Madonna's Life

Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone (born August 16, 1958), principally known by her first name, is an American pop singer, composer, actress, dancer, author, activist, and fashion icon. She rose to prominence in the 1980s, and has become the most successful female solo artist of all time, according to Guinness World Records. She is one of a small number of singers who have been referred to as the "Queen of Pop".

I.BIOGRAPHY

Madonna was born in Bay City, Michigan, to an Italian-American Chrysler engineer, Silvio Ciccone, and his wife, Madonna Fortin (from a French family in Québec, Canada). She was raised in a Catholic family of six children in the Detroit suburbs of Pontiac and Rochester Hills.

Her mother died of breast cancer at the age of thirty, when Madonna was only five. The singer/icon has frequently discussed the enormous impact her mother's death had on her life and career. Following his wife's death, Silvio brought in a housekeeper, Joan Gustafson. He later married her and had two more children.

Silvio required all of his children to take music lessons. After a few months of piano lessons, Madonna convinced her father to allow her to take ballet classes instead, and she proved to be a gifted dancer.

After graduating from Rochester Adams High School in 1976, Madonna received a dance scholarship to the University of Michigan. At the encouragement of her ballet teacher, Christopher Flynn, Madonna left college after only one semester and moved to New York City to pursue a dance career. She studied with modern dance legend Martha Graham, as well as a Graham disciple, Pearl Lange. Madonna later performed with several modern dance companies, including Alvin Ailey and the Walter Nicks dancers.

After performing as a dancer for French disco star Patrick Hernandez on his 1979 world tour, Madonna abandoned her fledgeling dance career to pursue music. She formed several bands, including "Breakfast Club" and "Emmy". She also wrote a number of songs that brought her local fame in New York dance clubs, particularly Danceteria.

In 1982 the singer inked a deal with Sire Records. Her demo song, "Ain't No Big Deal", was written by her frequent collaborator, Stephen Bray, but was shelved for several years because it had recently been recorded and released by the Epic Records group Barracuda. Five years later, Madonna's version surfaced on the B-side of the "True Blue" single, though it has never appeared on one of her albums.

During the sessions for her first album, Madonna recorded a song called "Sidewalk Talk". However, after listening to the finished product, she and her producers decided that its sound was too dated. They shelved the track and replaced it with a more current-sounding song called "Holiday". (It soon became a hit, and stands today as an iconic 1980's dance song. "Sidewalk Talk" would later be used as a B-side for a single release.)

Madonna's first bona-fide hit was "Everybody", produced by Mark Kamins. It gained heavy rotation on R&B radio stations, leading many to assume that Madonna was a black artist. When "Everybody" was released as a single, Madonna's picture did not appear on the album sleeve, because Sire did not want to risk losing the black audience (Madonna's core audience at that point) by advertising that Madonna was white.

II.MUSIC

2.1.First album

In 1983 her self-titled first album, Madonna, was released, and its first single, "Holiday", was a hit single in several countries. Other hits on Madonna included "Borderline" and "Lucky Star". The album was produced by John 'Jellybean' Benitez, with whom Madonna had had a brief romance. Although the album sold only moderately at first, thanks to heavy rotation on a brand new cable channel called MTV, Madonna gained nationwide exposure and the album peaked at number eight on the Billboard chart, and went platinum five times.

MTV aggressively marketed Madonna's image as a playful and sexy combination of punk and pop culture, and she soon became a fixture on the network. Her bleached blonde hair (with brown roots), sexy lace gloves, lingerie on the outside and "Boy Toy" belt buckle became popular in malls and schoolyards across America. In many ways, she defined pop fashion of the era.

The hit club track, "Burning Up", was remixed for release in the U.K. by DJ Rusty Egan (formerly of the new romantic group, Visage).

Benitez said that based on the success of Madonna's first album he had expected to produce her follow-up, but Madonna had other plans.

2.2.Like a Virgin and The Virgin Tour

In 1984 Madonna released Like a Virgin. The album, produced by the legendary Nile Rodgers, had a distinctive soul and funk flavor, with hard, loud drums and plenty of bass guitar, yet remained pop-friendly and accessible. The title track topped the U.S. charts for six weeks and is believed to be first time in music history that the word "virgin" appeared in a Top 40 song.

Madonna's performance at the First Annual MTV Video Music Awards in 1984 is considered to be the first controversial incident in a career that would see many more. She took the stage to sing "Like A Virgin" wearing a combination bustier/wedding gown, which included her trademark "Boy Toy" belt. During the performance, she rolled around on the floor, revealing lacy stockings and garters, and made a number of sexually suggestive moves. While such a performance would probably not raise eyebrows today, it was shocking to a mid-1980's audience. However, Madonna seemed to thrive on the controversy, and it only served to increase her popularity