What Andrea Gibson and Ozzy Osbourne gave us

artists and their impact (and where I fit in)

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Within a week of each other, two artists who mean something to me passed away: Ozzy Osbourne and

Andrea Gibson

.

You couldn’t picture two different people. The arguable godfather of heavy metal music to the Poet Laureate of Colorado. A British rocker to an American writer. Reality TV show star to the winner of a World Poetry Slam.

But as all humans do, they had their similarities.

Both were artists in their chosen medium and shared their art unashamedly and authentically. After their passings, both inspired torrential outpourings of love and appreciation. (The communities these two people impacted!) Both battled chronic illness.

Ozzy’s Final Curtain

At the age of 76, Ozzy performed his final concert less than three weeks before he passed. Before his death, he had been managing health issues, including Parkinson’s disease.

“With tears in his makeup-shadowed eyes, Osbourne, the ailing and retiring frontman for Black Sabbath, raged against the twilight of the metal gods.”¹

The “Back to the Beginning” show was also a charity concert, which raised approximately $190 million, making it the highest-grossing charity concert ever², with proceeds benefiting Birmingham Children’s Hospital, Cure Parkinson’s, and Acorn Children’s Hospice.

Andrea’s Last Line

Before their ovarian cancer diagnosis at age 47, Andrea Gibson dealt with chronic Lyme disease.³ They shared openly and resolutely about the resiliency of people living with invisible illness.

“Much of the reason I decided to be public about my cancer diagnosis is because of how much hiding I did around my health in the past. ‘Shame can’t live in the light,’ my therapist says, and I want no part of the darkness. Nothing has ever left me feeling more fragile, afraid, and disempowered than my own hiding.”

This was a regular theme in Andrea’s writing as well, refusing to hide in the comfortable. There was no room for anything but self-love, compassion for others, and the continual exploration of how those values co-exist so beautifully. They were a forever activist for LGBTQ rights and mental health awareness.

The Impact of Artists

Both had platforms, and both had histories. The character arcs, from Ozzy’s concert with a bat and Andrea’s job on The Night Shift at an at-risk-youth home for girls.

Regardless of either’s level of fame, each had built up a global community of people who had a profound reaction to their deaths. It makes me wonder, why?

What was it about these two people that thousands (maybe millions) of people felt compelled to write heartfelt poems, social posts, Substack essays, and more to convey what this person, whom they most likely never met in person, meant to them?

In the simplest of terms, it was their art. They shared their art, their words, as unapologetically as anyone could. By sharing their words and their lives, they helped others feel understood. They were relatable to the human experience. They wrote and spoke to the ache of living.

“I'm going through changes…”

You could argue that Ozzy Osbourne was more famous than Andrea Gibson. And it goes without saying, both of them are wildly more famous than I.

And yet, it makes me wonder about the impact I have on my own smaller community. I mean, damn, isn’t that the whole point?

When I write a poem or spout off a joke, it’s impossible to ever know the full impact, regardless of what the algorithm might claim. With my list of 170-odd people who have subscribed to receive these essays, or my handful of friends and family who like my poems I share on Instagram, each time I’m making an impact. Could be small, could be less small, but there’s an impact all the same.

I probably won’t ever sell out a stadium or win a World Poetry Slam, but I can still write and share my words with the belief that they’re helping someone, in some way.

Even if that person is just me.

Thank you to artists everywhere who choose to share their words and their art. You’ll never know your full impact.

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Hi! I’m Jordan, and Shade Cactus is where being a homebody and always planning your next travel adventure come to meet. It’s a travel blog / poetry newsletter / attempt to understand my inner world a bit better each day.

Subscribers can expect weekly-ish newsletters from me (and my forever undying gratitude!)

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1. https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/music/ozzy-osbournes-last-stand-rcna210881

2. https://www.billboard.com/lists/highest-grossing-charity-concerts-list-ozzy-black-sabbath/

3. Illness and the Myth of Strength