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\n\tAlice Cooper<\/a> fondly remembered Ozzy Osbourne<\/a> as both \u201cthe prince of darkness\u201d and \u201cthe court jester\u201d following the death of the metal legend<\/a> yesterday, July 22.<\/p>\n \n\tIn a statement shared on Instagram<\/a>, Cooper heaped praise on the Black Sabbath<\/a> singer, writing: \u201cOver his long career, he earned immense respect among his peers and from fans around the world as an unmatched showman and cultural icon. I always saw Ozzy as a cross between the prince of darkness, which is the persona his fans saw, and the court jester. That was the side that his family and friends saw.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tCooper said Osbourne \u201cwas and will continue to be a rock n roll legend,\u201d and expressed his condolences to Osbourne\u2019s family. \u201cRock n Roll is a family and a fraternity,\u201d he wrote. \u201cWhen we lose one of our own it bleeds. I wish I would have gotten to know my brother Ozzy better\u2026 A titanic boulder has crashed, but rock will roll on.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tAs Cooper noted in his post, he learned of Osbourne\u2019s death just a couple of minutes before performing a show in Cardiff, Wales. He shared a short video of him and his band huddling up before taking the stage and dedicating the performance to Osbourne.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tCooper also recorded a short audio message for his \u201cAlice\u2019s Attic\u201d radio show, saying: \u201cWell, we all know that time is going to take us rockers, but when the giants fall, it\u2019s really hard to accept. Even though everybody saw it coming with Ozzy, it just took our breath away when it happened. So Ozzy and family \u2014 your records and your music and your legend and all that you brought \u2014 the humor to the rock business \u2014 will live on forever and we\u2019re gonna miss you man.\u201d<\/p>\n