1. Ozzfest

In 1996, Lollapalooza passed on having Ozzy Osbourne join the then-touring festival. Pissed off, Sharon sought out to create her own metal touring trek. And for the next eleven years, Ozzfest became the  biggest metal tour of the summer, featuring the biggest names in metal and helping break future stars. But like all good things, Ozzfest ran its course. The first nail in the coffin arguably came when they made the 2007 edition free to the public (which in theory sounded good but led to problems with ticket distribution and a less than stellar lineup). This lead to Ozzfest turning into a destination festival in 2008 in favor of a full blown tour (on the plus side, it was able to get Metallica as a headliner). Then, after a one year absence, Ozzfest returned in 2010 with co-headliners Motley Crue. However, the tour wasn’t exactly a success, partly because the tour was only six dates (four of which were in the Northeast) and yet another less than stellar lineup. While some were hopeful that this year’s Japanese version would mark Ozzfest’s return on a larger scale, the tour remains to be as good as dead.

Zach Shaw

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