Black Label Society’s Zakk Wylde revealed how Black Sabbath icon Ozzy Osbourne found his new name at the beginning of his career during his latest interview with Louder Sound.
Wylde started playing guitar at the age of eight and mainly focused on it in his teenage years, probably after realizing that music was his greatest passion. Then, he played with local bands, Stone Henge and Zyris. However, the highest success and popularity came when he started working with Ozzy Osbourne.
In 1987, Wylde became Osbourne’s lead guitarist replacing Jake E. Lee, and drew significant attention with his sounds and playing. He and Ozzy thought about changing his name, so Jeffrey Phillip Wielandt became Zakk Wylde, but Wylde suggested different options before that.
Wylde made a joke about taking famous Hollywood actress Farrah Fawcett’s name and then told Osbourne that he could use ‘Paper Asshole’ and ‘Shitbag McGee.’ However, the frontman didn’t like them, and he came up with one of the coolest names in the heavy metal scene, Zakk Wylde.
Wylde revealed the situation, saying:
“Well, originally, my name was Farrah Fawcett, but apparently, that one was taken. Ozzy said, ‘We’re gonna have to change your name.’ I figured we could go with ‘Paper Asshole’ or ‘Shitbag McGee,’ but Ozzy didn’t like that either. He was like, ‘We’ll call you Zakk Wylde,’ and I was like, ‘Hey, it works!’”
Wylde liked his new name and continued to use it even after leaving Osbourne’s band and founded his band, Black Label Society. He didn’t even consider changing it, which shows his admiration.
