Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne of Black Sabbath performs at Ozzfest 2016 at San Manuel Amphitheater on September 24, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. Getty

Black Sabbath – the band who gave birth to heavy metal – are performing their final ever concert on Saturday (4 February).

After five decades in the industry, the band are calling it quits in their hometown of Birmingham at the Genting Arena.

More from IBTimes UK

Ozzy Osbourne, the band's frontman, told the BBC he was overcome with emotions as they rehearsed for their final show.

"My emotions are flying all over the place," he said. "Since I've got to this building today, I've been happy, I've been tearful. Let's see what happens."

The farewell show will be additionally emotional as former keyboardist Geoff Nicholls died on 28 January following a lengthy battle with lung cancer.

The group formed 1968 under the moniker the Polka Tulk Blues Band by guitarist and songwriter Tony Iommi, bassist and lyricist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward, alongside Osbourne.

It then changed its name to Earth before finally settling on Black Sabbath in 1970. They became known for their chaotic nature, with members battling drug addiction and in-fighting a staple of their reputation.

Osbourne quit in 1977 and was replaced by Rainbow's Ronnie James Dio but came back into the fold in 1997 and has consistently performed with the group since.

Some of the band's classic songs include Paranoid, The Wizard and Iron Man. A number of the band's 19 albums have gone gold or platinum and have sold over 70 million records worldwide.

Rolling Stone magazine ranked Black Sabbath number 85 in their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time and they were inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005, followed by the American Rock and Roll Hall of Fame the year after.

Guitar legend Scott Ian, of Anthrax, spoke to the BBC of the band's influence for a tribute show which will be aired on 5 February.

"Black Sabbath mean everything to me," he said. "You could say that for me Black Sabbath are the bible and each one of their records is another book of the bible that they wrote – the bible of heavy metal."