androiduser 2,503 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 I joined the Madonna fandom sometime in 1990 when she was already at her highest peak, and my knowledge of everything before that is based on articles, anecdotes and personal impressions. So I am never sure about the moment when Madonna became an absolute superstar? I think with the True Blue era she solidified herself as the number one female pop star. My impression is that the first album was successful but definitely not big enough to turn Madonna into an instant superstar, and she became really huge with Like a Virgin.... but still not established enough to be the absolute number one? I always see True Blue as a huge turning point, and then the Who's That Girl Tour was the absolute indisputable proof of Madonna's superstardom. Can any of the older fans put things into perspective (while still keeping it real, without any fan bias)? Voguerista 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post 50ft Queenie 2,787 Posted December 11, 2021 Popular Post Share Posted December 11, 2021 (edited) As a fan since the very start, I will put it like this. Madonna starting trending and becoming popular with young people from the release of her first album with hits like Holiday and Borderline but I always felt that one of the most defining moments of her career was Like a Virgin live on MTV, it is really difficult to understand the effect that moment and that album as a whole had on her career unless you were there to see it. She was elevated from a popular upstart into a full blown superstar. Some people kidded themselves and said that she was still a passing fad who would fade into obscurity, they massively underestimated her relentless marketing skills and ambition, from Like a Virgin on, her domination was utterly complete and would remain so during the rest of the decade, you could take Cyndi Lauper's success in the 80's and multiply it by 20 and she would not even come close to competing with Madonna's success, they started off as rivals but Like a Virgin resulted in Madonna eclipsing all her female rivals and never looking back. If Madonna became a superstar with like a Virgin, it was her first and possibly most shocking reinvention True Blue that turned her from superstar into something beyond superstar. True Blue was very important because it marked the moment that Madonna had accumulated a worrying level of power and from then on the media would try and fail to destroy the monster they had created. It also highlighted the fact that she was a talented songwriter and could be successful without the image Madonna wannabe's were copying. Self titled was the moment Madonna became popular, Like a Virgin was the moment she became a superstar and True Blue was when she became an iconic legend. Michael Jackson was her only rival in the 80's in terms of sales although Prince was unquestionably the most musically talented of the three 80's mega stars. Edited December 11, 2021 by Blond Ambition (see edit history) Rocco Comelon, patrice1711, martinicus and 9 others 8 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
me1981 1,364 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 1985 - no doubt it was that year that made her a mega star. Everything before that was fame and popularity and stuff but 1985 put her in the upper echelon. Everything after that made her untouchable Pootz333, Chris, Aiwa08 and 2 others 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
me1981 1,364 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 14 minutes ago, Jet said: I agree. 1985 is when she really landed and then like a prayer in 89 followed by blond ambition in 1990 took her to a higher place of superstardom only previously reached by Michael Jackson. Yeah 85 was when the music took off, but also the myth and the legend really started being built. LAV both album and single hit #1, Material Girl #2, CFY another #1 Angel and Dress You Up in the top 5 and ITG never released but might as well have been another #1. The huge success of Desperately Seeking Susan, dating and marrying Sean Penn, the playboy/penthouse scandal, the Virgin Tour and Live AID. It was non stop all year. This was the year every newspaper, tv show and magazine was talking about M non stop and the paps started stalking her and even flew over her wedding. The obssession had begun. True Blue hitting big just cemented it and LAP gave her the critical approval that had been begrudging before that. 1989 was when music critics started taking her seriously. Yeah 1990 was another massive year, another 1985 and it too just shot her into the strasophere for sure. Aiwa08, patrice1711 and Voguerista 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A. A. Aardvark 4,852 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 "Ven zee spermatozoa hits zee egg eet eez called......" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aiwa08 16,280 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 5 hours ago, androiduser said: So I am never sure about the moment when Madonna became an absolute superstar? I am a fan since 1989 but I knew her since the release of "Burning Up". In my humble opinion Madonna became a superstar in 1984 -1985 during the "Like A Virgin" era (MTV, singles, movies...). 1990 is the peak of her career but she was everywhere (on the news, radio, TV) during 1984-1987. Voguerista and patrice1711 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtg1987 10,198 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 I’ve been a fan since 1987 and she was already a superstar even then - I live in the U.K. and i remember her having 8 singles in the charts in 1985 which I think at the time was a record plus live aid and the whole penthouse scandal so I would say 1985 too but I wasn’t a fan nor even a fan of music then - it was family who introduced me to music - the true blue era is my favourite in terms of music , videos , artwork and of course the magnificent wtg tour and I’m going to get shot down for this but I just love the who’s that girl movie too - it was my first cinema experience and I remember being given a badge and press pack which sadly I don’t have any more . I agree with other comments that the blond ambition tour elevated her to icon status and put her in the same league as my 2 other favourite icons MJ and Prince- an era that she will never sadly replicate again ? Voguerista, Semtex1 and Aiwa08 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Jean 15,522 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 Like a Virgin. But a lot of people didn’t think it would last so I would say True Blue really cemented her status. Voguerista, Aiwa08 and rlittler81 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karma 2,826 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 September 14, 1984. Aiwa08, Voguerista and sydneysean 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobo 1,219 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 It was a little wedding dress and a whole lot of ass ? Voguerista 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Semtex1 847 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 For me it was seeing her statue up alongside David Bowie, Michael Jackson, and Tina Turner at Rock Circus in Piccadilly Circus in London around 1986 http://www.artandarchitecture.org.uk/images/full/410d114aec02b1807c88363931845b86d6e2d2de.html?ixsid=yc9PyEljmek' And then the crowds at Heathrow when she landed for Who's That Girl Tour Voguerista 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfalfa_HampusFL 1,139 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 End 1984, beginning 1985...no doubt that is when she became a major star and a household name. Voguerista and Aiwa08 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nowheretohide 249 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 Madonna became certainly worldwide famous during the Like a Virgin era, but definitely reached the status of superstar when published True Blue. Radical change of look, different musical direction: everybody loved Madge in 1986-1987. Check the impressive footage of WTG world tour! Voguerista 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cake 322 Posted December 11, 2021 Share Posted December 11, 2021 imo M reached superstar status in 1990. She'd had years of incredible success, hits, looks, videos.. by 1990 it was clear that she was more than a pop star and she wasn't going anywhere Voguerista 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
androiduser 2,503 Posted December 11, 2021 Author Share Posted December 11, 2021 1 hour ago, cake said: imo M reached superstar status in 1990. She'd had years of incredible success, hits, looks, videos.. by 1990 it was clear that she was more than a pop star and she wasn't going anywhere in 1990 she reached the highest of her peaks, but she already had her highest selling studio album and her first major stadium tour behind her, so I think in 1990 she reached a whole another level of fame, but was already a superstar since True Blue Voguerista 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voguerista 11,891 Posted December 12, 2021 Share Posted December 12, 2021 Like A Virgin, but, I also think Like A Prayer and Vogue bolted her into another realm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocco Comelon 5,269 Posted December 12, 2021 Share Posted December 12, 2021 It's Like A Virgin era that made her become a Superstar, then True Blue made her beyond superstar that you cannot compare her to Like A Virgin era. But, Like A Prayer era 1989 to 1991 is the era that made her an untouchable megastar where all of success are hers. That's only my observation. Pootz333 and Voguerista 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aiwa08 16,280 Posted December 12, 2021 Share Posted December 12, 2021 In short: Like A Virgin era -> Superstar True Blue era / Who's That Girl era -> The queen of pop Like A Prayer era / Blond Ambition Tour era / Immaculate Collection era -> A legend in music (similar to Elvis, The Beatles, etc). But after the Sex Book and Erotica, the haters (and many fans) almost destroyed her career. Ray of Light was the second coming. This is my opinion. androiduser, Voguerista and patrice1711 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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