Ozzy rocks WWE

Ozzy rocks WWE

Ozzy Osbourne is ready to rock WWE. The rock legend will perform "I Don't Wanna Stop," the first single off his new album, Black Rain, in Baltimore tonight on SmackDown. "I Don't Wanna Stop" is the official theme song for Judgment Day, and Osbourne is no stranger to WWE.

"Working with WWE, it's fun, you know. I'm not new to wrestling. I started doing some stuff with the British Bulldogs many, many years ago," Osbourne told WWE.com, referring to his WrestleMania 2 appearance.

"I became a very good friend of Andre the Giant when he was alive. I used to go drinking with him, and he was such a lovely man," he said.

Epic Records' Black Rain will hit store shelves Tuesday. It's Osbourne's first album of new studio material in six years. (Order Black Rain now.)

"To be perfectly truthful with you, I was not aware it was six years. I thought it was a few years, but not six," Osbourne said. "I built a studio at the back of my house. I always wanted to have my own studio, and make my own record, in my own studio, and my dream came true."

Osbourne will embark on a world tour in Moscow on May 27 in support of Black Rain. Then he'll head back to the United States for this summer's 12th annual Ozzfest. Beginning July 12 in Seattle, this year's festival is being dubbed "FreeFest" because admission to the 24-city tour costs nothing.

"Why's it free? You better ask my wife about that, I don't know. That's her job!" Osbourne laughed. "I'm glad she's doing it that way though. Ultimately it comes back to the kids. Normally they have to pay a couple hundred bucks a ticket, I'm guessing. I hope we can give them a good show. I'm doing the biggest tour of my life."

This year's Ozzfest will be headlined by its two-time Grammy Award winning namesake. Bands on the tour include Lamb of God, Hatebreed, Lordi and more. Fans are limited to two tickets each, and ticket codes will be distributed in select Black Rain CDs and through sponsor Web sites now. (For more details, see ozzfest.com.)

Osbourne addressed the state of the world and its effect on his life in Black Rain, but he insisted he hasn't gotten political.

"People are saying to me that I've gotten very political. I haven't got very political, but I watch a lot of documentaries, like on the History Channel, Discovery, A&E and so on. What I get interested in, in the news is this f****** war that's going on. If it gets in my head and has an effect, it's going to come out in my music I suppose," Osbourne said.

"There's quite a bit of anti-war and questionary lyrics there, which is not a new thing for me. People just think that when I was singing with Black Sabbath, all we ever sang about was the devil and the dark forces or whatever, but it's not true. There were a lot of political things, a lot of anti-war things there," he explained.

Osbourne's first single and the Judgment Day theme, "I Don't Wanna Stop," holds special meaning to the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer.

"I'm 59 this year. People keep saying to me, ‘You'll be quitting soon, retiring.' I don't wanna stop! You'll know when I want to stop because I won't be doing it anymore," he insisted. "I've tried not doing it, but it's not like I've got a job. I'd miss the fans. I'd miss the buzz, seeing the crowd going crazy."

Osbourne admitted our fans pleasantly surprised a rock veteran like himself.

"I've been doing arenas and gigs and festivals for the best part of 30, 40 years. The f******* fans of wrestling go absolutely crazy," Osbourne said. "I thought nobody could get louder than a rock concert, but was I ever wrong!"

The Prince of Darkness watches WWE on TV, and is looking forward to performing tonight on SmackDown.

"I don't wanna stop. I ain't gonna stop. And you better stop thinking I'm gonna stop because I'm coming down in Baltimore. Come and rock out with us."

WWE Shows Latest Results

View all Shows