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Rod Stewart has sparked outrage after incorporating a ‘disrespectful’ Ozzy Osbourne tribute into his shows.
The Scottish singer, 80, is currently on tour and since the news of Ozzy’s death last month he has been dedicating Forever Young to the late rocker – with a picture of the Black Sabbath singer flashing up on the screen.
Yet in recent days he has ramped up the tribute – and is now showing a bizarre AI-generated video – which shows Ozzy in heaven taking selfies with other late, legendary singers.
Taking to Instagram, one concertgoer at his show in Charlotte, North Carolina, shared a video of the footage and penned: ‘Yes the rumors are true: I went to a Rod Stewart concert last night (lol) and witnessed man made horrors beyond my comprehension.
‘Ozzy Osbourne with a selfie stick in heaven smiling with Tina Turner, Bob Marley, Prince, and…XXXTentacion.’
Adding to the tribute, Rod reportedly told the crowd after the performance: ‘Very sad. A lot of those people died ’cause of drugs… I’m still here, though!’
The video sparked immediate outrage, with fans penning: ‘“why is this disrespectful?” i’m going to use AI to make a video of your dead grandma breakdancing in heaven with princess diana and put it on a giant screen as part of my tour that people paid money to see and i’m gonna do it without your knowledge or permission’;
‘This is a crime that should be prosecuted to the fullest extent’; ‘Good idea: pay tribute to Ozzy and his friends in heaven. Bad Idea: Making an AI-generated video with his dead friends/members’;
‘Prince was 100% against this type of technology. He made that very clear while he was alive. This is all very much so in poor taste!’;
Not everyone was offended, however, with one user posting: ‘This is such a beautiful video. One that makes you think that he has reunited by legendary musicians who we have lost.
‘There’s not a single ounce of disrespect in it. There’s already a bunch of videos that have been made following his passing with musicians, Jesus, with his dogs / cats, on bikes with bat wings but this one is the best version I’ve seen so far.
‘Why the hate. People would criticise anything till they can criticise Thank you Rod ❤️HATE THE WAR not a peaceful happy video’.
Another added: ‘Distasteful, yes. Do I hate it? No. The gesture is coming from a good place, but it could have been done in a better way. I would have preferred it each each of their pictures get added one by one to a group picture like Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart Club Band.’
While many had feared that Ozzy’s family would be offended by the video, after its release, the late star’s official account reposted a tribute shared by Rod on July 22.
The post read: ‘Bye, bye Ozzy. Sleep well, my friend. I’ll see you up there — later rather than sooner.’
MailOnline has contacted Rod’s team for comment.
Ozzy passed away ‘surrounded by love’ on July 22 a statement from his family confirmed.
The Osbourne family penned: ‘It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning.
‘He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time. Sharon, Jack, Kelly, Aimee and Louis.’
On Wednesday huge crowds gathered in Birmingham to pay their respects to the Prince of Darkness during his funeral procession
The hearse carrying the singer’s coffin – adorned with purple flowers spelling out ‘Ozzy’ – passed the star’s childhood home in Lodge Road, Aston and travelled towards the Black Sabbath Bridge bench.
The following day, Ozzy was buried in the grounds of his own mansion in Buckinghamshire – as he had said he desired.
His widow Sharon, 72, and their children were joined by heavy rock royalty at the event at the family’s home near Gerrards Cross, where he was being laid to rest near a lake at the heart of the sprawling 250-acre estate.
Speaking in 2011 about how he imagined his future send-off, the Black Sabbath legend said: ‘I honestly don’t care what they play at my funeral.
‘They can put on a medley of Justin Bieber, Susan Boyle and We Are The Diddymen if it makes ’em happy.
‘But I do want to make sure it’s a celebration, not a mope-fest.’
