The 2025 MTV Video Music Awards will dedicate a major portion of Sunday night’s show to honoring the late Ozzy Osbourne, assembling an unlikely but high-powered lineup of artists to celebrate the metal icon’s legacy. Yungblud will join Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler, guitarist Joe Perry, and virtuoso Nuno Bettencourt for a live medley of Osbourne classics at New York’s UBS Arena.

The tribute comes just six weeks after Osbourne’s death on July 22, which marked the end of one of heavy metal’s most recognizable voices. MTV, a network deeply entwined with his career both musically and culturally, is positioning the tribute as one of the highlights of its annual awards ceremony.

Ozzy Osbourne was not just a pioneer in metal but also one of MTV’s earliest and most reliable presences. Videos for singles like Bark at the Moon during the network’s formative years helped establish the channel as a hub for hard rock and heavy metal. In the 1990s, he continued to dominate rotation with dramatic visuals for No More Tears and Mama, I’m Coming Home, bringing heavy riffs into mainstream households.

But his most unexpected cultural imprint on MTV arrived in 2002 with The Osbournes. The reality series, which aired four seasons and more than 50 episodes, documented life inside the chaotic Osbourne household. The Emmy-winning show made Ozzy and his family, wife Sharon, daughter Kelly, and son Jack, household names beyond the music world. It also paved the way for the next generation of celebrity-driven reality programs, influencing formats later adopted by the Kardashian empire and countless imitators.

This weekend’s tribute lineup draws heavily from the musicians who were present for Osbourne’s farewell concert, Back to the Beginning, staged in Birmingham earlier this summer. That event, now remembered as his final official performance before his death, featured a rotating roster curated by Tom Morello. Yungblud delivered a heartfelt rendition of Black Sabbath’s Changes, showcasing his admiration for Osbourne’s softer side. Bettencourt, best known for his work with Extreme and as a frequent touring guitarist with pop and rock acts, anchored the backing band.

The performance also offers fans something they haven’t seen in years: Tyler and Perry sharing a stage together. Aerosmith’s long-promised farewell tour was halted in 2023 after Tyler sustained vocal injuries, leaving fans uncertain if the group would ever return in full. The band briefly reunited earlier this year for a benefit concert supporting California wildfire relief efforts, but the VMAs appearance will be their most visible performance together since the tour’s cancellation.

For Perry and Tyler, the VMAs tribute is not just about honoring a peer, but also about reconnecting in front of an international audience. Given the uncertainty surrounding Aerosmith’s future, their presence adds another layer of historical significance to the night.

While the Osbourne tribute is expected to be one of the emotional high points, the 2025 VMAs lineup is stacked with performances from across pop, hip-hop, and rock. Confirmed acts include Sabrina Carpenter, Lady Gaga, Tate McRae, Alex Warren, Doja Cat, Jelly Roll, and J Balvin. MTV is billing the event as a blend of remembrance and spectacle, with Osbourne’s medley providing the connective tissue between its musical past and present.

The VMAs have long used their platform to stage high-profile tributes, from Michael Jackson to Whitney Houston, and this year’s installment ensures that Ozzy Osbourne’s influence on both MTV and the wider music world will be formally recognized. For fans of metal, the tribute stands as both a celebration of his career and a reminder of the outsized cultural impact he left behind.