groovyguy

Like A Tennis Pro

by Peter Cunningham in 1982 for her first publicity shots for Sire Records.

Overview
·         Ray of Light was named Madonna’s ‘comeback record’ by critics
·         The recording took place over four months 
·         Madonna’s first real promotional appearance was at Roxy in NY. She opened her set after midnight with Sky Fits Heaven, Ray of Light and Shanti. According to the people attending the cheers were so loud that Madonna couldn’t be heard
·         Madonna was the big winner at the VMA’s, taking home a total of six! She performed Shanti and Ray of Light live
·         Madonna’s first European performance of Frozen was at the National Lottery Draw in the UK
·         She was a guest at Wetten Dass, after singing Frozen she was interviewed on the couch by Thomas
·         She continued her Ray of Light promo tour promoting new singles Drowned World and Power of Goodbye
·         Madonna performed Power of Goodbye at TOTP in London
·         At the European MTV Awards in Milan she sang Power of Goodbye and won 2 awards
·         She opened the Grammy Awards singing Nothing Really Matters and took home three wins
·         In Holland the Surprise Show also promoted The Power Of Good-bye. They traveled to Austria for the Wetten Dass show where Madonna was scheduled to perform. A Dutch fan calling herself The Dutch Madonna got to meet Madonna backstage
·         Ray Of Light was a massive success worldwide and named her ‘comeback’ album
·         Madonna was a guest at Oprah Winfrey’s show again, this time she performed Little Star and Ray Of Light. She also sat down for an interview with Oprah
·         Little Star was only ever released as a promotional CD Single in the U.K.
·         Madonna mostly worked on this record with William Orbit, getting her to change her musical direction for this record
·         SKIN’s original title was ‘Flirtation Dance’ as seen in the MTV Special ‘Ultrasound’
·         Madonna recorded a special with Rupert Everett called ‘Madonna Rising’ where they got to visit her old neighborhood in NYC
·         The song ‘Has To Be’ was added as a bonus to the Japanese version of Ray Of Light and later as a B-side to ‘Ray Of Light’
·         Unreleased track ‘Liquid Love’ later surfaced
·         There is an early version of the ‘Ray Of Light’ video with different footage before Madonna was added to it
 
Background
Following the release of her compilation album Something to Remember (1995), Madonna started taking vocal lessons in preparation for her role in Evita (1996). She also gave birth to her daughter, Lourdes in the same year. These events inspired a period of introspection. "That was a big catalyst for me. It took me on a search for answers to questions I'd never asked myself before," she said to Q magazine, in 2002. During the same period, she embraced Kabbalah and started studying Hinduism and yoga, all of which helped her "step outside [myself] and see the world from a different perspective. Madonna felt that there was a "whole piece" of her voice left unused, which she decided to utilize for the album. By May 1997, Madonna had started writing songs for the album. She began collaborating with Babyface, who had first worked with her on her previous album Bedtime Stories (1994). The two wrote a couple of songs together before Madonna decided the collaborations were not going in the musical direction she wanted for the album. According to Babyface, the songs "had a 'Take a Bow-ish' kind of vibe, and Madonna didn't want, or need, to repeat herself."
After abandoning the songs she had written with Babyface, Madonna turned to musician Rick Nowels. The collaboration produced seven songs in nine days, but those songs also did not display the album's future electronic musical direction. Three of the songs, "The Power of Good-Bye", "To Have and Not to Hold" and "Little Star", appear on the album. Madonna then began writing songs with Leonard, who had produced many songs for Madonna in the late 1980s. Unlike her previous albums, Leonard's song writing collaborations were accompanied by very little studio input. Madonna believed that Leonard's production "would have lent the songs more of a Peter Gabriel vibe", a sound that she did not want for the album. Guy Oseary, chairman of Maverick Records, then phoned British electronic musician William Orbit, and suggested that he send some songs to Madonna. Orbit sent a 13-track digital audio tape to Madonna. "I was a huge fan of William's earlier records, Strange Cargo 1 and 2 and all that. I also loved all the remixes he did for me and I was interested in fusing a kind of futuristic sound but also using lots of Indian and Moroccan influences and things like that, and I wanted it to sound old and new at the same time," Madonna said.

Other Timelines:
The Pre- Madonna Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/11688-the-pre-madonna-era/?p=542015
The First Album Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/11796-the-madonna-first-album-era/?p=547412
The Like a Virgin Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12035-the-like-a-virgin-era/?p=557045
The True Blue Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12055-the-true-blue-era/?p=557777
The Who’s That Girl/You Can Dance Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12085-the-whos-that-girlyou-can-dance-era/?p=558619
The Like a Prayer Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12134-the-like-a-prayer-era/?p=560321
The Immaculate Breathless Blond Ambition Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12230-the-immaculate-breathless-blond-ambition-era/?p=562946
The Erotic Body of Girlie Sex Show Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12452-the-erotic-body-of-girlie-sex-show-era/?p=570519
The Let’s Get Unconscious Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14849-the-lets-get-unconscious-era/
The You Must Remember to Love Her Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14891-the-you-must-remember-to-love-her-era/
 
Sources: 
http://madonna-mdolla.blogspot.com/2008/08/madonna-1997.html
http://madonna-mdolla.blogspot.com/2008/08/madonna-1998.html
http://madonna-mdolla.blogspot.com/2008/08/madonna-1999.html
todayinmadonnahistory.com
allaboutmadonna.com
Genesis Timeline by Nightshade [mostly on 1997 timeline]
todayinmadonnahistory.com
http://madonnaunderground.com
FROM GENESIS TO REVELATIONS by Bruce Baron
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_of_Light
 
Overview / Background: http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14900-the-quicker-than-ray-of-light-era/&do=findComment&comment=653632
Legacy: http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14900-the-quicker-than-ray-of-light-era/&do=findComment&comment=653633
 
Timeline:
1997 http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14900-the-quicker-than-ray-of-light-era/&do=findComment&comment=653634
Jan- March 1998  http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14900-the-quicker-than-ray-of-light-era/&do=findComment&comment=653635
Apr- June 1998 http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14900-the-quicker-than-ray-of-light-era/&do=findComment&comment=653637
July- Sept 1998 http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14900-the-quicker-than-ray-of-light-era/&do=findComment&comment=653638
Oct-Dec 1998 http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14900-the-quicker-than-ray-of-light-era/&do=findComment&comment=653639
Jan-June 1999 http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14900-the-quicker-than-ray-of-light-era/&do=findComment&comment=653641
July-Dec 1999 http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14900-the-quicker-than-ray-of-light-era/&do=findComment&comment=653642
Unreleased: http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14900-the-quicker-than-ray-of-light-era/&do=findComment&comment=653643
ROL Press:   http://madonnaunderground.com/madonna-live/album-promo/ray-of-light-promo-tour/
 
ROL Memorabilia:  http://madonnaunderground.com/madonna-live/album-promo/ray-of-light-promo-tour/

Pro Shot  by Lehren [no songs]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_e2hlye-8g
 
D/L Link:

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2004:
January 2004
On January 7 2004, Rolling Stone magazine reviewed Madonna’s Remixed & Revisited EP:
Instead of the twenty-year retrospective originally planned for the holiday season, Madonna fans get a measly half-hour of mishmash marginalia. Of the four remixes from American Life, only one clicks: Headcleanr’s rock mix of Love Profusion, which replaces Mirwais’ electrofolk with Strokes-like guitars and drums that flatter an overlooked but fantastic song. The live medley of Like a Virgin and Hollywood, with Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, falls flat without the infamous kisses, and the Gap commercial with Missy Elliott just sounds cheap and nasty. Your Honesty, an outtake from 1994’s Bedtime Stories, recalls the post-disco funkiness of Madonna’s 1983 debut. Bet it would’ve worked better in a box set. – Barry Walters
On January 24 2004, Madonna received the NRJ Award of Honor during the NRJ awards ceremony in Cannes, France. Madonna accepted the award from Britney Spears and thanked her French fans for two decades of support.
“My ambition may be American, and I may have married a Brit, but my heart belongs to France.”
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https://todayinmadonnahistory.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/madonna-nrj-awards-2004-21.jpg
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January 27: From an interview in the Belgian magazine, HUMO, with Joe Henry:
HUMO: Did she ask you for more songs, afterwards?
Henry: Well, right now we're writing some songs for a musical. It's about the era of the 'silent movie'. I learned not to harbour any expectations and just seize every interesting opportunity. You know, I've noticed that many journalists think I resent “Don’t Tell Me,” but what can be more beautiful for a songwriter than having one of your songs covered? And when they still ring true in a completely different version... . I can't think of a bigger compliment.
On January 30 2004, Madonna’s Official Fan Club (ICON) and Madonna.com published a fan club exclusive photo book titled, Nobody Knows Me. The 52-page soft cover photo book featured previously unreleased photos (spanning her career).
Here’s what Liz Rosenberg had to say when asked to comment on a highlight she witnessed in Madonna’s career:
“Highlights? There’s just too many.
It’s a highlight for me just to dance around the living room to Deeper and Deeper. And also when we played Vogue at a club for the first time.
The list goes on and on and I’m thrilled to have had a front row seat to most of it.”
 
February 2004
On February 7 2004, Nothing Fails lived up to its title when it hit #1 on Billboard’s Hot Dance/Club Play chart in the U.S.
Despite being largely ignored by radio programmers, the single nevertheless received strong support from club DJ’s.
The Nothing Fails maxi-single, which also included remixes of Nobody Knows Me, had previously reached the top of the Hot Dance Singles Sales chart in December 2003 before being overtaken by the Britney Spears/Madonna collaboration, Me Against The Music.
Nobody Knows Me reached a separate peak of #4 on the Hot Dance/Club Play chart in 2003 after it was serviced to DJ’s as a promotional single.
https://todayinmadonnahistory.files.wordpress.com/2019/02/bb-nothing-fails-club-feb-7-2004.png?w=550&h=999
https://todayinmadonnahistory.files.wordpress.com/2019/02/bb-nothing-fails-dance-sales-feb-7-2004.png?w=550
February 19: The first preliminary setlist of Madonna's upcoming Re-Invention Tour is leaked and it includes a track called "The Devil Wouldn't Recognize You," a track from the musical she has been working on the past year.
Later:
Mike McKnight (sound engineer for Madonna) tells Drownedmadonna.com in a 2005 interview that "The Devil Wouldn't Recognize You" was on the Reinvention setlist to be performed but was pulled and never done in the actual show. He says that Madonna did the track with Mirwais and does not mention Joe Henry, which suggests Madonna may have taken the track she wrote with Henry to Mirwais who would do his own music and production for it. The song is replaced by a ballad version of "Deeper and Deeper" in the live show.
 
April 2004
April 8: Madonna will release a studio album during 2005, and she has already begun to work on it. She is reportedly collaborating with Joe Henry and Pat Leonard – although some reports suggest their involvement was only with a soundtrack she was developing, and that project was shelved 6 months ago. One thing is certain, however - Mirwaïs' role on this new album will be very limited. Also, she might bring in two other producers that also worked on the American Life album – possibly Guy Sigsworth and Stuart Price.
April 11: She has reportedly done one song with Mirwaïs but it isn’t known yet if that song will appear on an upcoming compilation of remixes for American Life or if she’ll save it for her new album in 2005. The song was recorded last week. She continues to field new collaberators for the new album.
 
May 2004
May 11: Headcleanr (a.k.a. Ray Carroll) from the Sire electronic-duo The Waterlillies is one of the new producers she may be collaberating with and also Thomas Bangalter (Daft Punk) is rumored to be helping out. Very little has been done so far as Madonna is still writing and plans to do so through out her upcoming tour. The new studio album won’t likely be released until late 2005.
May 27: Guy Chambers, one of the U.K.'s most prolific & talented writer and producers, is most famous for working with artists such as Robbie Williams, Mel C and Kylie Minogue. In an interview on UK TV show London Tonight at the Ivor Novello Awards, he was asked who he wanted to work with next. He replied "Madonna" with a smile on his face - he then quietly said "In fact, I am going to meet with her management in the US in August."
May 30: DJ and remixer Peter Rauhofer says in an interview that Madonna’s next album will likely be a soundtrack to a movie she’s starring in – Hello Suckers! He said the material was done with Patrick Leonard and the style reminds him of a “broadway musical.”
June 2004
June 8: Madonna has landed a new film role - playing a gunslinging 1920’s cowgirl for whom she’s a dead ringer. The singer will play silent movie star Texas Guinan in MARTIN SCORSESE’s big-screen musical Hello Suckers! The tale is based on the life of legendary bareback horserider Guinan - who appeared in Hollywood Westerns. Texas-born blonde Guinan also became a rebel nightclub host who openly flouted anti-booze Prohibition laws and kick-started her stage shows with the hellraising catchphrase “Hello Sucker!” The film is Madge’s chance to get even with critics who slated her parts in Eighties films Shanghai Surprise and Desperately Seeking Susan then 2002’s Swept Away, directed by hubby GUY RITCHIE. Madge will co-produce it with Goodfellas director Scorsese and also write the music. It will be shot next year and the soundtrack will be the Material Girl’s next album, with the first single a cover of 1920s hit “There’ll Be Some Changes Made.” The movie will be directed by Jonas Akerlund who masterminded Madge’s anti-war video for her hit “American Life.” Madonna idolises feisty Guinan - star of The Hellcat, The She Wolf, The Gun Woman and Little Miss Deputy - and will love stepping into her stirrups. An industry insider said: "This project is really personal for Madonna as she worships Guinan. Critical acclaim in movies is also the one thing that has eluded her but this is a special film with big names involved. "Madonna has already recorded an album’s worth of songs for it and is determined to make it work." The film arm of her production company Maverick bought the rights to the film in 2001 and planned a stage show but later hit on the movie idea. Madge has been laying down tracks for it since last year. COURTNEY LOVE was cast as Guinan and even wrote some songs but has been axed over her recent drug troubles.
June 9: According to an industry insider, Madonna will work on her new album in 2005 but it is currently too early to consider who will produce with her. If Madonna leaves WB due to her current legal battle over Maverick Records, there is expected to be a number of remix albums and compilations flooding the market before she even gets a new album out on another label. Reportedly, Madonna has already stated that she is done with WB however, they are still hoping to get more out of her. Madonna has met with Quentin Tarantino recently regarding “a musical” but so far, their talks have just been discussion about the project. Madonna apparently has no plans to start any major projects until her contract dispute with WB is resolved.
June 16-24: LATER: Madonna writes a song called “I Love New York” while doing sound checks for her Re-Invention tour at Madison Square Garden in NYC after receiving a police escort to MSG. She just started playing a riff at sound check and that is how it came about.
LATER:
Price says in an interview with British magazine The Word
(June 2008): We were at Madison Square Garden in the middle of the 2004 Re-Invention tour, and it had got to that point where everyone was just completely bored. Touring with Madonna is like taking everything you've learned from the age of 14 about playing small pubs and clubs in bands and chucking it all out of the window. It's more like Cirque Du Soleil than the Pheasant & Firkin, put it that way. Essentially, the show has so many moving parts that if you go out on a limb you might end up losing a limb.
Madonna can be quite spontaneous, but she's not spontaneous when it comes to doing a show in front of 20,000 people! Similarly, the soundcheck is often quite a choreographed affair, but this time she just started messing around. She started playing this very basic, two-chord riff on the guitar and making up these lyrics about how she loved New York. It was just a real fun, mess-around song. Later I went into her dressing room with a guitar and a portable multi-track and said, "We're just going to stick something down for a reference", so we had a rough sketch of the song.

Rebel Heart Tour Mexico January, 6 - Pro Shot

 
 
Video D/L Link
Rebel Heart Tour Mexico January, 6 - Pro Shot Length 1:09].mp4

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The link is added to the list @ http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/5039-dl-rht-special-performanceshouston-rebel-rebel-bowie-tributesan-antoniofrozenubmexicogtlapubglasgow-gtbirminghamlapub/?p=214006

The Pre- Madonna Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/11688-the-pre-madonna-era/?p=542015
The First Album Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/11796-the-madonna-first-album-era/?p=547412
The Like a Virgin Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12035-the-like-a-virgin-era/?p=557045
The True Blue Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12055-the-true-blue-era/?p=557777
The Who’s That Girl/You Can Dance Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12085-the-whos-that-girlyou-can-dance-era/?p=558619
The Like a Prayer Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12134-the-like-a-prayer-era/?p=560321
The Immaculate Breathless Blond Ambition Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12230-the-immaculate-breathless-blond-ambition-era/?p=562946
The Erotic Body of Girlie Sex Show Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/12452-the-erotic-body-of-girlie-sex-show-era/?p=570519
The Let’s Get Unconscious Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14849-the-lets-get-unconscious-era/
The You Must Remember to Love Her Era http://www.madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14891-the-you-must-remember-to-love-her-era/
The Quicker Than Ray of Light Era https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/14900-the-quicker-than-ray-of-light-era/
The Impressive Drowned World Music Era https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/15957-the-impressive-drowned-world-music-era/
The American Life Era https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/17689-the-american-life-era/
 
Legacy:  https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773775
Timeline:
 
·         2003 https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773776
·         January 2004 – June 2004 https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773777
 
·         July 2004 – December 2004 https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773778
 
·         January 2005 – March 2005 https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773779
 
·         April 2005 – June 2005 https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773780
 
·         July 2005 – September 2005 https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773781
 
·         October 2005 – December 2005 https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773782
 
·         January 2006 – April 2006 https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773784
 
·         May 2006 – August 2006 https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773786
 
·       September 2006 – December 2006 https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773787
 
Unreleased: https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773773
COADF Newspaper:  https://madonnaunderground.com/madonna-live/album-promo/confessions-on-a-dance-floor-promo-tour/
COADF Memorabilia:  https://madonnaunderground.com/madonna-live/album-promo/confessions-on-a-dance-floor-promo-tour/
COADF Pictures:   http://madonnaunderground.com/madonna-live/album-promo/you-can-dance-promo-tour/
Videos: https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773774
Sources:  https://madonna-infinity.net/forums/index.php?/topic/19407-the-confessions-era/&do=findComment&comment=773772
 
 
Overview
·         In New York she made a surprise appearance in a nightclub where tracks of the new album were played. She got up to the stage and danced, invited two fans to dance with her
·         Madonna started her European promotional tour officially in Lisbon during the MTV Awards. Hung Up was performed live and she emerged from a giant disco ball.
·         The promo tour traveled to London where Madonna was a guest at Parkinson and performed Get Together (for the very first time) and Hung Up plus an interview. Here she sang a bit of ‘Tell The Truth’ the first song she ever wrote
·         On November 5 Madonna was a guest at Wetten Dass in Mannheim Germany. Tickets were not available and only if you were on a guest list or purchased beforehand. Madonna repeated the same choreography as performed at the MTV Awards. After the routine she spoke with Thomas Gottschalk
·         Madonna officially released COADF on November 15 in KOKO in London. Fans only were allowed in if they had won tickets through competitions, were on the guestlist or had queued outside. The tiny venue only held a small amount of people so these were hot tickets. Fans got their exclusive ticket and wristband at 11am and had to write down their names and addresses. Fans were then told by Madonna’s manager Guy Oseary that Madonna had personally invited all 200 of them to attend the exclusive premiere of IGTTYAS later that month
·         The performance at KOKO was broadcast live on the web, Madonna performed Hung Up, Get Together, I Love New York, Let It Will Be (Paper faces remix) and Everybody. The show was absolutely amazing and made several headlines the next day
·         Madonna also performed at Star Academy in France, singing Get Together and Hung Up
·         On November 18 she was a guest at Children In Need at the BBC Studio’s in London. Of the many acts she was the very first to perform. Madonna could only stay for 20 minutes, so she first performed Get Together followed by Hung Up and a short chat. There were only fund raisers and children in the audience. Tickets were not for sale.
·         November 19 marked the date of a historic Madonna performance at G-A-Y. Fans either got tickets through the manager by answering questions or were in the queue since early that morning. Each wristband was 20GBP. Her gig started late that night and in a mind blowing hot pink outfit she performed one of her greatest promotional gigs ever. It was the same setlist as at KOKO but she added a bit of ‘JUMP’ to the end
·         Madonna and Guy kept their promise and invited all 200 fans who had waited at KOKO to the premiere of IGTTYAS at the Chelsea Cinema in London
·         Madonna continued her promo tour all the way to Japan
·         The album was a worldwide smash hitting the number one spot everywhere
·         ‘Hung Up’ was Madonna’s biggest hit in Holland to date, spending seven weeks at the top spot
·         In Holland it was Peter v/d Vorst who traveled to London to interview Madonna for the show ‘Pulse’. Yours truly attended the live taping of this show and were interviewed on Madonna
·         After Hung Up, Sorry, Get Together and Jump were released as singles. Warner Bros. Records early on had rooted for ‘Push’ to be a single
·         The album was premiered in music store FAME in Holland the night before with a giant fan party and an early sale
·         The album was a collaboration between Madonna and Stuart Price
·         For ‘Hung Up’ they requested personally to use the ‘Gimme Gimme Gimme’ ABBA sample and were approved, despite M calling ABBA ‘boring’ a few years prior

Bad Girl (Unseen Shot)

Pro Shot  by Lehren [no songs]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_e2hlye-8g
 
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Full Melbourne RHT 3.12.2016.mp4 323 MB
Length 2:21:15

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Overview
·         Ray of Light was named Madonna’s ‘comeback record’ by critics
·         The recording took place over four months 
·         Madonna’s first real promotional appearance was at Roxy in NY. She opened her set after midnight with Sky Fits Heaven, Ray of Light and Shanti. According to the people attending the cheers were so loud that Madonna couldn’t be heard
·         Madonna was the big winner at the VMA’s, taking home a total of six! She performed Shanti and Ray of Light live
·         Madonna’s first European performance of Frozen was at the National Lottery Draw in the UK
·         She was a guest at Wetten Dass, after singing Frozen she was interviewed on the couch by Thomas
·         She continued her Ray of Light promo tour promoting new singles Drowned World and Power of Goodbye
·         Madonna performed Power of Goodbye at TOTP in London
·         At the European MTV Awards in Milan she sang Power of Goodbye and won 2 awards
·         She opened the Grammy Awards singing Nothing Really Matters and took home three wins
·         In Holland the Surprise Show also promoted The Power Of Good-bye. They traveled to Austria for the Wetten Dass show where Madonna was scheduled to perform. A Dutch fan calling herself The Dutch Madonna got to meet Madonna backstage
·         Ray Of Light was a massive success worldwide and named her ‘comeback’ album
·         Madonna was a guest at Oprah Winfrey’s show again, this time she performed Little Star and Ray Of Light. She also sat down for an interview with Oprah
·         Little Star was only ever released as a promotional CD Single in the U.K.
·         Madonna mostly worked on this record with William Orbit, getting her to change her musical direction for this record
·         SKIN’s original title was ‘Flirtation Dance’ as seen in the MTV Special ‘Ultrasound’
·         Madonna recorded a special with Rupert Everett called ‘Madonna Rising’ where they got to visit her old neighborhood in NYC
·         The song ‘Has To Be’ was added as a bonus to the Japanese version of Ray Of Light and later as a B-side to ‘Ray Of Light’
·         Unreleased track ‘Liquid Love’ later surfaced
·         There is an early version of the ‘Ray Of Light’ video with different footage before Madonna was added to it
 
Background
Following the release of her compilation album Something to Remember (1995), Madonna started taking vocal lessons in preparation for her role in Evita (1996). She also gave birth to her daughter, Lourdes in the same year. These events inspired a period of introspection. "That was a big catalyst for me. It took me on a search for answers to questions I'd never asked myself before," she said to Q magazine, in 2002. During the same period, she embraced Kabbalah and started studying Hinduism and yoga, all of which helped her "step outside [myself] and see the world from a different perspective. Madonna felt that there was a "whole piece" of her voice left unused, which she decided to utilize for the album. By May 1997, Madonna had started writing songs for the album. She began collaborating with Babyface, who had first worked with her on her previous album Bedtime Stories (1994). The two wrote a couple of songs together before Madonna decided the collaborations were not going in the musical direction she wanted for the album. According to Babyface, the songs "had a 'Take a Bow-ish' kind of vibe, and Madonna didn't want, or need, to repeat herself."
After abandoning the songs she had written with Babyface, Madonna turned to musician Rick Nowels. The collaboration produced seven songs in nine days, but those songs also did not display the album's future electronic musical direction. Three of the songs, "The Power of Good-Bye", "To Have and Not to Hold" and "Little Star", appear on the album. Madonna then began writing songs with Leonard, who had produced many songs for Madonna in the late 1980s. Unlike her previous albums, Leonard's song writing collaborations were accompanied by very little studio input. Madonna believed that Leonard's production "would have lent the songs more of a Peter Gabriel vibe", a sound that she did not want for the album. Guy Oseary, chairman of Maverick Records, then phoned British electronic musician William Orbit, and suggested that he send some songs to Madonna. Orbit sent a 13-track digital audio tape to Madonna. "I was a huge fan of William's earlier records, Strange Cargo 1 and 2 and all that. I also loved all the remixes he did for me and I was interested in fusing a kind of futuristic sound but also using lots of Indian and Moroccan influences and things like that, and I wanted it to sound old and new at the same time," Madonna said.

Once in a Lifetime: Michael Jackson, Madonna and Prince

 
In the Beginning...
The waters flowing through the Great Lakes region were magical in the spring and summer of 1958, as the births of Prince, Madonna and Michael Jackson all occurred within a mere two months of each other.
 
Prince Rogers Nelson was born June 7 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, followed by Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone on August 16 in Detroit, Michigan, and Michael Joseph Jackson nearly two weeks later on August 29 in Gary, Indiana. Each of these musical innovators would become household names, putting their stamp on pop culture in their own, unique ways. While these artists’ styles and work have been compared and contrasted for decades, what’s often overlooked is the impact their formative years had on their young, developing minds, and ultimately their sense of self and worldview.
 
The precocious trifecta of future megastars grew up in devoutly religious households: Madonna’s family was Roman Catholic; the Jacksons were members of the Jehovah’s Witness faith; and Prince was raised as a Seventh-day Adventist. A foundational religious discipline would easily lend itself to the establishment of a strict and rigorous work ethic later in life. Each of these rising talents would have a pivotal childhood heartbreak, which forced them to grow up quickly and discover creative ways to cope with emotional trauma. At the age of 5, Madonna would lose her mother to breast cancer, never to regain the unconditional love and bond of a maternal figure. And at the age of 6, Michael Jackson would become the lead singer of the Jackson 5, forcing him out of the playground into the working world of show business. Prince’s parents would separate and divorce before he was 10 years old, leaving his family broken and home life scattered.
 
All three entertainers had strained relationships with their fathers, which would inspire some of their future work: In Prince’s movie, Purple Rain, we see his character grappling with a critical and abusive father and in Madonna’s autobiographical single “Oh Father,†she laments: “You can’t hurt me now, I got away from you, I never thought I would.â€
 
Baby I’m a Star!
Budding stardom was recognized early on for these recording artists.
 
Michael Jackson stepped into entertainment at the age when most kids are making milestones in kindergarten. Led by his father/manager, Michael grew up on the road, in the studio and on the stage. “I am most comfortable on stage than any other place in the world,†he shared in a 1980 interview on the TV program 20/20. Michael recorded his first album with the Jackson 5, Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5, at the age of 11. Being a part of the Motown family at an impressionable age allowed Michael to learn from some of the greats — backstage at the Apollo watching legendary James Brown and Jackie Wilson captivate audiences with their soulful singing and breathtaking choreography, and in the studio quizzing producers on how the recording process works. By the age of 20, Michael would produce 15 more studio albums with the Jackson 5, and later the Jacksons, developing and perfecting his vocal style, dance skills and songwriting abilities, before the release of his smash hit, solo album debut, Off the Wall, at the age of 21.
 
Prince taught himself to play the piano at age 7, the guitar at age 13, and the drums at age 14. And at 14 years old, Prince began performing throughout Minneapolis with a local band called Grand Central. Three years later, Prince would have a masterful dexterity of 27 musical instruments and create his first demo tape of songs that he wrote, produced, performed and arranged himself. This demo would lay the foundation for Prince’s debut album, For You, released two months before his 20th birthday.
 
Madonna began studying dance at age 14. She was a stellar student, graduated high school, and continued her dance education at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor in 1976. After two years, Madonna moved to the Big Apple, where she studied for a short time with the Alvin Ailey dance troupe and worked as a professional dancer for two years. Madonna added singing to her artistic mix, and began performing as a singer and backup dancer. “I studied very hard on learning how to play guitar, and piano, and drums, everything, and then I started writing music, and I got my own band together, made a demo tape, took it around to the record companies and got my record deal,†said Madonna in a 1983 radio interview with Paris DJ Stephen. Madonna released two disco club hit singles, “Everybody†and “Burning Up/Physical Attraction†before getting a recording contract to produce a full album. Five years after leaving Michigan for New York City, Madonna’s self-titled debut album was released in July1983. She was 24 years old.
 
For all three rising solo artists from the Midwest, with their follow-up albums, they would skyrocket to global fame, define ‘80s pop culture, dominate the MTV music video landscape with their groundbreaking, uniquely stylized fusion of video storytelling through song and dance, break world records, color barriers and forever influence pop artists for generations to come.
 
With Michael Jackson’s sophomore solo album, Thriller, he would enter the Guinness Book of World Records for the Greatest Selling Album of All Time (over 65 million copies sold). Michael would continue to break world records, receiving an additional 30 Guinness World Records, including Most Successful Entertainer of All Time. Madonna would receive the Guinness World Record for the Greatest Selling Female Recording Artist of All Time. Prince would be the only one of the three to receive an Oscar for Best Original Song Score for “Purple Rain.†Prince would tie the record for 12 consecutive years with a Top 10 pop single on the Billboard 100 charts in the U.S. Globally, Prince has sold over 150 million albums, Madonna over 300 million and Michael over 750 million.
 
Working Day and Night
The artistic and creative gifts of Michael Jackson, Madonna and Prince are innate in their DNA: Michael’s mother, Katherine, was a singer and pianist and his father, Joseph, was a guitarist with his own band, The Falcons, before he began to focus full throttle on developing the talent of his sons. Prince’s mother, Mattie, was a jazz singer and his father, John, was a jazz pianist and songwriter with his own group, The Prince Rogers Nelson Trio. “Prince Rogers Nelson†was a stage name for John Nelson. Prince’s late father said that he had named his son Prince because he wanted the artist to be a musician, like him. And, Madonna’s mother, Madonna Louise Ciccone, was formerly a dancer.
 
However, the epic success of all three icons would have been impossible without a relentless work ethic and a drive for excellence. “Study the greats, and become greater!†was one of Michael’s many mantras. R&B was an influence for these artists. Both Michael and Prince said that James Brown was one of their inspirations and exemplars — from the command of his band, his trademark original sound, and legendary choreography. And Hitsville U.S.A. struck a major chord with the Material Girl. “Motown is a really big influence with me ‘cause I grew up in Detroit, and I listened to all those old, Motown groups,†said Madonna in a 1983 interview with DJ Stephen on Radio Show.
 
NBA great Kobe Bryant discussed Michael Jackson’s work ethic in a 2016 Jimmy Kimmel Live interview: “He showed me how he composed songs, how he structured them, how he trained, who inspired him...He walked me step by step through things that he learned from [his influences] and how it made him a better entertainer. How he studied the Beatles, how he broke down every single note and felt like there was a certain emotional connection with each chord. It was just fascinating stuff. I thought I was working hard until I met him.â€
 
In a 2016 ew.com interview, hit-making producer Jimmy Jam shared the following about Prince’s work ethic: “... He out-talented everyone by so much. In sports, it’d be like Michael Jordan. He walks into the gym and he’s the most talented player; that’s how Prince was. He walked in and he was more talented than everybody...He’d come to rehearsal, work with us, go work with his band, then he’d go to his studio all night and record. The next night he’d come to rehearsal with a tape in his hand and he’d say, ‘This is what I did last night!’ and it’d be something like ‘1999.’â€
 
And celeb trainer Nicole Winhoffer told eoline.com in 2014: “Madonna stands as an icon. Her body, work ethic, and persistence is an inspiration to the people.â€
 
Express Yourself
“It’s my own style. Unique and original. You won’t see it anywhere else.â€
—Madonna, Paris interview with DJ Stephen on Radio Show (1983)
 
“I strive for originality in my work. And, hopefully it will be perceived that way.â€
—Prince, first television interview on MTV (1985)
 
“My attitude is if fashion says it’s forbidden, I’m going to do it. In many ways an artist is his work, it’s difficult to separate the two. I think I can be brutally objective about my work as I create it, and if something doesn’t work, I can feel it, but when I turn in a finished album - or song - you can be sure that I’ve given it every ounce of energy and God-given talent that I have.â€
—Michael Jackson, the autobiography, Moonwalk (1988)
 
The greatest gift that Madonna, Prince and Michael Jackson have given to the world is their unique, artistic voice. Their collective ability to masterfully blend music, dance, live performance, music videos, film and fashion to create artistic expressions that resonated across generations and countries is unparalleled. Their influence on our culture is multi-dimensional, transformative and everlasting. The world before Madonna, Prince and Michael was one in which we’d watch artists sing and perform, and we might sing along to their music. When Madonna, Prince and Michael each had their meteoric rise in the ‘80s — and declared they were originals, were going to push boundaries, yet also perform with a level of creativity and innovation never before seen — they created a deeper level of engagement with their audience and the public. In addition to singing their songs, we began to emulate their dance moves and sartorial tastes. Their appeal was contagious, enchanting, universal and international: black, white, young, old, straight or gay, it was a cultural revolution, unlike any other:
 
* Madonna had young girls around the world wearing rubber bracelets, lots of lace, and big hair bows. Michael Jackson created a new look: a signature red leather jacket with black trim — the Thriller jacket — which sold internationally. And, how can we forget that purple became the most popular color on the planet, when Prince’s movie, Purple Rain, was released.
 
* Everyone wanted to perform the Moonwalk, seamlessly and flawlessly, just like Michael Jackson. Who didn’t attempt to do a full split and spin, after watching Prince do it in Purple Rain? Madonna introduced a formerly underground dance style performed at house balls for a mostly gay community, vogueing, to the mainstream.
 
Madonna, Prince and Michael will always be known as trendsetters and tastemakers. Yet, their bodies of work also move people’s spirits and emotions. Emanating from their creative expression are themes of freedom, rebellion, acceptance, inclusion, peace, joy, fun and romance. In their music and videos, they also tackle controversial topics such as race, religion, politics and sexuality.
 
Most of all, we find Madonna, Prince, and Michael likable and relatable, because we see and embrace their humanity, complexities and eccentricities. All three of them are cultural misfits, who never quite fit in, but somehow rose to the top and stayed there. They are our American heroes, the underdogs from Midwestern, working-class families who succeeded, against all odds. Prince was the short guy from Minneapolis who embraced androgyny and, despite his stature, was larger than life. In reality, Michael Jackson was shy, alone, and kept to himself. On stage, Michael Jackson was a breathtaking force — dynamic and otherworldly. Two distinctly different personas — offstage and onstage — within the same man. Madonna fought disappointment and loss from her youth with rebellion. She pushed her past aside, moved forward, always robustly, with a propensity for head-turning, over-the-top attire and behavior. In the imperfect, there lies perfection.
 
Gone Too Soon
With the recent loss of Prince, it is hard to imagine that, like Michael Jackson, the new music will be coming from a vault. There will be no more live performances, cameo appearances, philanthropic projects or political statements to be made. That untouchable trifecta of musical titans from the Midwest were all supposed to live forever, if only to continue the soundtrack for an aging Generation X, much like how baby boomers still have the Rolling Stones. While the legacies of Prince and Michael will be timeless, up-and-coming artists will look to them for inspiration; the Purple One and the King of Pop are the ascended masters and reference points. The pain will linger in knowing that the creative environment that allowed these legends to flourish has vanished.

The industry has changed along with the way music is produced. Songs aren’t as rich as they used to be. Instruments have been overpowered by synthesizers, samples and beats. Auto-Tune has replaced raw vocals in the studio. New and emerging artists don’t have the freedom or flexibility to be daring and different. There is a marketing and promotional formula that must be followed — people aren’t even buying music like in previous decades, so budgets have dwindled for things like artist development. What will the next generation of pop artists look like? Will the pipeline to a recording contract be dominated by reality TV competitions? Could a young artist, who can play over two dozen musical instruments even fathom getting a record deal or complete creative control?

We can never deny that in their heyday Prince, Michael and Madonna, now the surviving member of the trifecta, shoved the envelope and set the bar for trend-setting music makers who came after them. Many may not appreciate or comprehend Madonna’s impact today, but that can’t diminish her influence. What’s next for the queen of reinvention? Whatever is on the horizon, like a prayer, she might just take us there.

Once in a Lifetime: Michael Jackson, Madonna and Prince

 
In the Beginning...
The waters flowing through the Great Lakes region were magical in the spring and summer of 1958, as the births of Prince, Madonna and Michael Jackson all occurred within a mere two months of each other.
 
Prince Rogers Nelson was born June 7 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, followed by Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone on August 16 in Detroit, Michigan, and Michael Joseph Jackson nearly two weeks later on August 29 in Gary, Indiana. Each of these musical innovators would become household names, putting their stamp on pop culture in their own, unique ways. While these artists’ styles and work have been compared and contrasted for decades, what’s often overlooked is the impact their formative years had on their young, developing minds, and ultimately their sense of self and worldview.
 
The precocious trifecta of future megastars grew up in devoutly religious households: Madonna’s family was Roman Catholic; the Jacksons were members of the Jehovah’s Witness faith; and Prince was raised as a Seventh-day Adventist. A foundational religious discipline would easily lend itself to the establishment of a strict and rigorous work ethic later in life. Each of these rising talents would have a pivotal childhood heartbreak, which forced them to grow up quickly and discover creative ways to cope with emotional trauma. At the age of 5, Madonna would lose her mother to breast cancer, never to regain the unconditional love and bond of a maternal figure. And at the age of 6, Michael Jackson would become the lead singer of the Jackson 5, forcing him out of the playground into the working world of show business. Prince’s parents would separate and divorce before he was 10 years old, leaving his family broken and home life scattered.
 
All three entertainers had strained relationships with their fathers, which would inspire some of their future work: In Prince’s movie, Purple Rain, we see his character grappling with a critical and abusive father and in Madonna’s autobiographical single “Oh Father,†she laments: “You can’t hurt me now, I got away from you, I never thought I would.â€
 
Baby I’m a Star!
Budding stardom was recognized early on for these recording artists.
 
Michael Jackson stepped into entertainment at the age when most kids are making milestones in kindergarten. Led by his father/manager, Michael grew up on the road, in the studio and on the stage. “I am most comfortable on stage than any other place in the world,†he shared in a 1980 interview on the TV program 20/20. Michael recorded his first album with the Jackson 5, Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5, at the age of 11. Being a part of the Motown family at an impressionable age allowed Michael to learn from some of the greats — backstage at the Apollo watching legendary James Brown and Jackie Wilson captivate audiences with their soulful singing and breathtaking choreography, and in the studio quizzing producers on how the recording process works. By the age of 20, Michael would produce 15 more studio albums with the Jackson 5, and later the Jacksons, developing and perfecting his vocal style, dance skills and songwriting abilities, before the release of his smash hit, solo album debut, Off the Wall, at the age of 21.
 
Prince taught himself to play the piano at age 7, the guitar at age 13, and the drums at age 14. And at 14 years old, Prince began performing throughout Minneapolis with a local band called Grand Central. Three years later, Prince would have a masterful dexterity of 27 musical instruments and create his first demo tape of songs that he wrote, produced, performed and arranged himself. This demo would lay the foundation for Prince’s debut album, For You, released two months before his 20th birthday.
 
Madonna began studying dance at age 14. She was a stellar student, graduated high school, and continued her dance education at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor in 1976. After two years, Madonna moved to the Big Apple, where she studied for a short time with the Alvin Ailey dance troupe and worked as a professional dancer for two years. Madonna added singing to her artistic mix, and began performing as a singer and backup dancer. “I studied very hard on learning how to play guitar, and piano, and drums, everything, and then I started writing music, and I got my own band together, made a demo tape, took it around to the record companies and got my record deal,†said Madonna in a 1983 radio interview with Paris DJ Stephen. Madonna released two disco club hit singles, “Everybody†and “Burning Up/Physical Attraction†before getting a recording contract to produce a full album. Five years after leaving Michigan for New York City, Madonna’s self-titled debut album was released in July1983. She was 24 years old.
 
For all three rising solo artists from the Midwest, with their follow-up albums, they would skyrocket to global fame, define ‘80s pop culture, dominate the MTV music video landscape with their groundbreaking, uniquely stylized fusion of video storytelling through song and dance, break world records, color barriers and forever influence pop artists for generations to come.
 
With Michael Jackson’s sophomore solo album, Thriller, he would enter the Guinness Book of World Records for the Greatest Selling Album of All Time (over 65 million copies sold). Michael would continue to break world records, receiving an additional 30 Guinness World Records, including Most Successful Entertainer of All Time. Madonna would receive the Guinness World Record for the Greatest Selling Female Recording Artist of All Time. Prince would be the only one of the three to receive an Oscar for Best Original Song Score for “Purple Rain.†Prince would tie the record for 12 consecutive years with a Top 10 pop single on the Billboard 100 charts in the U.S. Globally, Prince has sold over 150 million albums, Madonna over 300 million and Michael over 750 million.
 
Working Day and Night
The artistic and creative gifts of Michael Jackson, Madonna and Prince are innate in their DNA: Michael’s mother, Katherine, was a singer and pianist and his father, Joseph, was a guitarist with his own band, The Falcons, before he began to focus full throttle on developing the talent of his sons. Prince’s mother, Mattie, was a jazz singer and his father, John, was a jazz pianist and songwriter with his own group, The Prince Rogers Nelson Trio. “Prince Rogers Nelson†was a stage name for John Nelson. Prince’s late father said that he had named his son Prince because he wanted the artist to be a musician, like him. And, Madonna’s mother, Madonna Louise Ciccone, was formerly a dancer.
 
However, the epic success of all three icons would have been impossible without a relentless work ethic and a drive for excellence. “Study the greats, and become greater!†was one of Michael’s many mantras. R&B was an influence for these artists. Both Michael and Prince said that James Brown was one of their inspirations and exemplars — from the command of his band, his trademark original sound, and legendary choreography. And Hitsville U.S.A. struck a major chord with the Material Girl. “Motown is a really big influence with me ‘cause I grew up in Detroit, and I listened to all those old, Motown groups,†said Madonna in a 1983 interview with DJ Stephen on Radio Show.
 
NBA great Kobe Bryant discussed Michael Jackson’s work ethic in a 2016 Jimmy Kimmel Live interview: “He showed me how he composed songs, how he structured them, how he trained, who inspired him...He walked me step by step through things that he learned from [his influences] and how it made him a better entertainer. How he studied the Beatles, how he broke down every single note and felt like there was a certain emotional connection with each chord. It was just fascinating stuff. I thought I was working hard until I met him.â€
 
In a 2016 ew.com interview, hit-making producer Jimmy Jam shared the following about Prince’s work ethic: “... He out-talented everyone by so much. In sports, it’d be like Michael Jordan. He walks into the gym and he’s the most talented player; that’s how Prince was. He walked in and he was more talented than everybody...He’d come to rehearsal, work with us, go work with his band, then he’d go to his studio all night and record. The next night he’d come to rehearsal with a tape in his hand and he’d say, ‘This is what I did last night!’ and it’d be something like ‘1999.’â€
 
And celeb trainer Nicole Winhoffer told eoline.com in 2014: “Madonna stands as an icon. Her body, work ethic, and persistence is an inspiration to the people.â€
 
Express Yourself
“It’s my own style. Unique and original. You won’t see it anywhere else.â€
—Madonna, Paris interview with DJ Stephen on Radio Show (1983)
 
“I strive for originality in my work. And, hopefully it will be perceived that way.â€
—Prince, first television interview on MTV (1985)
 
“My attitude is if fashion says it’s forbidden, I’m going to do it. In many ways an artist is his work, it’s difficult to separate the two. I think I can be brutally objective about my work as I create it, and if something doesn’t work, I can feel it, but when I turn in a finished album - or song - you can be sure that I’ve given it every ounce of energy and God-given talent that I have.â€
—Michael Jackson, the autobiography, Moonwalk (1988)
 
The greatest gift that Madonna, Prince and Michael Jackson have given to the world is their unique, artistic voice. Their collective ability to masterfully blend music, dance, live performance, music videos, film and fashion to create artistic expressions that resonated across generations and countries is unparalleled. Their influence on our culture is multi-dimensional, transformative and everlasting. The world before Madonna, Prince and Michael was one in which we’d watch artists sing and perform, and we might sing along to their music. When Madonna, Prince and Michael each had their meteoric rise in the ‘80s — and declared they were originals, were going to push boundaries, yet also perform with a level of creativity and innovation never before seen — they created a deeper level of engagement with their audience and the public. In addition to singing their songs, we began to emulate their dance moves and sartorial tastes. Their appeal was contagious, enchanting, universal and international: black, white, young, old, straight or gay, it was a cultural revolution, unlike any other:
 
* Madonna had young girls around the world wearing rubber bracelets, lots of lace, and big hair bows. Michael Jackson created a new look: a signature red leather jacket with black trim — the Thriller jacket — which sold internationally. And, how can we forget that purple became the most popular color on the planet, when Prince’s movie, Purple Rain, was released.
 
* Everyone wanted to perform the Moonwalk, seamlessly and flawlessly, just like Michael Jackson. Who didn’t attempt to do a full split and spin, after watching Prince do it in Purple Rain? Madonna introduced a formerly underground dance style performed at house balls for a mostly gay community, vogueing, to the mainstream.
 
Madonna, Prince and Michael will always be known as trendsetters and tastemakers. Yet, their bodies of work also move people’s spirits and emotions. Emanating from their creative expression are themes of freedom, rebellion, acceptance, inclusion, peace, joy, fun and romance. In their music and videos, they also tackle controversial topics such as race, religion, politics and sexuality.
 
Most of all, we find Madonna, Prince, and Michael likable and relatable, because we see and embrace their humanity, complexities and eccentricities. All three of them are cultural misfits, who never quite fit in, but somehow rose to the top and stayed there. They are our American heroes, the underdogs from Midwestern, working-class families who succeeded, against all odds. Prince was the short guy from Minneapolis who embraced androgyny and, despite his stature, was larger than life. In reality, Michael Jackson was shy, alone, and kept to himself. On stage, Michael Jackson was a breathtaking force — dynamic and otherworldly. Two distinctly different personas — offstage and onstage — within the same man. Madonna fought disappointment and loss from her youth with rebellion. She pushed her past aside, moved forward, always robustly, with a propensity for head-turning, over-the-top attire and behavior. In the imperfect, there lies perfection.
 
Gone Too Soon
With the recent loss of Prince, it is hard to imagine that, like Michael Jackson, the new music will be coming from a vault. There will be no more live performances, cameo appearances, philanthropic projects or political statements to be made. That untouchable trifecta of musical titans from the Midwest were all supposed to live forever, if only to continue the soundtrack for an aging Generation X, much like how baby boomers still have the Rolling Stones. While the legacies of Prince and Michael will be timeless, up-and-coming artists will look to them for inspiration; the Purple One and the King of Pop are the ascended masters and reference points. The pain will linger in knowing that the creative environment that allowed these legends to flourish has vanished.

The industry has changed along with the way music is produced. Songs aren’t as rich as they used to be. Instruments have been overpowered by synthesizers, samples and beats. Auto-Tune has replaced raw vocals in the studio. New and emerging artists don’t have the freedom or flexibility to be daring and different. There is a marketing and promotional formula that must be followed — people aren’t even buying music like in previous decades, so budgets have dwindled for things like artist development. What will the next generation of pop artists look like? Will the pipeline to a recording contract be dominated by reality TV competitions? Could a young artist, who can play over two dozen musical instruments even fathom getting a record deal or complete creative control?

We can never deny that in their heyday Prince, Michael and Madonna, now the surviving member of the trifecta, shoved the envelope and set the bar for trend-setting music makers who came after them. Many may not appreciate or comprehend Madonna’s impact today, but that can’t diminish her influence. What’s next for the queen of reinvention? Whatever is on the horizon, like a prayer, she might just take us there.

Madonna, Lola and friends in prom day!

Madonna and Lola at PreProm Party yesterday!

Um yeah its confusing.............. #livingforlove

madonna 5 hours ago Go Italy Go! na na na na na #just sayin http://instagram.com/p/pPpWJpGEeu/  

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Madonna Looks Back: The Rolling Stone Interview
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/madonna-looks-back-the-rolling-stone-interview-20091029
 
Excerpts:
 
Growing up in a Detroit suburb, Madonna had her world rocked at age six by the death of her mother. Always an extrovert, Madonna performed for the first time in a junior high talent show, slathered in body paint. She defied her strict father by dropping out of the University of Michigan, where she was studying dance, and moved to New York in 1978, eking out a living as a nude model while performing at clubs like CBGB.
 
You grew up in Pontiac, outside Detroit, where some of your first musical influences came from going to parties and barbecues in your largely African-American neighborhood. What do you remember?

 
Motown was everywhere. Stevie Wonder and Diana Ross and the Jackson 5, that's what I grew up on. But when I was in high school we moved to a suburb that was predominantly middle-class and white. There weren't any more house parties, there wasn't music blaring from the house next door. I felt estranged, and that's when I created my own world. That's when I decided I'd be a professional dancer. I became more of an introvert, and I'd sneak out of the house and go to concerts. I was aware of the power of music at that point, not that I could articulate it to anyone.
 
What were the first shows you saw?

 
My first concert was David Bowie at Cobo Hall [in Detroit] when I was 15. He had mime artists with him. It was amazing. I wish I could have seen him as Ziggy Stardust. My second show was Elton John, and my third was Bob Marley. Not bad, right?
 
Not bad at all. Did you drink at the shows?

 
When I was in high school? No way. I was a geek. I didn't really have a drink until I got divorced the first time [from Sean Penn], when I was 30.
 
It's interesting to hear you talk about Bowie as an influence.

 
Because everyone thinks I was born in a disco. My older brothers were in the basement listening to the Who and the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love," the Who's "Baba O'Riley."
 
You performed "Baba O'Riley" at a talent show in seventh grade.

 
I had my girlfriends paint my body with fluorescent hearts and flowers. I wore a pair of shorts and a midriff top, and I just went mad. I had a strobe light and black light. I'm sure everyone thought I was insane. It was my first time onstage. That was the beginning of my provocative performances, I guess. I just went for it. No girls would talk to me after that, and the boys looked at me weird.
 
Do you still consider yourself a geek?
 

I say stuff like "oopsie-daisy." Growing up, I didn't feel cool, I didn't fit into any crowd. "Geek" is not a word anyone uses to describe me, though, except perhaps [Confessions on a Dance Floor producer] Stuart Price, who once said, "You know, you're a nerd at heart, nobody knows it." I took it as a compliment. I'm silly and geeky and nerdy and not cool.
 
You moved to New York after dropping out of the University of Michigan to become a dancer. How did you transition from dancing to singing?

 
It was just a question of circumstance. Because I was a dancer, I started going to auditions for musical theater, which forced me to sing. Most of the people auditioning were much more professional than I was — they brought sheet music, and they'd give it to the piano player, and I would just wing it and sing songs I knew from the radio, like an Aretha Franklin song or some other ridiculous embarrassment.
 
By 1979, you were living in Queens with Dan and Ed Gilroy, who had a band called the Breakfast Club, which you ended up joining. Around that time, you wrote your first song.

 
It was called "Tell the Truth." It was maybe four chords, but there were verses and a bridge and a chorus, and it was a religious experience. I had decided that if I was going to be a singer, I had to earn it. I had to learn how to play an instrument. We were living in an abandoned synagogue in Queens, and in return for music lessons I modeled for Dan, who was a painter. I was his muse, and he taught me how to play power chords. While they were off at their day jobs, I'd play drums. I learned by listening to Elvis Costello records. Then one day, I wrote a song, and the words just came out of me. I was like, "Who's writing this?" When their drummer quit, I got to be the drummer, and one night at CBGB I begged them to let me sing a song and play guitar. That microphone position was looking more and more inviting.

Madonna Haters Are Desperate, Old, Tired, and Oh So Irrelevant. Can’t They Just Retire Already?
David Toussaint May 7   https://medium.com/@davidtoussaint_49945/madonna-haters-are-desperate-old-tired-and-oh-so-irrelevant-cant-they-just-retire-already-befb1d32ec05?fbclid=IwAR3KpSMWB-sj3g4hSl1MsMMDUNK9lRMe9nRTQajS5LtayEFEGSjo4RGr6sQ As a diehard Madonna fan since she caked-jumped in her skivvies on the 1984 MTV awards, I’ve known for quite some time that I’m supposed to — expected to — denounce the woman. From the Far Right and their protests in the 80’s and the “musical purist” queers who damned me to hell for loving a non-tragic, puff-piped vocalist, to the general 90’s population who waged jihad on her and anyone who still paid attention to her “Sex” book and “Erotica” sins, and the relentless articles sent to me like Bible versus every time she got bad press (I got a lot of “Old Testament” articles), to the new millennium age of responding to my adoration with tweets and posts so vile it reminded me of the fire and brimstone lectures Grandma used to give me for skipping out on Church.
To all of that and more, more, more, there’s a religious fervor among those who are always mad about Madonna, and their refusal to give up is like a snore. It isn’t enough that they try to nail her to her own proverbial cross; they’re determined to convert us believers to their non-Madonna way of life.
It’s ironic, more than anything, because, with all their dissecting, analyzing, and endless articles and rants and comments on her irrelevancy — the most surefire way to make an artist stay relevant — they’re clueless about what Madonna fans truly care about; her music. While they’re spending all their energy and words trying to justify their logic, the faithful among us are just having 1, 2, cha cha fun.
If Madonna’s albums don’t sell like they used to or her songs don’t get played on the radio or she hasn’t turned a Pepsi ban into a professional victory, her detractors seem to think that will make us loathe her. Yeah, right, we’ll burn her old patchouli-scented CDs because she’s not as Grande as Arianna. If one photo shoot or video or song resembles a previous one, they’ll tell us she’s desperate and think we’ll follow their lead, because, apparently, always evolving Taylor Swift and Beyonce have never looked or sounded even remotely similar twice. What, Madonna’s posing in the same position as she did for the “Confessions” cover? At least Cher got smart and did something new…cover Abba!
Yes, Mad-haters, we know much of Madonna’s success has been built around re-invention (a strategy that pretty much every gal who’s proceeded her has followed), and that, after a gazillion albums and videos and photos she sometimes evokes her prior incarnations. We also know that if reinvention were the only key to success, everyone who’s ever switched hair colors would have more top ten hits than Elvis.
They’ll vilify Madonna for working with hot, young musicians to stay noticed — because God forbid the biggest selling female singer of all time use her clout to work with the best in the business; she should stick to subway performers or Jermaine Jackson — then remind us she’s calculating. Because I’m fairly certain all those other artists just work their albums and videos and concert tours off the seat of their pants.
Finally, they’ll tell us the kicker: Madonna’s old. Why didn’t she just roll over and die like every other respectable artist from the 80's? The nerve! Women say this more often than men, which speaks volumes about the collective consciousness of the “woke” millennial, #metoo-inspired feminist who believes women should have the same rights as men unless they’re pop stars. When cornered, they’ll say it’s not her really age, it’s that she doesn’t act her age. Apparently, Madge forgot to read the handbook. If you’re reading, M., know you’re in good company. Most happy, intelligent, creative types I know also forgot to read their “How to grow old, sad, fat, and de-sexed” guidebooks too. Ah, the good old 1950’s mentality! Let’s bring it back, put women in the kitchen, and Make America Madonna-Free Again (MAMA)!
Thing is, we’ve heard it all before and we’re bored…with you. We respect those who don’t care for Madonna’s music or looks or politics or country of residence or current eye patch phase, but who also know how to state their position and move on. You know, like with their lives. I have friends who fit this bill and we actually get along with our differing opinions and have not gone to war. Madonna’s true haters want “GoT”-worthy battle and post just as many updates. They also won’t be happy until they spoil it for the rest of us. They’re the Mormons who invade our homes and don’t give up preaching the true faith until we slam the door shut. And then come back as soon as the devil has once again reared its musical head.
Every time I write so much as a nice tweet about Madonna a Lady Gaga fan threatens me, sometimes with death — any huge Madonna follower knows I’m not kidding about this. This is crazy for a couple of reasons, the most obvious being that it’s bat-s*** crazy. Putting that aside, there’s no reason two superstars can’t exist on the same planet at the same time, and there’s no real reason to compare Madge and Gaga except when, because of sound or vision similarities, the latter has encouraged us to. “Reductive” didn’t hit viral mode until a year after every reporter, fan of both stars, and mashup begged for a comment.
Thing is, they’ve both moved on. You can too. There’s an entire planet in trouble with your name on it!
Of course, no article about Madonna haters would be complete without mentioning the self-described “fans” who berate her on a daily basis then profess she’ll always be their queen. (In regards to Madonna, “but I love her to death” is the new “bless her heart.”) They never like anything she does, even if it’s the lighting in the far right corner of the sixth frame of her new video, and they’ll wax sentimental over her “Ray of Light Days.” When “RoL” came out, they were waxing sentimental over her “fun, 80’s, dance days.” Ask 1,000 of these fans what they’d like her to do and you’ll get 1,000 different answers. Yesterday, they wanted smaller venues; today they’re mad that smaller venues mean harder-to-get tickets. Can’t she do anything right…for me?
The kicker is that a good 90 percent of these people will tell you they’re “music industry insiders” and have secret information on the behind-the-scenes plagued-music-wars Madonna’s fighting on a daily basis and how it can be fixed. Apparently, however, they’re not quite “inside” enough to guide Madonna themselves. How is it that, with all their clout, she doesn’t converse with them on Snapchat? Call this group whatever you wish but I simply go with “irritating AF.”
As Madonna gets set to release “Madame X” on June 14, there’s something everyone who’s already plotting the criticisms and hit pieces and general steam-spewing-out-their-ears tweet storms needs to know: Like the Queen herself, we’re not going anywhere. Her music makes us laugh and cry and dance and sing get up and do our thing. If that sounded a little clichéd, it’s because it’s still a little true. Yes, we criticize, we compare and contrast, we’re still baffled over the “Hard Candy” cover art. But we do it with lovable glee. Because we’re invested in this miraculous, three-decade pop star who, more than anything, hooks like a glove.
The other day, after getting up and walking my newly-blind dog, then sitting in a dentist chair for six hours because, after four months, they still can’t get my teeth fixed correctly, talking to my mother with dementia, talking to my friend with cancer, walking four miles on three hours sleep to get rid of this brand-new stomach bulge, putting ice on my thrown-out back, then getting an email that said a job I desperately needed had been postponed, I tuned out everything else and blared Madonna’s new single on the headphones. In fewer than four minutes time I’d lost myself in a wonderful world of music that sounded like multi-colored tulips in a garden of Willy Wonka pure-imagination pop.
To put it simply, I rose.