Producer Andrew Watt says he spoke with Ozzy Osbourne every day for the past six and a half years.
This past July 21 was no different.
“Everything was normal,” Watt tells Rolling Stone, “and the next day the news was just a giant shock.”
On July 22, the metal legend died of a heart attack, roughly two weeks after making his final appearance onstage at Back to the Beginning.
Watt, who developed a close friendship with Ozzy after producing his last two albums — 2020’s Ordinary Man and 2022’s Patient Number 9 — said he’s still grieving over the loss.
“We were really big for each other, both as collaborators and as friends,” Watt says. “And, fuck, man, more than anything, I miss the laughter. He’s the funniest person ever of all time.”
Watt has made his name producing albums for Pearl Jam, the Rolling Stones, Post Malone and Lady Gaga, but he credits his success to Ozzy.
“Yeah, it changed everything for me,” Watt says. “He saw me as a serious album producer. Up until then, I wasn’t really making full albums.”
Watt says that in addition to teaching him how to mix rock music, Ozzy let him play guitar on his albums, allowing him to join the list of electric guitar legends — from Tony Iommi to Randy Rhoads, Jake E. Lee and Zakk Wylde — who have made their mark on Ozzy’s catalog. “He let me play guitar on his albums,” Watt says, “and that’s just unbelievable.”
The three-time Grammy-winning producer was also asked if Ozzy has anything left in the vaults from their time together, Watt will only say, “I can’t talk about that!”
