Pootz333

I think with younger generations some of that "bad ass shit" they'd have to be there to appreciate.  Like for example I was thinking back to TV shows I liked as a kid: Family Matters, Growing Pains, Step by Step, Charles in Charge, and America's Funniest Home Videos and all of these shows were like very family friendly and conservative.  While I still have a special place in my heart for those programs Madonna was like much much more raw than most mainstream things in the 80's to mid 90s.  That's why maybe it's a case of you had to be there to appreciate it.
 
 
Kind of like the initial VMA of Like A Virgin.  That performance wouldn't raise any eyebrows today but there was a reason her management thought her career was over after that.  As well as the nude pics scandal.  I think she even thought she was done.  

" I hate it! I'm too beautiful! Looks like a L’Oréal commercial!"
"I have a genius idea. Let's make Love Profusion an Estee Lauder ad!"

Madonna complaining about someone's ego...

 
 

Madonna complaining about someone's ego...

 
 

Madonna complaining about someone's ego...

 
 

Madonna complaining about someone's ego...

 
 

" I hate it! I'm too beautiful! Looks like a L’Oréal commercial!"
"I have a genius idea. Let's make Love Profusion an Estee Lauder ad!"

Madonna complaining about someone's ego...

 
 

Madonna complaining about someone's ego...

 
 

Madonna complaining about someone's ego...

 
 

Madonna complaining about someone's ego...

 
 

Madonna complaining about someone's ego...

 
 

Agreed with all of this. Her looks in the Hollywood video are some of her harshest too (I personally love them). And every interview was about how being rich and famous won't bring you happiness. Americans didn't want to hear it then or now. 

This has always been an unpopular opinion, but I never thought "Nothing Fails", "Love Profusion", or really any tracks from the album had big hit potential in the US. Controversy or no controversy, she was making music that was really different from anything charting at the time. It's forever wild to me that the same  Warner Bros. who didn't want "Impressive Instant" as a single, heard the AL album, saw the video and imagery and thought..."This is a great idea!". Had she released Hard Candy during '03, instead of AL, it would be considered one of her best.

It’s interesting seeing this thread now. I think it just shows how great this tour has been for her career. It’s been the return of Madonna for the fans.

Ok, it is all well and good, but why did her music suffer? If it is indeed the soundtrack to a show, and she expects people to go to the show so she can profit, then the music should still be top notch, what happened is the question... her shows and their musical direction have also suffered. 
Obviously there's still been brilliant things here and there, but there was a change, maybe she lost interest to some degree. 

Calm down dear you’ll give yourself a nosebleed ;-p

All of this!
Madonna does not work well without pressure and a need to prove herself, that's why she's trapped in this martyr facade saying that she's being censored and so on.
WB kept her more aware of the "outside world" and gave her the right fuel to thrive, it seems. Re-Invention/Confessions and Bedtime Stories/Something to Remember are good examples of this.
Waiting 4 years to follow up Hard Candy, which as not promoted at all, with another faceless album without promotion outside the Superbowl did nothing to her favor either, between those albums a lot happened in pop culture and she lost touch with a whole generation like never before, she was always on the radar before reminding the world of her capabilities. 

The post-2006 mega-stans seem to often use the argument that her divorce and Hard Candy-onwards was just Madonna returning to form, since her English Housewife era was the "restrained and unhappy" Madonna.
To those fans I'd like to ask -- If that's the case, let's say she didn't meet Guy Ritchie? Where would her career have gone? 
I've also noticed a substantial difference in how she used to perform -- She seems so much less confident nowadays. She used to absolutely nail the facial expressions, the confidence, and rhythm. Confessions is the type of show I would have predicted she'd still be able to put on nowadays. It was mostly posing, lots of walking, and the occasional dance break, much like Madame X today. The difference is that she's missing the production, the flow / storyline, innovative mixes, creative team, and overall "X Factor" that she once had on stage. I can't remember what other member it was here (or maybe another forum), but to the person who said "I still love her but no longer feel that same starstruck, larger than life feeling seeing her", I agree. There's something just....different about her as a star nowadays. Almost like the mystique is all gone. 
Part of what defined Madonna as this larger than life star is that she was untouchable and bold, even in the darkest of times. Maybe the divorce was what she felt was her first real "failure" in her life, causing her to stumble and lose that perfect image along the way that so much of the General Public / fans used to adore? Dare I say she became human to a lot of us?

Agreed with all of this. Her looks in the Hollywood video are some of her harshest too (I personally love them). And every interview was about how being rich and famous won't bring you happiness. Americans didn't want to hear it then or now. 

You Must Love Me
 
 

You Must Love Me
 
 

You Must Love Me
 
 

You must love me
The emotion in her recording of that song is astounding. She nailed it.
And while it’s not as much appreciated due to some flaws I think her Oscars performance of it was pretty good overall. Certainly, no one could watch that and say she cannot sing at all.

A lot but for example Youll see or the whole ROL album, I love her voice there.