ROBERT TRUJILLO: OZZY OSBOURNE 'Deserves' To Be In ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME As Solo Artist

During an appearance on the April 24 episode of SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", Robert Trujillo, who had a seven-year tenure with Ozzy Osbourne before joining METALLICA in 2003, was asked about the recent announcement that the legendary heavy metal singer will be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame later this year as a solo artist in its 2024 class, marking his second entry into the organization following BLACK SABBATH's induction in 2006. Robert said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Ozzy is family. I love him. I wouldn't be where I am without him. If I think about it, even going back to INFECTIOUS GROOVES back in 1991, we were recording the first album, which is called 'The Plague That Makes Your Booty Move'. And Ozzy was recording 'No More Tears', and we were in the same studio complex [in North Hollywood]. It was called Devonshire Studios. So we were like a fraternity back then, hanging out in the same studio. Zakk [Wylde, then-Ozzy guitarist] was there, Mike Inez [then-Ozzy bassist] — we were all there. And he used to sneak away from his recording session and come and join us and hang out in the INFECTIOUS GROOVES room. And that's why you hear him on the [INFECTIOUS GROOVES] song 'Therapy' — that's how he ended up on 'Therapy'. And it was just so much fun back then. And there's some crazy stories that we won't get into now, but that kind of started it all back then. And then from that, I ended up being able to audition and join Ozzy's band and work with him for almost seven years. And still till this day, occasionally we do some stuff together. I co-wrote his last record, a few years [ago] — it was, like, three years [ago] now. And I know Ozzy really did help METALLICA too. And he's just always been there to help bands coming up and sort of help young artists grow into themselves into bigger bands. And he did that with KORN, and he's done that for so many people. So, God bless him, and congratulations to Ozzy. He deserves that."

During his time in Ozzy's band, Trujillo appeared on the "Down To Earth" and "Live At Budokan" albums, as well as the 2002 reissues of "Blizzard Of Ozz" and "Diary Of A Madman". The latter two were widely panned by Osbourne fans when Ozzy's wife and manager Sharon had Trujillo re-record original bassist Bob Daisley's parts after Daisley and drummer Lee Kerslake sued Ozzy and Sharon over royalties. They were restored for the 30th-anniversary editions.

Asked in a 2022 interview with Revolver how Ozzy has influenced his creative development, Robert said: "Well, I was fortunate to be able to work with Ozzy for many years, and, you know, Zakk and I played together in the '90s in Ozzy's band. I was always really inspired by the bass playing of Bob Daisley and the rhythm section. [Daisley played on and co-wrote 'Blizzard Of Ozz' and 'Diary Of A Madman' and continued to work with Ozzy until the early '90s.] Ozzy used to tell me, [affects an Ozzy accent] 'Rob, you know, I'm your best friend, man. I'm your best friend because I love the bass. I don't want you to turn it down. I want you to turn it up!' [Laughs] You know, singers never say that. [Laughs] I mean, the only other singer that's ever said that to me was Lady Gaga when we jammed with her with METALLICA — and James [Hetfield] kinda looked over and was like, What? [Laughs]"

Robert clarified: "James loves bass. He just doesn't want to hear the bass when he's trying to sing and have that kind of taking over his sonic bubble, you know. But yeah, so I was already in heaven [with Ozzy], because here is this singer saying, 'Play louder … I want to hear more.' But you know, I would have to definitely say that the style of bass playing on Ozzy's solo records is an important ingredient to the recipe. You hear songs like 'No More Tears', where it's a prominent melodic statement in the song, and even the powerful accents on songs like 'Crazy Train' or 'S.A.T.O.'

"So bass was very important to both bands: Ozzy solo and BLACK SABBATH. And for me as a bass player, you're a kid in a candy shop, you know what I mean? You can't go wrong. It's a very special place to be. A lot of times people say, 'Oh, it's about the guitar in Ozzy's bands.' But no, it's also about the bass … it's about everything. It's like a power trio with a great, incredibly soulful singer."

Asked what his favorite Ozzy album is, Robert said: "'Diary Of A Madman' … I love that song 'Diary Of A Madman'. To me, it's the classic Ozzy song. It's just got a balance of everything. I love what the rhythm section's doing on there and the counterpoint or sort-of pulse rhythms. The dynamic range of that song is really, really powerful."

Regarding the first time he met Ozzy, Trujillo said: "The first time? Well, oh God, let's see… That's a good question. The very first time I crossed paths with Ozzy was at the Concrete Convention. I believe it was in L.A., but they had different venues around town, and you'd have different gigs and Ozzy was playing one of the convention gigs. I remember crossing paths with him and meeting him there, but … I don't count it as the official meeting because it was so brief. I was in SUICIDAL TENDENCIES at the time, and we were going to see him play. Somehow, we were able to get backstage, maybe through management or something, and have a quick hello."

The 2024 Rock Hall induction ceremony will be held on October 19 at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio. It will air live on Disney+. An edited version will run on ABC at a later date, and will be available on Hulu the day after.

Artists are eligible to be inducted into the Rock Hall after at least 25 years have passed since their first record was released.

In 1999, Ozzy attempted to take BLACK SABBATH's name off the Hall Of Fame's nomination list that year, deeming the institution's nod "meaningless."

When BLACK SABBATH finally earned its induction in 2006, the band went in with LYNYRD SKYNYRD, Mike Davis and BLONDIE.

Legendary Ozzy guitarist Randy Rhoads was posthumously inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame during the 2021 ceremony. Rhoads, who played in Ozzy's band more than four decades ago, received the Musical Excellence Award at the October 2021 event.

Ozzy Osbourne photo credit: Ross Halfin