Ozzy Osbourne slams Kanye West for using War Pigs sample without permission

Black Sabbath performer Ozzy Osbourne slammed Kanye West for sampling the band’s iconic song ‘War Pigs’ during a recent album listening party.

Kanye West has been in a constant state of controversy over his still-not-released Vultures album, a joint venture with Ty Dolla Sign. Not only has the project been postponed several times, but the rapper has pulled samples from other artists without permission.

The controversy began when West reportedly sampled Backstreet Boys’ ‘Everybody (Backstreet’s Back)’ without permission for his own song ‘Everybody.’ Then, there was the matter of Nicki Minaj refusing to clear the song ‘New Body,’ a collab the two had worked on nearly five years ago.

Now, West is back in hot water for sampling an iconic rock song during a recent livestream event without the artist’s explicit permission. Ozzy Osbourne took to Twitter/X to put the rapper on blast for crossing the artistic line.

Ozzy Osbourne didn’t hold back in putting Kanye West on blast

Black Sabbath’s Ozzy Osbourne (aka The Prince of Darkness) was not too happy to learn that Kanye West sampled his band’s iconic song ‘War Pigs’ during an album listening party on February 8.

Upon hearing about the sample, Osbourne went on a tirade the following day on Twitter/X.

“Kanye West asked permission to sample a section of a 1983 live performance of ‘War Pig’ from the U.S. festival without vocals and was refused permission because he is an antisemite and has caused untold heartache to many,” he wrote.

. @kanyewest ASKED PERMISSION TO SAMPLE A SECTION OF A 1983 LIVE PERFORMANCE OF “WAR PIG” FROM THE US FESTIVAL WITHOUT VOCALS & WAS REFUSED PERMISSION BECAUSE HE IS AN ANTISEMITE AND HAS CAUSED UNTOLD HEARTACHE TO MANY. HE WENT AHEAD AND USED THE SAMPLE ANYWAY AT HIS ALBUM…

— Ozzy Osbourne (@OzzyOsbourne) February 9, 2024

“He went ahead and used the sample anyway at his album listening party last night. I want no association with this man!” he added.

The livestream event, dubbed the Vultures Listening Experience, featured appearances from North West, YG, and Bump J, among others. Initially, it served as the launch party for Vultures, which was supposed to be released at midnight.

When the album failed to materialize, fans were left in shambles. It’s yet to be seen if any of the samples will find their way onto the record. As of this writing, there has been no new release date set for the project.