Madonna really wanted her new album, MDNA, to work out. She seemed like she was back to her old stunt-queen self, causing controversy at the Super Bowl (not really), releasing “controversial” music videos for “Give Me All Your Luv” and “Girl Gone Wild” (except not really, they were just bad, try-hard videos). And she also had some “controversial” cross-promotional crap when the commercial for her “Truth or Dare” perfume was banned on ABC, sort of, because no one wanted to look at Madonna’s jugs. Madonna was working all of the old angles, hoping that MDNA would blow everyone away and sell like crazy and then she would be on top, forever and always and she would be the most important person for ETERNITY!! Except nothing happened. No one is buying Madonna’s album. Poor Madge.
Madonna’s new CD MDNA has crashed and burned, leaving a record-setting failure in its wake. With numbers still being finalized, it appears that the Material Girl has become immaterial to listeners, evidenced by an 88 percent crash from week one to week two of sales.
The CD sold 359,000 copies when it debuted at the top of the Billboard charts and has now plummeted to 46,000 copies.
And here’s a I-wish-I-hadn’t-said-this quote from her manager, Guy Oseary, issued when things were going well: “People are really digging it,” he claimed about MDNA. “We feel good about the album. It’s her 12th album and the same story she had 30 years ago. That’s an amazing accomplishment.”
Perhaps he should have read some of the reviews, which painted Madonna as out of touch and tired. Said the LA Times: “MDNA more than anything sounds like an album made by someone who’s lost touch with the desires of today’s popular music… the Madonna of today has lost the art of surprise.”
Well not entirely, because her record failure has surprised some people, especially Oseary, who clamed Madonna didn’t need to heavily promote the album because the music would speak for itself. Apparently it did. And no one is listening.
Reports also indicate that while MDNA sold well in its first week of release, the sales numbers were partially the result of some “trickery” (or “gristly magic”). Her label, Interscope, joined up with Live Nation (owner of Ticketmaster) to combine album “sales” with ticket sales for Madonna’s upcoming tour. Meaning that everyone who paid an exorbitant amount for a ticket to one of Madonna’s upcoming tour dates got a free copy of MDNA, and then Interscope counted those free albums into the sales numbers. Which may have inflated the “359,000 copies” number by as much as 185,000. Meaning that maybe Madonna only sold 179,000 copies of MDNA, and the rest were given away for free. Meaning that Lionel Richie’s new album totally out-sold her. Poor Madonna.
Photos courtesy of Madonna’s MDNA art.
Hmm maybe she should do a couple of records with gaga and re-release the cd
OUCH!!
400k of Gaga’s “BTW” sales were down to her giving it away for 99 cents as part of an Amazon deal, ALL “MDNA” copies were charged at full price. People were just given the option to buy it when they bought a ticket.
What is your point? Even without the Amazon sale, Gaga sold nearly 200% of the albums that Madonna did WITH her promotion. If you leave out Gaga’s and Madonna’s promotional sales, Gaga sold nearly 300% of the albums Madonna did.
(1.1 million – 400,000 you claim were amazon sale = 700,000 Gaga albums at full price. 700,000 / 359,000 = 1.95x)
@Tiffany, I didn’t say Gaga’s sales wouldn’t have been good without the 400k she DID scam with that deal, they would have been but as usual Gaga inflates her numbers with BS like when she claims “The Fame” SOLD 10m ww when it SHIPPED 10m and 8m copies were actually sold, or how she’s claiming 7m copies of “BTW” have been SOLD but again those are shipment figures, it’s sold like 5.5m.
The fact i was making was that Madonna didn’t have a PROMOTION (like Gaga) she just offered fans the CHOICE to BUY the album FULL PRICE when they purchased a tour ticket, it was up to the individual if the decided to pay FULL PRICE for the album. Also If those that did buy the album hadn’t done so with the tickets it’s logical to think that most of them would have just bought it elsewhere anyway. You might want to think Madonna is irrelevant but the fact that her tours sell more tickets than and make more money than any other solo artist says otherwise.
You need to get the facts straight. Gaga didn’t “scam”…Amazon was the entity that determined the pricing. Amazon paid Gaga’s label the difference between what they bought it for, and what they sold it for. They wanted attention for their cloud service, so they used Gaga’s album to get it. Smart business move.
Secondly, you can also argue that some of those people that bought the Gaga cd with the Amazon discount would have bought it anyway at full price. If you are going to make that point for Madge, logic dictates that you have to make that point for Gaga.
Third, I don’t think Madonna is irrelevant, but she is clearly coasting on nostalgia. Gaga sold 174,000 in her second week. That is a HUGE difference between the 48,000 Madonna sold in her second week. I was ready to enjoy Madonna’s new work, but she didn’t put in enough effort to make the MUSIC good enough, so only the dire hard fans are buying what she is selling.
@Tiffany, whether Amazon paid her label the full price or not is IRRELEVANT they don’t count as SALES they count as SHIPMENTS, only albums bought from the retailer by a consumer count as a sale and by selling them for 99 cents (which there is no way they’d do first week without her or her labels permission) that is a scam IMO and no the same logic can’t be applied about going elsewhere to buy they album because Madonna charged FULL price and gave nothing away for free, Gaga charged 99 cents and it came with that new Cloud thing which is what most of the people who bought it were after. And incase you didn’t realise “MDNA”‘s sales fell like 86% in it’s second week and “Born this way” fell 84% so you shouldn’t even bring it up lol
As for Madonna riding nostalgia that’s BS, she’s always been relevant… “Hard Candy” sold about 1m less copies than “BTW” and that was with way less promo and lets not forget that not long ago Madonna’s “Confessions… ” album SOLD 11m copies not shipped.
lets throw some light on to this debate,yes madonna has been succsesfull but so have mcdonalds and we all know what garbage that is,her music has always appealed to people of a limited intellect,fact the woman has an awful voice,she sings to a backing track and mimes and anybody kidding themselves otherwise is deluded,lets see her on stage with just a microphone without all the pyrotecnics and dancers,it wont happen,also she is a quite despicable human being .she made a career out of headlines and shock value,she would sell her soul to the devil for a headline,she has no class or style,she puts everything out there,legends always have mystique and she has none,she belongs in this awful world of hype and vulgarity,she is in the same league as the osbournes or her progeny the even less talented britney,then her fans call her an original,nothing about her was original she stole from everyone,her fans call her theatre,give me a break,grace jones is theatre for instance and an original,im afraid in the long light of day all she ever realey was is a cheap tramp who fooled a lot of simple people.
LOL this is a joke!!! GaGa’s second album sold 6 million in 18 months, Madonna’s second album sold 19 million and eventually went on to sell 24 million! Her third album 30 million! Madonna has nothing to prove! The wannabe GaGa with dropping album sales is the person who has everything to prove! Madonna has sold over 300 million albums and MDNA is her 12th, i doubt anyone will even know who GaGa is in 30 years time! And she doesnt give her albums away for 99c either!
You’re comparing 2011 sales figures to 1984 and 1986 sales figures, when albums sales were at their highest? Um..yeah…you sound really smart.
Tried listening to the album. But couldn’t listen to even one track all the way through. There wasn’t even one song I liked.
I wouldn’t take the album even if it was free and I would never pay that much for a concert ticket. She’s old and lossing it. Time for her to move on to other adventures.
I know! She has so much money and ability to devote herself to something more meaningful than her middle aged ego! It’s no secret that she’s always put herself first, and I’m kind of happy that no one’s interested anymore.
Madonna = cheap trick? Shocker.
+1
Go away, old lady. Stop embarrassing your kids.
Can you harp on something besides age? I don’t like her either, but agism is a poor choice. Remember someday you’ll get there. Hopefully you wont have a bunch of people telling you to sit down and shut up because you’re old. Harp on the material, her inappropriate behavior, bad manners with fans.
But not age. That’s not something anyone can stop and it is unflattering on you to use it as an insult.
That argument is fail because MADONNA HERSELF IS AGEIST, and people are just keeping it real.
At what point do you as a woman pushing 60, not realize that the surgeries and gym abuse to stay looking, and failing, 20 something is part of the problem with people thinking badly about aging? when all of your boytoys are frigging old enought to be your children, what does that say about aging.
Madonna is not trying to age gracefully and people are coming at her for it. Madonna is trying to stay relevant and she thinks keeping up that tired wrinkly ass schtick is happening. You don’t see Kylie Minogue being that extra and she does quite well for herself on tours and everything. There is just not excuse.
@origin V
Your argument for agism does not hold up. Its still a slam on her material and her attitude that is relevant. The agism that runs through it all, despite the fact that she deserves ridicule is disturbing. I don’t think Madonna is ageist. I think she is out of touch and clueless. Where is the agism? And your language is a FAIL. Try using something you thought of yourself when your putting someone in their place.
“Just Keepin it Real” Seriously? OK Kanye.
I agree with bad fairy. The level of outright hostility for this woman for daring to present herself as sexual is shocking.
Hey, what’s wrong with Cheap Trick? They had some good songs. 🙂
Haha – Now THERE’s a band with integrity.
What music? Her manager has rocks in his head. Her music is all electro, auto tuned rubbish.
It’s as though they created the music on Garageband.
Exactly, Maya! Hahaha!
Madonna=GarageBand. Ah, your comment made my day! Spot on!
“The same story she had 30 years ago” pretty much sums it up. Just listening to little snippets here and there were too much like her old, old stuff so why bother. Trying way too hard to be her younger self still.
IKR??? That quote made me laugh because it’s not exactly a compliment to say that.
The numbers aren’t inflated, though. When buying a Madonna concert ticket on their site, you had the option of adding a physical/digital copy of “MDNA” to your order… for an additional $10. The same price as everyone who pre-ordered the album through iTunes had to pay. Nothing was given away for free.
I guess this just makes a better story. Poor, poor Madonna.
um labels inflating album sales is nothing new it’s gone on for decades and Madonna only gets away with the prices she charges for concert tickets because she’s a legend.
Points and laughs.
Inflated sales are becoming the norm. A lot of artists are giving away albums with concert tickets and doing deep discounts. I think Gaga sold her last cd for a dollar for a few days too pad sales. Madonna, like a lot of older acts, can only sell tickets not music.
Gaga didn’t sell her album for 99 cents, Amazon did. Amazon wanted to advertise their new cloud system, so they paid the the difference to the record company.
What’s your obsession with Gaga? It’s not healthy. Btw, this is a Madonna post. And to compare Gaga to Madonna is laughable. Try/Copy harder Gaga.
My obsession with Gaga? I was responding to others who were posting incorrect information about her sales. I deal with business matters of recording artists (not Gaga or anyone affiliated), so I think it is important to correct when people are presenting misinformation.
First off, I have never liked Madonna and I think even less of Lady Gaga, who is nothing more than a clone of Madonna. But you have put me in the one place I never thought I would be — in the camp of defending Madonna. When you compare the two, you forgot that Lady Gaga is at the stage of her career where Madonna was after she released Material Girl. That was well over 25 years ago. Something tells me that people will not be mentioning Lady Gaga when talking about popular music in 25 years – let alone holding her to the standard of record of one of the biggest selling acts (what a perfect word for Gaga) in music today. And by the way, Material Girl dramatically outsold Born This Way (and the first one too). It also had substantially more hits than the one successful single from BTW. And let’s not forget, that song was a blatant rip-off of Express Yourself. I now feel dirty after defending the one artist (. . . must try to hold back the laughs in using that term for Madonna) that I have detested since 1983. I hope you are happy. Oh wait, you are a Lady Gaga fan, which means you’re likely a cutter.
Surely you must get to the point where you say “I’ve got a bajillion dollars, you know what, I’m gonna have a rest.” and do something that’s enjoyable and not so pressurised – especially when you’ve got no new ideas. Hell, if I were her, I’d buy my own tropical island and retire!
I think that Madonna is an extreme narcissist. Her family/friends have described her narcissistic behavior.
For the most part, these types cannot live without fame, adoration, and having their egos constantly stroked. Ever since she hit the spotlight, it’s been one attention-getting stunt after the other to keep the spotlight on her. She’ll do anything for attention. Warren Beatty described her as fame-obsessed. He said about her, What’s the point of doing anything if there isn’t a camera to record it? Why would you do anything?
I think her need for attention will continue…so help us all. 😉
Did you read the book her brother wrote? One horror story after another of a self absorbed control freak.
Maybe the albbum didn’t sell because it was completely wack?
I also tried listening to it and as a Madonna fan from way back it broke my heart.
The last good album she did was Confessions. Hard Candy was so-so.
This was complete rubbish.
Madonna follows every fad and this electro-Euro American pop wave with dubstep flavorings (at least what I heard on “Gangbang”) is no different….just didn’t wash this time.
If she’s going to make more albums she needs to stop trying so hard to keep on top of whats current and just go back to being the mother of invention. She was at her best during Bedtime Stories & Ray of Light because what she was doing was *different*
As much as I dislike Madonna, Confessions on a Dance Floor was actually a brilliant album. I still listen to it in the car all the time. Anything she has done since has been utter shite.
OK, she looks great for her age 50+ but why does she always have to open her legs and give the world a shot of her crotch rot?
She thinks she’s being controversial and edgy. Hahahaha! Jokes on her.
Crotch rot! Hilarious.
People realize she’s not 25 anymore. And nothings worse than watching a 50 yr. old try to be 25 again.
I’m not an ageist so won’t bring that into it with childish insults. Reality is though that you can’t stay on top forever. She’s had a great run but it looks like it’s time to move on. Only thing is she signed a contract for so many albums and tours in the next few years. If she has to fulfill that obligation, she can just try to do better on the next one.
her boobs look drawn own those first two pictures below the text
I wish when people criticize her that they wouldn’t keep throwing her age in her face. I don’t really understand what her age has to do with her ability to make music, good or bad. Physically the woman is probably on par with a 35 year old.
Anyway, I do agree the music was just a throwback to her old stuff, but not even as good as that. I’ve enjoyed quite a few of her albums, but this one is just not up to snuff. When I compare Ray of Light with this, it’s just disappointing.
agreed – men her age and way older, like steven tyler, are still try-hard stunt queens, and no one seems to throw that in their faces…
Tmbg, some people bring up her age because Madonna still wants to act like the Madonna of the 80s. She does look physically fit and is in better shape than some younger women, that being said no one wants to look at her 50+ year old beaver. The time has come for Madonna to close her legs, put the beaver away and concentrate on her music. Sad thing is Madonna thinks the way to keep the attention of her fans is acting like the 1980s tramp they have grown to worship. She reeks of desperation, sad really. Mick Jagger and Steven Tyler are not running around in leotards giving the world crotch shots of their 60+ year old testicles.
Argghh!!!Now I have an image in my mind that I do not wish to for this whole day!!!
Well, that’s fair enough. I don’t need to see her butt hanging out of her shorts or a camel toe!
But actually, I don’t want to see that on anyone, whether they’re 20 or 50.
I do understand where you’re coming from though. I felt like she really turned a corner with Ray of Light and Music, and then Confessions on a Dance Floor was pretty good too. Then it seemed like she ran out of ideas. (Hard Candy had a couple of decent songs, but it wasn’t as enjoyable as the other three I mentioned.)
Well, I bought it and like her last album, it’s growing on me. What can I say, I have a soft spot for Madge. I don’t have to deal with her narcissism personally.
She still has a lot to give. She’s never been a good singer, but she’s charismatic and a good pop star. Her problem is that instead of growing, like she did with Confessions, she’s trying to chase lost youth, and that’s never pretty, or authentic.
She wouldn’t be so bad if she just put some clothes on and acted a lil more her age. Some of my favourite Madonna songs are her ballads!
Slow it down, soften her image a little and get back to singing ballads and it might actually work better.
Then again Cher is how old and she isn’t exactly covering up when she’s out there howling on a stage lol (I love her)
The last concert I went to in 2007 she wore a stunning tailored blouse with riding pants, boots. Second set, she wore velour jeans, boots, and peasant blouse. Third set, black jeans with a body suit top and gorgeous sparkly low boots. Fourth set, a John Travolta three-piece white suit first song, stripped off to a dancing segment with retro dance leotards and Danskin type outfits. Her body was magnificent. Madonna covers up more in concerts than nonconcert-goers realize who love to paint her one way. Her concerts are multi-layered.
Covering up in concert doesn’t really matter if she is showing most of her chest in promotional images. She has continued to wear very little clothing in the images she has used to promote her cd. You can’t blame people for calling her on what she is clearly showing them.
Totally agree about the ballads. My favorite Madonna song is “Live to Tell.”
This is what she gets for lack of TV promotion, appearances
BUT I have realized recently how many sites have an agenda against Madonna. They site one or two not good reviews and purposely don’t site all the great reviews for this album. Across the board it ends up to be generally favorable reviews. It’s not my favorite album by her, so I was surprised by all the positive reviews. But this album definitely wasn’t a flop review-wise. She
is focusing hard on her tour saying it is the most she has ever put into a tour and hardest she has ever worked on one, which Madonna has always had strong work ethic. I think it is going to be spectacular and will sell a lot of albums off of it. The album with the ticket is only in the US.
This is false, free albums don’t count towards chart positions what happened was that people who bought a ticket were given the OPTION to BUY a copy of the album FULL PRICE.
Also it doesn’t seem like Madonna actually cared about how the album did, her manager even told a fan who said she needed to promote it that she doesn’t care, It’s obvious that she and her label are concentrating 100% on the tour which will probably rake in like $500,000,000 easily.
This is completely different to Gaga who sold her “Born this way” album for 99 cents in some scam Amazon deal first week, all “MDNA” copies were charged at FULL price.
word.
Scam? Gaga didn’t sell her cd for 99 cents, Amazon did. They were trying to promote their new cloud system. They bought the cds at full price to the record company, and then re-sold them for a big discount. Amazon chose to take the loss, because they were using Gaga’s work as a way to draw attention to their own product. Hardly a scam.
@Tiffany, whether Amazon paid full price or not the CONSUMER did not they paid 99 cents which would not have happened without Gaga or her labels permission, This is completely different to Madonna offering the album FULL PRICE when somebody bought a tour ticket.
The truth is Gaga does not give 2 shits about album sales because she knows that in this day & age with the Internet and ALL the ILLEGAL downloading file hosting sites poisioning the web Gaga knows that so much MUSIC gets STOLEN anyway. What Gaga does care about is the that her music puts a smile on people’s faces when they here it and a pop star knows that today the only way you know your still RELEVENT in the music business is to perform SOLD OUT WORLD TOURS which she is currently doing with BORN THIS WAY BALL of all the places she has taken that tour around the world every show has SOLDOUT in under 20min. So album sales are irrelevant maybe album sales counted for something back in the 1950s 60s 70s 80s 90s early 2000s BUT NOT ANYMORE because of the Internet !!!!!! WAKE UP EVERYBODY!!!!!!!!
I think Lionel deserved the number 1 album last week. He outsold her. Madonna’s age wouldn’t be an issue if she still made good music but she doesn’t. When you base so much of your career on imagery and selling sex, it’s understandable that you can’t keep doing that forever. Are her concert tickets selling well? What I’ve heard makes it sound like they aren’t, at least not as well as last time. Maybe her fans are finally tired of being ripped off and treated badly by her.
He didn’t outsell her. All those buying the special presale tickets to her concert are hardcore fans who were and would have bought an album regardless. It was an option to chose from when buying the ticket.
Ah, I knew it wouldn’t be long before you showed up. You should get paid for being such a stan.
Ainsley, what is a stan? you mean fan?
Jazzmin, I think “stan” either comes from putting stalker and fan together or it comes from the Eminem song about an obsessed fan named Stan. It’s just a way of describing a super fan.
How does stating the FACT that the albums sold with tickets were optional and full price make anybody obsessed or delusional?
Continuing to say otherwise when the facts are out there if you bother to look makes it more likely that you are a Madonna hater IMO.
Whenever that Give me all ur Luv song comes on, I always think its an Averil Levign song. Then I realize its Madonna. And for that reason, Madonna should feel ashamed.
I may be a huge Stan, but a fairly objective one. Hate Give Me All Your Luvin (except loved the video). This album will be my least played ever because I hate her vocals on half the album, all the distorted auto-tuned vocals. Eight songs I love and she sounds great. . But many fans love it, like my friends. I did not like her last
tour in 2008 that much and felt it suffered because she was in the midst of a divorce and as a fan have always complained about that tour as a whole.
Jayna, how much did you pay for tickets on the last tour? I’m just curious because people always say her tickets are expensive. What was the range?
True Blue was a great cd why can’t she make music like that again
True Blue was probably my favourite album by Madonna. Every single song was greatness.
Because she is an industry machine now
Ainsley, to answer your earlier question above (no reply option) for her Confessions tour 2006/2007, I paid I think it was around 200 per ticket for really good seats, not the best seats. The concert was so brilliant it was worth every penny. Her tickets this tour in the US were 50, 95, 175, 365,(before the add on fees) and then the VIP packages which I read can go up to 2,500. The 50 dollar seats are like limited viewing or behind the stage etc. I have always gone for the 175 to get great viewing. With her presale tickets for longtime fans you can score some great seats.
we can all smell the very public reek of desperation. Just SAD. whenever you see a picture of lourdes it seems like she’s looking at her mother and thinking ‘this is the shit i should be doing’, why can’t her mum be normal ?
being an aging pop or rock star cannot be easy. it is an industry for the young.
elton, madonna, mick, bono…they all need to just accept it and stop beating a dead horse.
neil young is one of the few that has managed to make a successful transition. his music may not always be my taste, but his career/music is still respectful.
Wow…Bono stop beating a dead horse? What planet are you on?
bono and U2 have not made a decent song since the early nineties. their music is now for the middle aged.
@Jackie their Zooropa wasn’t a bad record at all (mid 90’s) and the 2001 All that you can’t leave behind was flawless. I understand it’s cool for the kids to hate U2 and especially Bono nowadays but every band has it’s off moments, U2 has only two bad records and they’ve been making music since the 70’s thank you very much
if it’s cool for the kids to hate them, that says it all.
i’m 44 years old and use to love them in the late 70’s and 80’s.
well i’m surprised by your age because up to now everybody complaining of bono was in their teens (that i’ve seen, online). however i’m 33 myself and like i said i didn’t care for those two bad records (pop and how to dismantle…) but i’ll always hold a special place in my heart for them for the sake of the 80%of their songs that do not suck. and for such a prolific band 80% is a pretty good rate. i like other alternative rock bands too and they also have many songs that suck. bands do make a shitty album or two, it happens.
Robert Plant, Tina Turner, Carlos Santana are still out there going strong and way better than what one poster said was Madge’s latest foray into autotuned rubbish.
Well, I still hate GaGa.
In 30 years, this will be Gaga if she’s still around at all.
so true…
i think they’ve been inflating her numbers for a while now… making her seem as successful as she was back in the 80’s… is that even possible? most of her fans have grown up…
@Jackie, U2 hasn’t made good music since the early ’90s? Wow. 2004’s How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb was amazing. Their music for the middle-aged? I am not middle-aged, nor are my friends. Their tours have every age group imaginable when I was lucky enough to finally see them their last tour.
I second that!
I adored/worshipped/loved Madonna when I was young-I did every dance I could with her music in my recitals, was her every year for Halloween 4 years in a row, and know all her music by heart….Her delusional hipness this past decade has been very disheartening. I think she could still make music-but no one will listen if she continues girating around on stage in leotards making her image a joke. Tone down the image, dress like someone in her age range should and still be stylish and concentrate on the MUSIC. She could also make a mint just touring and sining her oldies/goodies but she’s too set on being a sensation and making everything about her.
^^^THIS!
I’m still trying to understand how selling
400,000+ cds bomb. IN these times, when no ones buying cds, those aren’t bad figures.
They’re saying it Bombed because they think she gave a lot of those copies away free with tour tickets which is false, Free albums don’t count towards chart positions and the album wasn’t given away free anyway people who bought the tour ticket online were given the option to buy the album full price so all sales were full price and not free and therefore this whole thing is irrelevant.
Had to turn CD off halfway thru – one-dimensional, embarrasing, cheap – sounds like euro disco written by a teenager who’s taken too much ritalin. And I LOVE her stuff thru,”Don’t Tell Me”. This music is sh*%.
“gristly magic” ~ lol
I think she needs to ditch the heavy electronic dance thing and do some kind of acoustic or rock thing. Change it up, get away from the overproduced synthesizer thing.
I think that is because nobody wants to see their grandmother gyrating and being provacative. It is gross.
She looks like she is wearing a nursing bra. Too funny.
Hey she’s sold more than leann rimes last release so there is always an upside
Hey she’s sold more than leann rimes last release so there is always an upside.
I have two words where Madonna is concerned: Faye Dunaway. Separated at birth??
except faye is beautiful. and talented.
Oufa!
@Coucou English, please
I have to say I have a big problem with women posing with their finger stuck in their mouth, pretending to be stupid to pander themselves.
Keep it in the Penthouse mag if you want, but I don’t wanna see Madonna or Lindsay or a Smirnoff billboard or anybody doing this. It’s very denigrating to women, and even worse when you are not in your 20s, or stupid. It’s not done in real life because grownups do not walk around sucking on their fingers unless they have a screw loose.
See, this is my problem with Madonna at all. She put the cause of women and their struggle for dignity back about 30 years with her lubricious posturing, gyrating and finger in her mouth. She makes me want to vomit for that, and I’m not the least bit impressed with her supposed “talent.” I know full well that all of her music was invented in the studio by the best producers money could buy.
WORD.
Manufacturing controversy (and thus selling albums) by being bluntly sexual and “rebellious” against the establishment works only when you’re a pretty young thing. That sexy rebel pose is hardly convincing when you are 53 and worth more than half a billion dollars, because you are now part of the establishment, part of the wealthy 1%. If she had actual vocal or acting talent she wouldn’t have to resort to the same old crude tricks she’s relied on since the 1980s.
she should apologise to Lionel richie cos people actually bought his. Fair and square
It’s time for celebrities of the 80s to hang up their hats and make room for fresher and unknown talent. That goes for Madonna, Oprah, and Demi. I see similarities in these women because they could have finished at the top of their careers, left with some dignity, and enjoyed their millions in retirement. Instead of aging gracefully and taking some time away from the spotlight, these relics of the 20th century couldn’t let go of the past. Like much in life, many of these older celebrities were at the right place at the right time when MTV, modern day bubble gum pop music, teen dramas, and talk shows were born. Unfortunately, their success fed their enormous egos to the point where they thought they were unstoppable, incapable of failure, and would always be in demand. All three of these women (although there are many other male and female celebrities just like them) are getting a cold hard dose of reality right now. Just because they are Oprah or Madonna does not mean they can put out a crap product (or network) and think millions will buy into it. The entertainment industry is incredibly sexist and ageist. That is the way it has always been and will remain probably forever. Sex is the only thing masking the bad dancing, lip synching, and bad music of these young pop starlets. Madonna is no longer innovative and she can no longer hide behind sex to mask a mediocre voice.
If that’s the case, why are Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, U2, Madonna, my beloved Depeche Mode (in Europe) selling out stadiums? Seriously, you want them to hang up their hat when they all produce new music, tour behind it, and play in larger venues than younger acts? I saw Elton John in his sixties and he was fantastic. My 15 year old nephew went with his dad to a Paul McCartney stadium concert and was blown away.
I completely agree with you, Jayna. Some music transcends generations – such as the artists you mentioned. I have taken my teenage niece with me to Bon Jovi, Depeche Mode and U2. She loves all of them and downloads all of their music. A few years ago when I was 30, I went with my 24 year old brother to a Bob Dylan concert. While neither one of us owned anything by Dylan, we went to the concert because we knew we would be watching a musical legend and we loved it! I went to a Tina Turner concert with my parents. While I’m not a huge Madonna fan (never have been), I hate that this has become a discussion about age. Madonna does look ridiculous at times, I’ll admit it. She has never been a particularly good singer, but she is good at marketing. Madonna the brand is what has kept her career going for as long as it has – that and working with some incredible producers and sound engineers. I admire the artists who stay fit and age gracefully – like Jon Bon Jovi, Bono, Tina Turner and Bruce Springsteen. I know it has to be hard aging in the entertainment industry – especially for women – but I really think things have gotten out of control. An artist is relevant as long as their art is – their age is irrelevant. To generalize and say that all celebrities of the 80’s (and earlier) need to hang up their hats and make room for fresher and unknown talent is asinine.
The difference is that these people have actual talent. I wouldn’t categorize them as pop stars like Madonna or Britney Spears. I think I would attend a Celine Dion concert 20 years from now because she actually has talent and a voice. The same goes for celebrities like Barbara Streisand and Meryl Streep. Talent has nothing to do with age. Parading around in underwear and selling sex in your 50s is another matter. I’m not including all stars of the 80s but many of them do need to go away because they don’t have much talent and have made their millions. Time to retire!
kibbles – your argument is not feasible. People are not just going to go away and stop trying to support themselves, especially when they are still popular. There is no pension involved in the music business. If you don’t work, you starve.
Starve? Or not be able to employ full staff at each mansion, or private jets?
Not all companies have pensions these days, and not everyone works for a company. Everyone I know has saved all their lives to put aside money for retirement. This is what “Retirement Plans” are for, and it is a business that employs millions of people. If any of these celebs put away even just 10% of their annual income over the years they’d surely never be close to starving.
If I had just one years’ worth of Madonna’s salary (or Demi’s, or Oprah’s) by, say, age 25, I’d have seen the world by now and would likely be able to support most of my friends in their retirements as well. It seems it is never enough money… or maybe it’s not the money? Perhaps is the fame, the adoration of screaming crowds, being desired, that is what fuels celebrities to keep going? That has to be difficult to lose. The Celebrity machine seems to go full circle; call the paps in an effort to get them to come take photos of you, hate the paps and complain bitterly about them, lunch at The Ivy and if the paps permanently camped out front don’t take your picture, do something outrageous or “leak” stories about yourself.
Madonna told an interviewer years ago that her kids were always begging her to work less and “be a mom more”; her reply?, [sic} “I tell them that’s where all this stuff comes from. They’ll realize that one day, even though they say now that they don’t care about the money”.
I hope she doesn’t come to regret those lost years. That quote made me sad.
Ah-the miracles of Photoshop!
she is a hustler…cannot keep her down.
the album is great.
She’s a hustler all right.
hahahaha.
all these comments about her AGE and attitude….whoa!
she should be quiet and non-sexual for a pop star and ACT her AGE and be put in her place because she is 53?!!!!!!!!
so what if she is being sexual and gyrating?
who cares?
wow.
(refer to the Ashley Judd item…)
this is America still right?
I’m with you on the age bit, but Ashley Judd was slammed more for her pretentious attitude than her age (at least by me) I admit having personal dislike for AJ. Have met and worked for her. She is truly awful. But its sad to see someone’s age used as an insult. There are far more relevant things to slam Madonna for.
It’s not just that, and it’s not her trying to act like she’s in her 20s – she’s acting like she’s SIXTEEN is what I have a problem with. 50 ain’t old, but it is old enough to know better. She knows better.
I have no interest in the new album, but she does still sell (expensive) tickets, so I don’t see her stopping anytime soon. I kind of wish she would, or at least try something different. Funny that guy said it’s the “same story”, and her cover art looks like she time traveled back to the 80s – either retire gracefully on all that success, or grow from it and do something new.
My whole thing with Madonna of the last say 10 years is that she is trying so hard to keep up with what’s hip and what’s exciting. From wearing the clothing of the moment to tour and perform in to getting the hottest acts in current music to sing with her on her songs.
Madonna was an innovator, she was one of a kind and she never had to try hard at anything. She just was who she was and she was successful. Now it is almost embarassing watching her try to be all that and more.
I loved Madonna, I have all of her albums up to the last 3 – including some on vinyl I’ve had since I was a girl but now she just looks silly. She looks like a woman trying to jump on whatever bandwagon is traveling the fastest and earning the most money.
I think that Madonna could really be successful with the over 30 demographic if she just sang her music and didn’t go for this Euro-pop, electronic crap. She’s trying to appeal to a different generation and they aren’t buying. She’s older than their parents for crying out loud, no one who is in their teens or early 20s wants to idolize someone who is older than their parents!!
All salient points. I do think she has always tried hard and worked hard though.
I just want to clarify the difference (because I seem to have been involved in a couple of exchanges) the difference between agism and acting inappropriately for her age. I agree with all the try too hard observations. The arrogance. She is doing some things that would be an eye roll coming from someone 30 years her junior. I agree with all that.
The problem is when it changes from “Your behavior is inappropriate for your age” to
“Sit down old woman and shut up” There is a huge difference. Its like arguing with someone who is less attractive than you and then calling them ugly. We as women are so hard on each other. And there will (if you’re lucky) come a time in your life when you realize that you are being perceived as less attractive. Its one of the hardest parts of being female.
at what EXACT age should FEMALE pop stars stop being sexual and should begin to act their AGE?
Nev.. take Cher for example..
Yeah, I know…when Cher was on the battleship in that head-to-toe leotard was that too much or was it kinda great?
Let’s not forget Tina!!
Listen, all you youngsters, I’m Madonna’s age, and I am not ready to be put out to pasture yet! Nor do I take Geritol. There’s nothing wrong with being 53. Trying to act like you’re 23 when you’re 53, however, is sad.
Its possible be a sexy mature woman and retain your dignity — look at Helen Mirren.
^^ This. Me too :: high five for the 53-year-olds ::
Great minds think alike. Nice cat, too!
She should realize that dressing/acting her age would b the MOST controversial thing she has done IN YEARS. If she really wanted attention & publicity she would do that.
do record sales really even matter anymore? touring is where the cash is and if her tour bombs then i will say she should hang it up.
The music business for the most part is balls-up dying because of illegal downloading. The only genuine money you can get is with touring. Not that she needs the money …
Respect please. She might be forever trashy but this woman changed the world for women pop artists and meant the world to young women (and gay men) for more than a decade. Everything that has come since has been a pale imitation of the boundaries she broke and the standards she set. I haven’t listened to her music in years (decades?) but that doesn’t mean I don’t understand the importance of what she did. So what if she wants to hang on to her youth? So what if she wants to keep breaking the boundaries, this time when it comes to how old is too old to still feel like you have something to add. How does that make her different from millions of other women in the world? Rock on Madge (but without your finger in your mouth like an idiot ingénue, it is beneath you).
Honestly… Those sales are a lot higher than I expected. The songs I heard off of it are terrible. BUT think of it this way…her “bomb” still sold more albums in the first week then Beyonce and Christina Aguilera’s “bombs.” As much as this site hates her and doesnt want to admit it, she still has a pretty devoted fan base. I do think she needs a new sound though. I think that’s why Ray of Light was so amazing…she switched it up and it worked.
No big surprise. She needs to evolve past the slutty cheerleader routine and do something adult and interesting for a change (quit grabbing her crotch and start making decent music would be a good start). Or maybe just retire.
I am a big Madonna fan. Love her. This is not my least favortie album, I like the first 4 tracks, but really don;t like give me all your lovin at all. But I will agree that I think this album is uninspired and she needs to rethink it a bit. American Life is my least favorite album.
But listening to Nothing Fails on American Life, her songwriting has faltered on this album. Nothing Fails was a beautiful love folk ballad with a stunning choir at the end. I would love that Madonna again.
American Life is my least favorite, but I loved that song and Hollywood. I am in LA and that song is so based in truth.
The problem is not her age. Her album is simply bad. All this stupid singing how young and wild she is… all this “i´m a girl”-stuff is just stupid and unrealistic! She tries too hard to keep “IN”. IMO she has no new ideas and copies now the “Euro-hop” a la David Guetta and Co. It doesn´t work!
THANK YOU, PHOTOSHOP for these pics of Madonna. I can’t wait to see the BEFORE PHOTOSHOP photos that get leaked.
I think she just made bad choices. She went back to what she had done before and not trying something new.
But everyone has failures. Beyonce, Gaga and even Adele will and have experienced this in the past.
Failure come to all performers.
well maybe she will get that no one wants to see granny poon ewwwwwwww
I have completely had it with this site. How is that people are allowed to come at my neck but I can’t come back a theirs? I did not curse at TruthTella or anything. But somehow my comments always get deleted and that is some bull weak ass shit.
But I see how it is. Thank God for Lipstick Alley.
No wonder. I listened to that album. And there is not a single one good song. All of them are awful. I just couldn’t believe that Madonna would record it and think that this is some good album with good hit songs.
Everybody knows album sales are flat and have been for years now and besides, how does #1 the first week and #8 the second week equal a FAIL??
The real numbers are reflected in the WORLD Chart and MDNA remains in the top 5 all over the globe. MDNA is selling at a about the same rate as “Hard Candy” did and it was the 11th biggest selling album GLOBALLY of 2008.
And all that bullshit aside, since when do sales have anything whatsoever to do with the artistic merit of an album?
What a double standard. If it was anybody else besides Madonna, the press would deem MDNA a HUGE success by any measure. She just beat her own record with her 42nd #1 dance hit, she’s sold out stadiums everywhere for her tour and is ADDING dates to meet demand and MDNA is in the Top 10 here and Top 5 all over the globe, but all we hear today is about what a failure Madonna is. Really? If that’s failure, I’d like some of that!
The thing is, Madonna has never been particularly talented as a singer and relied a lot on shocking. It’s not shocking when someone well into their 50s does it. She’s misjudging her status and what people nowadays think of her. Trying to strut it out and be shocking and be thought of as 25 doesn’t work.
I got her album free for buying a ticket for one of her shows. 😀
The one thing Madge should never have done was Evita. At the time I thought it was just the greatest thing ever (!) until I heard Patti LuPone and Elaine Paige’s versions.
Even my husband who doesn’t really care about music heard me play Madonna’s Rainbow High and then Patti’s version and he was like, “Holy crud, why is Madonna singing that song?”
In Patti’s book, she said they had to lower the keys for Madonna to sing the songs, because Evita is a really tough role for even the best voices.
When I was in school Madonna was popular! I wanted to dress like her, act like her, be her. But now she’s 53 and im 45. No teen or 20 something, etc today wants to dress like, act like or be a 53 year old woman! She needs to move on, her style of music is over & its sad that she doesn’t see that!
Just because teens/twenty something’s don’t wanna dress like her doesn’t mean she needs to hang anything up. People still buy her albums (evidently) and her tours are the biggest by a solo artist ever and a lot of those people are young, I’m 23 btw and have been a Madonna fan since i was a child…
Love the album! Love even more that the douchebags at this site don’t! Lol. Celebgross.
Those pics are photoshopped to DEATH!
It’d be nice if Madonna stopped being a sex OBJECT. And go back to her earlier efforts of showing how to be a sex SUBJECT. Doing the same poses as blohan is not remotely sexy at any age. Why does Madonna encourage such objectification? She should know better.
#1 in U.S. last week + #8 in U.S. this week + #1 GLOBALLY last week + #3 GLOBALLY this week = FAIL?
What I feel is most interesting is the idea that ever since this woman hit the scene…she has divided opinion….they said she wouldn’t last..she went to the top…then after she went too sexy/raunchy…she came down…then she crawled back up with Ray of Light and Music and Confessions…now she is hustling again…a true under-dog. love it…she is damn revelant..now she is too old and should sit down…nobody is telling paul mccartney, mick jagger, bruce springsteen or steven tyler to sit down though.
Why does she always pose with her legs wide open?
God I know. How she could push her crotch out continually for 30 years is beyond me.
Also in that triptych pic of her above you can see she has gotten lip fillers.
It’s disgusting isn’t it – makes me want to throw up every time she flashes her wrinkly old minge about the place. Just goes to show that $$ can’t buy you class (even if you can fake a British accent) !
Would someone please direct this women toward some age appropriate clothing, and remind her that just because you are a 50 year old hag in a leotard who loves to flash their fanny in your face, it does not make you a “Girl Gone Wild” .. it makes you a granny in a leotard EWWWWW!
MDNA #3 on the United World Chart = WIN
I think you’ll find the dirty old cow bought all the copies herself ! = FAIL!
Why all the Madonna hate? #1 is #1. I think its cool she is still working hard.
The album copies sold with the tour tickets came at an additional price, so they were not free and do count in the figures.
God how boring U all are!!!! she has a sold out tour!! Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Beyonce, or especially Britney etc. don’t have it!!!! F off !!!
I have just read some of this crap! I have saw madonna live 3 times and just saw her @ murryfield Scotland 21/7/2012 gold circle ! Everyone loved her show stopping performance she sang live sounded great looked 25 danced like a 25 yr old she is an inspiration to every 54 yr old woman that u know what u act how u feel enjoy life and it’s a party , madonna is brill I wish her all the best !!!! I also like gaga saw her twice in Manchester and yes she brill show but oozes to be who she ain’t and quite desperately but u know what gaga and madonna are two diffrent artists age means nothin stop comparing just enjoy !!!!!!!-)
Zionist skank!! She has aligned herself with the cursed people of israel so good luck in hell honey!!