Yungblud might be one of those musical artists where everyone knows his name, but few people can name the title of one of his songs. We have seen parts of his videos, and he's fine, but almost forgettable for some reason. He has also shown an ability to cover other people's songs and do a great job with them.
He did so with David Bowie's "Life on Mars" in 2021, proving that he could entertain and sing, mirroring the somberness of the COVID-19 shutdown. Still, anyone who saw the setlist for the Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath farewell show, and saw Yungblud's name, might have questioned why he was there.
He certainly is not a metal artist, so how did he fit? The reason is logical and clear. He also did something that Soundgarden didn't, but should have.
Yungblud might have earned some new fans with his performance at the Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath farewell
Yungblud was part of the first supergroup to appear on the Ozzy and Sabbath farewell, and he performed one song, "Changes." The singer told NME that he wasn't nervous before coming on stage, but he also knew that he might not immediately be well-received. He was seemingly an outlier.
Halfway through his performance, though, the crowd had bought into Yungblug's drive to do the song justice, and he was doing so extremely well. The track is also a good fit for the singer's style, slow and building with enough space to let him emote.
Yungblud proved he belonged at the farewell. While concert music director and Rage Against the Machine guitarist, Tom Morello, wasn't sure before the gig that Yungblud should be a part, and definitely wasn't positive the singer should do one of Ozzy's more iconic tunes, Yungblud sold Morello that he should.
The link was the surprisingly long-standing relationship between Yungblud and Ozzy Osbourne. As the 27-year-old told NME, "I couldn't miss (the concert). We've become so close, and I love him. His music has given me an outlet, and he's given me so much advice. When it felt like people didn't understand me, I cried down the phone to him. He's always told me, 'People will not get you, so do not deviate, keep fighting and keep pushing.' Ozzy isn't just my hero, he's my family."
The first part of that is important. Yungblud already had another gig previously scheduled when the Ozzy and Sabbath farewell opportunity popped up. He dropped the other event so he could be at the more important concert.
Meanwhile, bands such as Soundgarden, seemingly a better fit for performing at the farewell, couldn't find the time to be there. They were too busy with their own things to drop what they were doing to honor the twin metal icons of Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne.
Ultimately, Yungblud might gain fans from the event while Soundgarden could lose some. Yungblud did the most important thing he could do: Unlike Soundgarden, he showed up.