Sharon Osbourne, widow and manager of the late Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath, has issued a new statement in her ongoing dispute with Jim Simpson. Simpson briefly managed the band during their Earth era and early transition into Black Sabbath, and has been attempting to release a previously shelved demo recorded before the group’s rise to fame.
The situation recently resurfaced publicly after Sharon and her children, Jack and Kelly, addressed the dispute on the ‘The Osbournes Podcast’ earlier this week. During that episode, the family urged fans to avoid the planned release and questioned both Simpson’s legal ownership and intentions behind issuing the recordings without the band’s consent.
Simpson later issued his own press response, rejecting Sharon’s claims and challenging her recollection of their prior communications. Their earlier statements on the matter can be read in a previous report on the site.
With Simpson having addressed the matter first in the press, Sharon has now followed up on social media today, November 15th, sharing the following statement:
“In response to Jim Simpson’s press release of 14 November 2025, I am enclosing his original email to Tony Iommi and my subsequent emails to Mr. Simpson. As you can see, my emails to Mr. Simpson were not threatening. I was clearly stating the facts about Black Sabbath’s legal position.
Regarding his claim that Big Bear Records is the ‘longest-running independent record label in the UK,’ this is a false claim… Big Bear is not even a Limited company and does not file open accounts in public.”
(Quote continues — full version included below in the gallery.)
Sharon further contested Trapeze Music’s credibility — the distributor Simpson intends to partner with — citing financial issues, disputed copyright claims, and accusing both parties of refusing to allow Black Sabbath to hear the recordings in question:
“We would never have allowed any BLACK SABBATH product to be released through Big Bear Records or Trapeze Music… Their integrity is dubious.”
She concluded by denying Simpson’s claim that she declined a friendly in-person meeting:
“I was at Villa Park at soundcheck all day… while Mr. Simpson was doing a Q&A about his time managing Black Sabbath for personal commercial gain.”
Sharon closed her new statement by sharing several email exchanges tied to the dispute, which can be seen in the gallery below.
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