OZZFEST JAPAN--the first major international music festival to ever travel to Japan--will return to Makuhari Messe arena (just outside of Tokyo) Saturday, November 21 and Sunday, November 22. The two-day festival will feature headlining performances from two OZZFEST veterans: festival namesake Ozzy Osbourne (who will perform as Ozzy & Friends) and Korn. Evanescence is the first additional act to be announced for a festival bill that will include more than 22 performers. OZZFEST JAPAN--a collaboration between Sharon Osbourne and Japanese promoter Hayashi International Promotion (H.I.P.)--debuted in May 2013 to sold-out crowds of 20,000 per day and wide critical acclaim.
Ozzy’s OZZFEST JAPAN performance is one of six shows the multi-platinum, three-time Grammy® winning singer and songwriter has scheduled this year. Korn’s appearance is a highlight of the band’s 20th anniversary celebration. Evanescence will both make their OZZFEST debut at OZZFEST JAPAN, in their only performance of 2015. The remaining acts on the OZZFEST JAPAN lineup will be revealed later this year. Organizers say fans can expect performances from a dynamic mix of international and domestic bands, all of which will reinforce OZZFEST JAPAN as the leader in the Japanese rock festival market.
Ozzy Osbourne has sold more than 120 million albums worldwide. Osbourne's career has spanned more than four decades (as both a successful solo artist and as the lead singer of Black Sabbath) and his music is as relevant today as ever, still being heard daily on TV, in movies, on radio and at stadium sports events. This year will mark 20 years since Osbourne created his name-sake hard-rock/metal touring festival, OZZFEST, which had a hugely successful 14 year run across North America and the U.K.
Korn built an immortal bond in 1993 the first time Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Brian "Head" Welch decided to make music as a unit. They shed blood, sweat, and tears in the studio and on stage, fashioning an undeniable and unique sound that would permanently alter the course of rock music. After six seminal releases, two Grammy Awards, countless sold out shows, and selling 35 million albums worldwide, Head left the group in 2004 to face the demons of addiction. Korn soldiered on, adding drummer Ray Luzier in 2007 and releasing four more full-length releases. In 2012, a triumphant and tear-filled reunion happened on stage as the group headlined the Carolina Rebellion Festival with Head reprising his legendary part on "Blind.” The initial bond came back into focus, and it was time for their eleventh studio album The Paradigm Shift, which seamlessly melds the group's ever-present spirit of innovation with their signature metallic catharsis, paving the way for the future yet again.
In their more than 35-year history in Japan, promoter H.I.P. has worked with international superstars including AC/DC, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Taylor Swift, Guns N' Roses, as well as Japanese powerhouse newcomers Momoiro Clover Z and internationally celebrated band One Ok Rock. Most recently, H.I.P. partnered with Slipknot to launch their acclaimed music festival, Knotfest, in Japan, which drew sold out crowds each day.
OZZFEST JAPAN 2015 ticket prices are as follows: single-day general admission tickets are ¥15,000; single-day general admission tickets including a commemorative shirt are ¥18,000; weekend passes are ¥29,000; weekend passes including a commemorative t-shirt are ¥32,000. All prices include consumption tax, box office commission and ticket printing fees. The latest news on OZZFEST JAPAN can be found at www.ozzfestjapan.com.
About OZZFEST:
Beginning in 1996, OZZFEST established itself as a virtual breeding ground for rising bands. It was cited as “one of rock’s biggest juggernauts” in the cover feature of Sunday's New York Times' “Arts & Leisure” section (6/25/06). The festival has been instrumental in igniting the careers of platinum-selling artists like System of a Down, Disturbed, Linkin Park, Incubus, Slipknot, Queens of the Stone Age, Godsmack, Avenged Sevenfold and Lamb of God, among others. Other OZZFEST alumni--comprised of some of the top rock acts in the world--include Metallica, Foo Fighters, Motley Crue, Tool, Judas Priest, Pantera, Slash, Megadeth, Slayer and Iron Maiden. Beyond the inaugural OZZFEST JAPAN in 2013, other international stops for the acclaimed touring festival include the U.K. in 1998 and 2005. In 2010, OZZFEST returned to the U.K. and debuted in Israel; the 2010 performances followed an August cross-country run of shows in the U.S.
