Madonna had a night out in London on Thursday. She went to Mark’s Club party with photographers Mert & Marcus, plus she was celebrating Edward Enninful’s OBE. Like, maybe it was a twofer party or something? I have no idea. Kate Moss was there, as was Naomi Campbell. Madonna seemed drunk as hell – although I don’t know if she really was – and she was grinding up on a pole or something. Go here to see some photos.
Really, though, I just wanted to talk about these photos because I like to check in on Madonna’s facial work every so often. Last year was the big change, and I strongly suspect that Madge finally got a good quality plastic surgeon and/or filler-specialist who completely reworked her old (bad) work. Madonna 2015-16 has the face and skin of a newborn baby, healthy and fleshy and full. And in these photos, she looks especially “full” right? It reminds me a little bit of when Nicole Kidman was overdoing it too, and her face got so frozen that it felt like her eyes were crossing from over-Botoxing. And much like Kidman, I think Madonna is WAY overdoing the lip injections.
Incidentally, considering Lady Gaga is in the midst of a full-blown promotional tour to promote her new album, I would have thought that Madonna would have more to say about Gaga, even if it’s just in response to Gaga’s bitchy little shade. So far though, Madonna has kept everything cryptic.
Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet.
Yes.
ETA: Her obvious discomfort in aging makes me uncomfortable.
Yes!! Thank you!
Same here.
Yep. Exactly
I wouldn’t care if it were authentic. She doesn’t seem like she’s truly young at heart. You’ll know when you see people like that, and they don’t look like her.
But what’s the alternative to overt signs of aging? I think women get criticized if we or if we don’t. Can we win?
Word. I’m a year younger than she is, and it creeps me out to see someone my age being so overtly uncomfortable with being my age.
Yes. All this work she’s had done just makes her look older.
Is the sky blue?
She looks more and more like Jerry Hall.
Yes that’s it! I knew she reminded me of someone but my brain always went to Madame since her ‘transformation’. Madonna’s work has always been about creating the look of a bone structure that she never had. That’s not her face. It’s a shame because looking back Madonna was better looking than I gave her credit for at the time. I think her attitude made her less attractive to me. A few tweaks from good doctors would have gone a long way to keep her looking great and most importantly, like herself.
I had a pretty profound thought yesterday that there are some artists that I wish I didn’t have to see get older, past their prime and not embrace the change. This specifically applies to Madonna. Her approach on age and how age relates to her body of work has only soured how I feel about her when she was influential and in her prime. She was SO DYNAMIC it was palpable through the television when I first saw her. It would be amazing to remember her like that, instead of also remembering that she still wears fishnets and body suits. I won’t go into her cheeks, but you know.
I wish she had kept going in different directions like Ray of Light was to her previous set. That album was wonderful. But then she moved back to the overly sexualized version of herself and it just doesn’t work. The Botox and fillers and desire to stay young and relevant doesn’t work.
This! I thought of her in iconic pop stardom and thought “I wish she’d stopped” but then remembered this is a real person. As a real person I would hope that she would embrace different times in her life, as I hope that I do. Nothing is more awkward then watching a grandma wear bedazzled pants & twerk and they think they are cute (note to self- remember this).
The only exception (maybe): Cher. Although I did not like the Turn Back Time video as a kid and her a$$less chaps. She showed that women can be sexy at an older age but I just……not for me.
I do not dress as I did in my prime of youth. I need to work, try not to embarrass my children and that is just not me anymore. I can look at pics but I can’t recreate that time and trying just sucks. I am not a rebellious teen anymore (although I miss & love her with all my heart) and so that is not my gig and I need to put.it.down.
Life changes (and f- this but it’s true) and so we need to change with it. I agree that I liked her Ray of Light direction & wished she had continued going in the evolving, spiritual mother earth thing instead of trying to Lucky Star the crap out of us.
MC2 word that made me laugh and nod my head.
And also huge word to the perfectly placed Cher in all of this. However that video/song for Cher was probably her prime and a major comeback for. And from what I can tell, even Cher eventually put away the leotard and found the power of performing in pants.
Cher was 43 when she wore the assless chaps. Madonna is almost 60.
I didn’t much care for the assless chaps for any age, but I think at 43 it is a lot different than 60.
I think that assess chaps at any age are fair play, but I question why at “a certain age” you would want to do that. Not because it’s risqué or edgy, or even that it’s a younger woman’s game. For me, it’s that by the time you’ve gotten to 60, you should have transcended the need for that kind of attention. It’s not a surprise any more, and it’s been done. Really, it’s more for her ego than anything else. I would much rather see her stretch musically and do some crazy collaborations, perhaps more dancing, which she is good at…whatever. Society is so hyper-sexualised that it just really isn’t all that interesting to just have the buttless chaps on at any age.
Exactly. The so-called “aging” Cher of the 1980s was young enough to be the daughter of 2016 Madonna.
Madge got away with a lot. Ageism has been around her since Erotica, but it was restricted to the tabloids for the most part until she hit 50. Then commentary about her age became inevitable whenever she made a move.
In other words, she wasn’t plagued by ageism throughout her 30s and 40s like Cher was.
ITA. As a kid we idolized Madge. Never would have imagined that she’d turn out like this.
So true. It took me several years to face it, and was hard to face as a diehard Madonna fan.
Still, she was a bad-ass in the Rebel Heart Tour. Parts of the concert brought tears to my eyes she was so amazing again. It recaptured some of her glory for me, until towards the end of the tour when her meltdowns started happening over Rocco and being even later on stage, and the clown concert, etc., and it wasn’t pretty.
The answer is gonna be as Obvious as : Does a Bear Sh*t in the woods? Is the Sky Blue? Will I be broke after buying Xmas Presents? Does Donald Trump Use Cheeto Powder as a bronzer? I mean resounding YES! she looks like a Tupperware container about to burst after being overly microwaved, and Don’t even @ me, I feel about as bad as she feels calling her white son a N*gga whikst actually raising actual black children, or Photoshopping dead people with her stupid S&M garbage cause #Rebel
LOL! That was my exact first reaction — Does a bear sh*t in the woods?
Madonna had such an opportunity to reinvent her aging self as a fabulous Grande Dame of Pop. She’ll never be able to get by on just her vocal talent. But she could have taken her talent and charisma and crafted an image as the cool elder stateswoman that everyone admires.
COULD HAVE instead we sit with her here acting like a Thirstier Mariah Carey pressed asking the youth to “pls care you guys!”
“Tupperware container about to burst after being overly microwaved”. Winning comment of the day (and sadly for Madonna, a very accurate observation). I totally needed that laugh. Thank you.
Why is this even a question? She can barely move her mouth to talk
I think she look good. if i had her money i will do the same .. like 59. I don’t thing she abuse before.
Real answer- yes. Very yes. It looks really sad and desperate, especially combined with the look at me outfits. I get that she thinks she’s being relevant but it ends up looking cringe-y. (Ewwww, take your hand out of geemas crotch) Kate moss however, still killing it.
IT ends up looking embarrassing too!
She should just accept her age, everyone
else does.
Those poor kids. . .
I am a year older than Madonna and here’s the thing: as we age we lose the natural volume in our face. It’s just biology. That’s why you see some older ladies with sunken hollows in the cheek area and lower eyelids.
So to answer the question, yes. She’s done too much. Its very obvious. I have no problem with plastic surgery or cosmetic procedures. Everyone has something that bothers them and if you want to address it that way, go for it. I get Botox for my frown lines and will continue to do so.
My real problem with all of this is the pretense that nothing has been done. Girl, please. See also Christie Brinkley.
Madonna looks great. She’s aging ON HER TERMS.
With all the millions she has the right.
I would do the same if I was aging like her but black don’t Crack so I’m fine.
Haha, I love this comment!
In addition to her face work, it looks like she’s had her hands done–look, no gloves!!!!–and her gut and thighs look heavier. Has she gained some weight??
I thought that too! Her hands look better than mine, and I am 15 years younger. I wonder what she did, my hands aging is the one thing that gets me.
It depends on the lighting. Her hands aren’t old looking wrinkle-wise. But her hands have tons of raised veins, which is what makes them look so old usually. In other photos caught in the right lighting and not photoshopped, it’s still very noticeable.
It worries me. I take after my mother as far as my hands as I have prominent veins also. Is this what I have to look forward to?
Do you think men sit around and talk about how wrinkly their hands are? Somehow, I doubt it. It is exhausting to be a woman…
I’m thinking she’s doing lasers on her hands, hence the period where she was wearing gloves all the time.
This was a photo taken at the end of the summer going out to eat with Rocco in London, and it’s the best she’s looked in ages. Her outfit was classic, age appropriate, with some style. Her hair had soft waves. Her face didn’t look overplumped.
Too bad she doesn’t do this more often.
http://www.modicanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/38525F4B00000578-0-image-a-101_1473814267003.jpg
And Madonna having a visit with Rocco’s teacher or head of the school (I’m not sure which) in September. She looked great, I thought.
http://www.madonna.nl/images/stories/nieuws/2016/Madonna_in_Londen_september_2016-2.jpg
She looks really great in those photos, she could do classic with an edge really well rather than chasing youth like she does, but it is a hard business for aging women.
She does look great in both of those photos. Super chic. I wish she dressed like this at events as well as in real life.
Between this and all her ridiculous antics such as dressing with her butt hanging out, does she really have to wonder why her son doesn’t want to live with her?
Yes! She looks better, but you can still tell she’s full of fillers.
Uh, am I the only one completely mystified as to why Lady Gaga gets a pass on her absolutely obvious plastic surgery? Why is every other female celebrity under a microscope like this except her? Forgot the “shade” she threw Madonna…like Madonna cares what that has-been says. The real issue is that Gaga now looks older than Madonna thanks to what appears to be a lip job, jaw resculpting, brow lift, botox, lipsuction…yet nobody says anything. I saw her on “Carpool Karaoke” and she sure wasn’t born that way.
I just mentioned it in the Jennifer Lopez thread. Gaga’s face doesn’t move.
I comment about GaGa’s PS every time I see a pic of her. She literally looks like a completely different person and not in a good way.
Imagine being so unhappy with every aspect of your face that you have everything altered until you no longer resemble yourself in any way. It says a lot about her.
Agreed! I feel like people arent really talking about it. Sometimes I barely recognize her. Its extremely saddening to see and its distracting at times. Aside from the nose job and lip injections I cant quite put my finger on what else she did to her face – its just really off… for someone who just turned 30, its super depressing =(
I said in the last “Links” post a few days ago that had GaGa as the header photo that if her name is not in the header/caption/label, I *barely* recognize her in pics anymore. Kim K copious amount of “subtle” face changes/-ing since 1st becoming popular can NOT be so easily ignored…
I saw her on SNL last week, and it was like watching a car wreck. So horrible…and I couldn’t look away. She’s scary!
Madonna’s tilted cap just looks dated to me, an older woman trying to be cool and failing. I don’t mind the rest of her outfit, for Madonna, out at that party. Madonna and Cher will always pull out things like that, no matter their age. I actually like her shoes. But the cap is cringeworthy, in my eyes, because it feels so tryhardy..
…she’s obviously having a lovely time…keep it up…
chipmunk cheeks.
I don’t mind her surgeries and whatnot, what turns me off is you can feel she’s serious as a death and taxes about it. Some celebs manage to pass it off lightly (at least in public) – dolly or cher for instance. That aside, she’s in fantastic shape and good for her.
Ya, think??
@Pamela, Cher didn’t give up showing her ass in her 40s.
Here she is at age 68 — repeat 68 years old — in concert in 2014 performing If I Could Turn Back Time. Her fans, senior citizens, middled-aged, and younger, loved it. Dayum, she pulled her costume off.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XH5GLpJhllQ
all hail cher, shes the queen
Her body is her friend – so much pleasure!!!!
“Stop it, Grandma. You’re embarrassing me!”
Cultural messages are the heart of this distress. Everything dies, there is absolutely no reason to defy the logic of All Life. It is good – to be alive; to ingest Sunlight, yet to embrace, that at death, we are fertile earth. It is glorious, to be a Part Of.
Looked at the Sun pix in the link. Who is the guy Irina Shayk is holding hands with? Wasn’t she with Bradley cooper? And classy stocking ladder Kate Moss. Poor Lindsay Lohan – she looks pretty rough…
When are we going to see an article on how Mick Jagger looks like a walnut atop a gantry tower but is still performing?
Thurry – this is a very good point!
He does look like a walnut. He doesn’t seem to have felt the need for procedures. I’ve never been a fan of hers, but Madonna could be badass at her age: Chrissie Hynde springs to mind. I’m not expecting her to be frumpy or dowdy. But there’s something desperate about her. It seems to send the signal that the appearance of youth is essential to being a woman, a sexual woman, a star. It isn’t and I think that’s such a negative message to send. If you aren’t afraid of something, you embrace it. You find other ways of expressing your essential Madonna-ness. She’s not doing that. I think that outfit would look tacky on anyone though. And I’ve always hated those vaguely Nazi caps. She is supposed to be the mistress of reinvention, though I’ve always been dubious about that. So why not reinvent a Madonna of her own age rather than a facsimile of one from 30 years ago?
Mick Jagger’s and the Stone’s decades of brilliant performances as opposed to Madonna’s mediocre talent and posing as an artiste. It’s not about looks when it comes down to music for many of us. Maybe why popular music sucks for the most part the days.
Lol, is water wet?
Her nose has that “bunny nose” effect caused by botox (squinches up at center because the face can’t move freely).
Why has no one mentioned LEATHER & PEARLS, really? Uuuughhh
Gestapo leather and pearls. Tacky as always Madge.
I don’t give a damn how old she is, or if she wants to get work done. And I don’t care for the double standard that gives men a pass to look like a foot that’s been in the bath too long, while women are considered over the hill at 30. But I think she’s gotten the face she deserves.
I think Madonna looks good. But when you see her hands it ruins the overall effect of trying to look young. My favorite celeb who looks natural and beautiful is Deborah Norville who is 58. I think she has the ideal look for someone her age.
The overly botoxed and fillered (autocorrect keeps changing that to filleted which is also apt) is old news, I’m more confused about her dressing like a middle aged bear at Mardi Gras.
Highland Fashionista, “Assless chaps at any age are fair play.” I love that line! Thanks for lightening up a bleak last 11 days before this frigging election. I’m going to try to think of your hilarious phrase at least once a day until this hell show iS OVER (not that it ever will be)/
Also, I hate this periodic re-assessment of women’s facial work. There’s something I don’t like about it, just as I don’t like that women (including myself) feel the need to do this work. Insecurity, misogyny, self-worth–it’s all mixed in there.
The problem is not doing some works to look better, the problem is trying desperately to be twenty years old forever: let’s face it, it’s impossible. There’s plenty of women who are aging gracefully and are still beautiful and full of charme. But they aren’t so thirsty for attention as she is, they don’t try to compete with younger women. When you are aging, men don’t look at you as before? Who gives a damn!
She’s starting to look ‘Wildensteiny’ to me as the jaw looks different, I suspect as so much filler has been added it’s needed to now be contured all over and her eyebrows looks false and Wildensteiny. Please Madge stop!
This question should have been asked about 20 years ago.
She can try to look young in the face but her hands gives her age away.