

About OZZFEST:

Beginning in 1996, OZZFEST established itself as a virtual breeding ground for rising bands. The festival has been instrumental in igniting the careers of platinum-selling artists like System of a Down, Disturbed, Linkin Park, Incubus, Slipknot, Queens of the Stone Age, Godsmack, Avenged Sevenfold, Mudvayne, Lamb of God, Killswitch Engage and Lacuna Coil, among others. It was cited as “one of rock’s biggest juggernauts” in the cover feature of Sunday's New York Times' “Arts & Leisure” section (6/25/06). In 2008, the festival changed to a one-day stadium spectacular in Texas that teamed OZZFEST founder and namesake Ozzy Osbourne (in his only U.S. concert appearance that summer) with Metallica (marking their OZZFEST debut).

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