Back in May, Sharon and Jack Osbourne announced that the next phase in the legacy of Ozzy Osbourne would be merging the Prince of Darkness with AI. Since the rise of AI, groups like ABBA and KISS have explored the idea of bringing their likeness to the stage using digital avatars of themselves. Add the vast capabilities of AI, and it seemed that live entertainment was entering a new era. But when Jack announced a digital avatar, fans criticized the idea that Ozzy would be used to sell cell phones.
When Jack first announced that Ozzy would be transformed into a digital avatar, he said, “He will exist digitally as himself for as long as we have computers. You could shoot a template for a commercial … literally prompt what you want Digital Ozzy to do in that commercial and you just drop it in. It’s that simple now.”
It was that single line about being dropped into a commercial template that caused concern among fans. Although not wanting Ozzy to be used to push corporate products, the Osbourne family watched as the backlash grew. And recently appearing on The Great Company With Jamie Laing, Jack wanted to clear the air. “The backlash, it was my own fault. We’d just kind of figured this thing out, that we were gonna do it, and I guess I wasn’t properly armed with the way to properly explain what it was.”
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Jack Osbourne Doesn’t Want Ozzy To Be Left Behind
Taking some time to gain knowledge surrounding the next phase of Ozzy’s legacy, Jack insisted, “I think people thought that next thing it’s gonna be Ozzy Osbourne selling cell phones. No.”
For Jack, the Ozzy avatar wasn’t about making money – it was about keeping ownership of what his father created. “By kind of creating this digital fingerprint, you ultimately will own the digital IP and image of that person. And so as to what it can be used for now, yeah, there’s a handful of things… But down the road, it’s where things are going. It’s no different than saying, ‘I wanna own my images of my father. I wanna own his intellectual property.”’
While other singers and musicians warn about the dangers of AI, Jack wasn’t looking to get left behind. “AI is what it is, it’s not going anywhere, it’s not changing.”
(Photo by Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images)
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