The “Back to the Beginning” farewell concert was held at Villa Park on July 5, 2025, and featured a host of metal and hard rock icons, including Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, and Slayer.
Ozzy Osbourne died aged 76 on July 22 from a reported heart attack, just weeks after re-uniting with the band for the farewell charity show.
Now, in an interview with Mojo, the former Led Zeppelin frontman said that he declined an invitation from Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi to attend the concert.
Robert Plant told Mojo: “I said, Tony, I’d love to come, but I can’t come.
“I just can’t. I’m not saying that I’d rather hang out with Peter Gabriel or Youssou N’Dour, but I don’t know anything about what’s going on in that world now, at all.
“I don’t decry it, I’ve got nothing against it. It’s just I found these other places that are so rich.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Robert Plant talks about his first album with group Saving Grace, which is set to be released later this month on September 26.