"Waiting (Remix)" from the Rain maxi single, featuring Everlast
Friday, August 30, 2013
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Rocco Follows Mum Madonna into Music
That’s because her son Rocco is planning to launch a rap career at the age of 13.
The wannabe gangsta rhymer is recording in his mum’s studio (how street...) and has recorded six demos with school pal Dom Sesto.
The teens call themselves Modoccor – their names spelt backwards – and are reportedly hoping to release music by using Madge’s industry connections.
Insiders revealed: “Modoccor combine rapping with street dance, gymnastics and break-dancing.
“Since forming the boys are virtually inseparable.
“They’ve recorded six demos and are eager to present them to industry friends of Madonna in the next few months.
“Rocco and Dom hope they can get a record deal out of it.
“Madonna is obviously helping them as much as she can.”
Despite this, the Queen of Pop and Rocco’s dad, Guy Ritchie, reckon the boys will soon get bored.
We’re told: “Both Madonna and Guy are behind them but they think it’s just a childish phase.”
We can’t see Rocco’s big sis Lourdes, 16, getting on board, judging by her reaction to Madge’s attempts to be urban.
She’s apparently “mortified” by her 55-year-old mum wearing grillz – and has asked her to quit.
A source said: “Madge’s blinged gnashers are a step too far for Lourdes and she’s begged her mum to nip it in the bud now.”
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Monday, August 26, 2013
Sunday, August 25, 2013
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Madonna - Like a What?
Madonna in the mid-'80s — The ''Material Girl'''s hits topped the pop charts and silenced skeptics.
Throughout her career, Madonna has been a risk taker, flirting on the edge, and no wonder: Her first career gamble paid off big time. After waiting for ''Lucky Star,'' the final single from her 1983 debut album, Madonna, to straggle down the charts, the 26-year-old singer released her sophomore effort on Nov. 12, 1984. The gamble: a sexy photo and three little words, Like a Virgin, on the cover. Six weeks later, as preteens around the country pulled cassettes out of their Christmas stockings and asked, ''What's a virgin?'' a nation of Madonna wannabes was born.
Throughout her career, Madonna has been a risk taker, flirting on the edge, and no wonder: Her first career gamble paid off big time. After waiting for ''Lucky Star,'' the final single from her 1983 debut album, Madonna, to straggle down the charts, the 26-year-old singer released her sophomore effort on Nov. 12, 1984. The gamble: a sexy photo and three little words, Like a Virgin, on the cover. Six weeks later, as preteens around the country pulled cassettes out of their Christmas stockings and asked, ''What's a virgin?'' a nation of Madonna wannabes was born.
Days before the album's release, the New York Post reported the title of her new video as ''I'm No Virgin,'' and the gaffe would prove closer to the truth than the real thing. The album contained such been-there-done-that lyrics as '' 'Cause the boy with the cold hard cash is always Mr. Right,'' a line delivered, like many others over the next 11 years, partly tongue in cheek.
The reviews ranged from mildly positive to indifferent (Peoplecalled the album ''a tolerable bit of fluff''), while Mick Jagger later opined that Madonna's tunes were characterized by ''a central dumbness.'' But something clicked. ''Like a Virgin'' spent six weeks at No. 1 on the singles chart. Other album singles, ''Material Girl,'' ''Angel,'' and ''Dress You Up,'' all hit the top five. By spring, Madonna Madness was in full swing, and girls were raiding stores for anything that accentuated their belly buttons.
Their new role model strutted her stuff with the aplomb of a woman who had dreamed of fame for years.Billboard editor Paul Grein predicted that ''Cyndi Lauper will be around for a long time; Madonna will be out of the business in six months,'' but the Material Girl stuck around, and Like a Virgin eventually sold 15 million worldwide, a feat none of her other collections has matched.
Today, Like a Virgin comes off as a bit repetitious and immature. Even its producer, Nile Rodgers, confesses, ''As a fan, it wouldn't be what I consider my favorite Madonna album compositionally.'' But it was perfect for the mid-'80s, when the country was searching for a pop queen to accompany the pop kings Michael Jackson and Prince. Already dressed for the party, the star announced in her press biography: ''1985 is going to be my year. You watch.'' It was our pleasure.
Friday, August 23, 2013
10 Years On: Madonna/Britney/Christina Kiss
Some people think it was Big Love that made America seriously think about polygamy in a big way. But those of us with slightly longer memories know it was really the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards, which went down in history for a wedding scene between Madonna, Britney Spears, and Christina Aguilera. No actual vows were swapped between this terrible threesome, of course...just spit.
Can it really have been a whole decade since the country lost its collective innocence about girl-on-material-girl-on-dirrty-girl action? The three stars weren't the only ones with their mouths wide open, as millions of viewers' jaws dropped in unison.
The opening production number of the August 28, 2003 VMAs would have been newsworthy enough if it had just been a duet between Britney and Christina, as it initially appeared to be. These two sexpots had been rivals since their "Mickey Mouse Club" days, so when they teamed up to pay tribute to Madonna by donning her famous bridal gear for a duet of "Like a Virgin," her-story was being made. But that newsworthy detente was overshadowed when Madonna herself emerged, in some equivalent of groom's wear. In an instant, it was clear who still wore the pants in the diva world.
If you forgot that Aguilera was even in on this, you're not the only one. After Madonna got smoochy with Spears, the cameras cut away to the latter's ex-boyfriend, Justin Timberlake, in the audience. By the time Madge moved on to Aguilera seconds later, the Christina kiss had already been rendered anticlimactic.
Thursday, August 22, 2013
Material Girl Collection Auction
Material Girl Collection is auctioning off a classic Madonna photo to be personally autographed by Madonna for the lucky winner! All the proceeds will go to Raising Malawi. Go ahead and bid to win: http://bit.ly/17SjcQY
Grill girl...
Because everybody is copying Miley, Madge wore a pair of Grillz while visiting her Hard Candy Fitness Club in Rome last night. Madge must be trolling all of us, because there’s no way she didn’t look in the mirror and not see that she looks like a bridge witch who sucks the gold fillings out of her unsuspecting victim’s mouths and smears that shit all over her teefs. But then again, a thick coat of delusion covers her eyeballs, so she probably thinks she looks hot. Those Grillz make her look like Gollum’s really rich and way more terrifying memaw. This is like Teeth of Meth: The 1% Edition. This is like an ad for Fixodent GOLD.
And Baby Brahim probably told Madge to buy those Grillz, because nothing gets him hard like gold on his peen and it’s another thing for him to snatch off the bedside table whens she falls asleep.
Saturday, August 17, 2013
14 Best Album-Track Gems From The Past 30 Years
Today is Madonna‘s birthday, a huge occasion for all of us virgin geisha dominatrix cowgirls. She’s 55 and, more importantly, so harshly, unmistakably, scandalously Madonna after 30 years as a superstar. Better yet? Like I’m always telling Lourdes, you can always find ways to appreciate Madonna a little more. That brings us to today’s investigation: we’re reinspecting Madonna’s album catalog and exhuming the greatest deep cuts from her heavenly body of work. After three full decades of her explosive output, it’s clear that hardcore Madonna fans are still the luckiest by far — and these lesser-known songs serve as 14 reasons why.
Madonna (1983), “I Know It”
Madonna’s first LP is remembered for being gleeful, chintzy and somewhat accomplished — something like a diploma from Madge’s kindergarten graduation. Yet her signature carnality and braggodocio are fully on display here, and in “I Know It” she turns heartbreak into an opportunity to do my favorite Madonna thing: proclaim her own smarts. Madonna knows, and that coy awareness has always been her best trait. Love that pained bleat on the last trill of “I know you think I’m the foolish one!”
Madonna’s first LP is remembered for being gleeful, chintzy and somewhat accomplished — something like a diploma from Madge’s kindergarten graduation. Yet her signature carnality and braggodocio are fully on display here, and in “I Know It” she turns heartbreak into an opportunity to do my favorite Madonna thing: proclaim her own smarts. Madonna knows, and that coy awareness has always been her best trait. Love that pained bleat on the last trill of “I know you think I’m the foolish one!”
Like a Virgin (1984), “Over and Over”
It’s nice to know that Madonna had a ready response for haters even in 1984: “You try to criticize my drive / If I lose I don’t feel paralyzed / It’s not the game, it’s how you play / And if I fall, I get up again now.” This mighty jam is an ode to Madonna’s own hamster-wheel endurance, and its title is a (perhaps knowing) nod to the tune’s instantly re-playable blitz.
It’s nice to know that Madonna had a ready response for haters even in 1984: “You try to criticize my drive / If I lose I don’t feel paralyzed / It’s not the game, it’s how you play / And if I fall, I get up again now.” This mighty jam is an ode to Madonna’s own hamster-wheel endurance, and its title is a (perhaps knowing) nod to the tune’s instantly re-playable blitz.
True Blue (1986): “White Heat”
Madonna started channeling her wild gondola convulsions into a cool, commanding strut on True Blue, but she remained a dorky fan of old movie stars at heart. This tribute to James Cagney is both raw and cheeky. “Put your back up against the wall / ‘Cause my love is dangerous / This is a bust!” The cheesy sexuality of “White Heat” can only be described as Hanky Panky Doodle Dandy, and appropriately, Madonna is the ultimate example of what Cagney would describe as an angel with a dirty face.
Madonna started channeling her wild gondola convulsions into a cool, commanding strut on True Blue, but she remained a dorky fan of old movie stars at heart. This tribute to James Cagney is both raw and cheeky. “Put your back up against the wall / ‘Cause my love is dangerous / This is a bust!” The cheesy sexuality of “White Heat” can only be described as Hanky Panky Doodle Dandy, and appropriately, Madonna is the ultimate example of what Cagney would describe as an angel with a dirty face.
Like A Prayer (1989): “Pray For Spanish Eyes”
Ray of Light is often touted as Madonna’s most personal album, but most pained sentiments of her career can be found in the deep cuts of Like a Prayer and Erotica. On “Pray For Spanish Eyes” she laments the loss of a friend with the same lonely whine that makes “Oh Father” so effective. On an album chockablock with religious imagery, this is the track that most plainly and effectively references Christ himself. Following the familial bliss of “Keep It Together,” “Spanish Eyes” is Like A Prayer‘s castanet-tinged elegy for an honorary brother.
Ray of Light is often touted as Madonna’s most personal album, but most pained sentiments of her career can be found in the deep cuts of Like a Prayer and Erotica. On “Pray For Spanish Eyes” she laments the loss of a friend with the same lonely whine that makes “Oh Father” so effective. On an album chockablock with religious imagery, this is the track that most plainly and effectively references Christ himself. Following the familial bliss of “Keep It Together,” “Spanish Eyes” is Like A Prayer‘s castanet-tinged elegy for an honorary brother.
I’m Breathless (1990), “More”
Breathless Mahoney is not as dynamic an alter-ego as either Dita Parlo or, hell, Esther, but she’s got a gift for saucy lyrics and piano ballads. Here, Madonna’s Dick Tracy debutante chirps Stephen Sondheim‘s jumpy tune about greed, possession and more, more, more. With its winking decadence (“Count your blessings / 1, 2, 3 / I just hate keeping score / Any number is fine with me / As long as it’s more!”), it’s fair to say “More” is like “Material Girl” as rewritten by Cole Porter.
Breathless Mahoney is not as dynamic an alter-ego as either Dita Parlo or, hell, Esther, but she’s got a gift for saucy lyrics and piano ballads. Here, Madonna’s Dick Tracy debutante chirps Stephen Sondheim‘s jumpy tune about greed, possession and more, more, more. With its winking decadence (“Count your blessings / 1, 2, 3 / I just hate keeping score / Any number is fine with me / As long as it’s more!”), it’s fair to say “More” is like “Material Girl” as rewritten by Cole Porter.
Erotica (1992), “Thief Of Hearts”
Madonna never gets enough credit for being funny. The best moments of Truth Or Dare, A League of Their Own and even the Sex book hinged on Madonna’s comic verve, and here she slays with deadpan putdowns to the titular burglar. In a bitchy rap, Madonna drones, “You do it / You take it / You screw it / You fake it / Undo it / You break it / You’re over, you can’t take it,” and it sounds like a cynical Sandra Bernhard take on “Hollaback Girl.” Genuinely sassy and laugh-out-loud funny, particularly when she concludes on the robotically-declared final line: “Stop, bitch. Now sit your ass down.”
Madonna never gets enough credit for being funny. The best moments of Truth Or Dare, A League of Their Own and even the Sex book hinged on Madonna’s comic verve, and here she slays with deadpan putdowns to the titular burglar. In a bitchy rap, Madonna drones, “You do it / You take it / You screw it / You fake it / Undo it / You break it / You’re over, you can’t take it,” and it sounds like a cynical Sandra Bernhard take on “Hollaback Girl.” Genuinely sassy and laugh-out-loud funny, particularly when she concludes on the robotically-declared final line: “Stop, bitch. Now sit your ass down.”
Bedtime Stories (1994), “Love Tried To Welcome Me”
I can only vouch for myself on this one: for me, this may be the tenderest vocal performance of Madonna’s career. Allegedly inspired by a stripper she met in a club, “Love Tried To Welcome Me” is a sighed ballad about romantic hopelessness and a protagonist who is “usually drawn to sadness.” Ever the survivor of a cloistered Catholic upbringing, Madonna’s best moments in the song all begin with the gut-wrenching cry, “I must confess.”
I can only vouch for myself on this one: for me, this may be the tenderest vocal performance of Madonna’s career. Allegedly inspired by a stripper she met in a club, “Love Tried To Welcome Me” is a sighed ballad about romantic hopelessness and a protagonist who is “usually drawn to sadness.” Ever the survivor of a cloistered Catholic upbringing, Madonna’s best moments in the song all begin with the gut-wrenching cry, “I must confess.”
Something To Remember (1995),”One More Chance”
The slow jam collection Something To Remember acquainted casual fans with a startling reality: Madonna is an underrated balladeer. From “Live To Tell” to “I Deserve It,” she’s trilled plainspoken torch songs that feel rawer than anything in the Celine oeuvre. On “One More Chance” she begs for forgiveness, and her only accompaniment is stark acoustic strumming. No other Madonna song sounds quite like it, and it holds up as a melancholic statement against grander compositions like “You’ll See” and “I’ll Remember.”
The slow jam collection Something To Remember acquainted casual fans with a startling reality: Madonna is an underrated balladeer. From “Live To Tell” to “I Deserve It,” she’s trilled plainspoken torch songs that feel rawer than anything in the Celine oeuvre. On “One More Chance” she begs for forgiveness, and her only accompaniment is stark acoustic strumming. No other Madonna song sounds quite like it, and it holds up as a melancholic statement against grander compositions like “You’ll See” and “I’ll Remember.”
Ray Of Light (1998), “Swim”
Ray Of Light is the best and worst of Madonna: half electronic bliss and half self-serious moralizing. But “Swim” is an ideal melding of both those worlds, as it gives us a calm groove and urgent proclamations about worldly chaos, one of my favorite Madonna concerns. The hummable chorus — “We can’t carry these sins on our back / Don’t want to carry anymore” — has almost a folksy quality, and thus “Swim” feels like an earnest and cool missive from a reinvented singer-songwriter.
Ray Of Light is the best and worst of Madonna: half electronic bliss and half self-serious moralizing. But “Swim” is an ideal melding of both those worlds, as it gives us a calm groove and urgent proclamations about worldly chaos, one of my favorite Madonna concerns. The hummable chorus — “We can’t carry these sins on our back / Don’t want to carry anymore” — has almost a folksy quality, and thus “Swim” feels like an earnest and cool missive from a reinvented singer-songwriter.
Music (2000), “Impressive Instant”
Oh, why isn’t “rodeo disco” its own iTunes genre? Madonna and French producer Mirwais Ahmadzai helped re-imagine the idea of an “urban cowboy” by distilling the madness of Debra Winger into a whirring lasso of beats and beeps on “Impressive Instant,” an astounding, throbbing hootenanny that hasn’t aged a day since 2000. The song even has the guts to split off into a weird vocoderized riff where Madonna croons in cyborg English that she likes to “singy singy singy / like a bird / on a wingy wingy wingy.” Turns out “dizzy and daffy” is what it feels like for a girl.
Oh, why isn’t “rodeo disco” its own iTunes genre? Madonna and French producer Mirwais Ahmadzai helped re-imagine the idea of an “urban cowboy” by distilling the madness of Debra Winger into a whirring lasso of beats and beeps on “Impressive Instant,” an astounding, throbbing hootenanny that hasn’t aged a day since 2000. The song even has the guts to split off into a weird vocoderized riff where Madonna croons in cyborg English that she likes to “singy singy singy / like a bird / on a wingy wingy wingy.” Turns out “dizzy and daffy” is what it feels like for a girl.
American Life (2003), “Intervention”
Plenty of American Life is an experiment that shouldn’t have left the Bunsen Burner, but Madonna’s nervously confessional vocal on “Intervention” — with all its confused lyrics about staying together, leaving, not feeling alone, lonely roads, and waking up from dreams — feels like a hastily-written, yet intensely personal prayer. She couldn’t sound more frightened when she chirps “I know there is nothing to fear,” and that’s what makes “Intervention” a standout track — it is strange, rambling, contradictory attempts at approaching peace.
Plenty of American Life is an experiment that shouldn’t have left the Bunsen Burner, but Madonna’s nervously confessional vocal on “Intervention” — with all its confused lyrics about staying together, leaving, not feeling alone, lonely roads, and waking up from dreams — feels like a hastily-written, yet intensely personal prayer. She couldn’t sound more frightened when she chirps “I know there is nothing to fear,” and that’s what makes “Intervention” a standout track — it is strange, rambling, contradictory attempts at approaching peace.
Confessions On A Dance Floor (2005), “Forbidden Love”
While performing for banshee homosexuals at London’s G-A-Y in 2005, Madonna screamed, “This album was for you!” Still makes a lot of sense. Confessions On A Dance Floor whips by in a surge of clubland aeronautics, and “Forbidden Love” catches ravers in a sudden slow-motion romance. Madonna’s voice disappears in an echo when she swoons “Just one kiss / just one touch / Just one look / Just one love,” as if the perfection of a stolen glance is already disappearing with the night.
While performing for banshee homosexuals at London’s G-A-Y in 2005, Madonna screamed, “This album was for you!” Still makes a lot of sense. Confessions On A Dance Floor whips by in a surge of clubland aeronautics, and “Forbidden Love” catches ravers in a sudden slow-motion romance. Madonna’s voice disappears in an echo when she swoons “Just one kiss / just one touch / Just one look / Just one love,” as if the perfection of a stolen glance is already disappearing with the night.
Hard Candy (2008), “Dance 2Night”
Justin Timberlake struck me as an uninspired choice in collaborator from the get-go, and to this day, Hard Candy remains Madonna’s coldest and least self-representative album to date. What does work: this bubbly, funky dance ballad with an undulating chorus that would’ve suited Chaka Khan or Teena Marie in their hit-making prime. I guess that means Madonna brought some form of sexy back…namely Rick James‘.
Justin Timberlake struck me as an uninspired choice in collaborator from the get-go, and to this day, Hard Candy remains Madonna’s coldest and least self-representative album to date. What does work: this bubbly, funky dance ballad with an undulating chorus that would’ve suited Chaka Khan or Teena Marie in their hit-making prime. I guess that means Madonna brought some form of sexy back…namely Rick James‘.
MDNA (2012), “I’m a Sinner”
I’m tempted to bring up the unchecked road rage of “Gang Bang,” but ugh, that song is named “Gang Bang” for no reason. Sorry! That brings us to “I’m A Sinner,” which sees Madonna shimmying in a retro beat that smacks of both “Beautiful Stranger” and the (somehow underrated) Duffy hit “Mercy.” I love the Sunday school rap where she names a bunch of saints — Christopher, Sebastian, Anthony, Thomas Aquinas — with the ebullience of a collective ex-lover. A fine reason to clutch your rosary and repent.
I’m tempted to bring up the unchecked road rage of “Gang Bang,” but ugh, that song is named “Gang Bang” for no reason. Sorry! That brings us to “I’m A Sinner,” which sees Madonna shimmying in a retro beat that smacks of both “Beautiful Stranger” and the (somehow underrated) Duffy hit “Mercy.” I love the Sunday school rap where she names a bunch of saints — Christopher, Sebastian, Anthony, Thomas Aquinas — with the ebullience of a collective ex-lover. A fine reason to clutch your rosary and repent.