Madonna Louise Ciccone was born in Bay City, Michigan on August 16, 1958. She is most famous for being the independent singer who often reinvents her look, style, and music. She doesn’t seem afraid to just go for it, and I think that is part of her massive success. When you think of her you most often see a strong, powerful woman who can take charge and save the world (she’s only got four minutes to save the world, in her song).
She has many careers under her belt including singer, songwriter, dancer, fashion designer, film producer, record producer, author, actress, and entrepreneur. Her awards and successes are plentiful including being involved in many music album releases, films, and TV appearances. She also founded Maverick Records. She is also the founder of Maverick, an entertainment company that produced a book of photographs. Her music and starring role in Body of Evidence put her on the map.
Not only that but she has been in 22 films and earned a Golden Globe Award for her role in 1996 for the film “Evita“. Of course, those are just a few of her successes. She was especially brought in the public eye by her appearance in Desperately Seeking Susan. The soundtrack contained the single “Crazy for You” which gave her a second U.S. number one hit. She also starred in films like “Who’s That Girl” and “Shanghai Surprise“.
She wrote the song “Live to Tell“, for the film “At Close Range“. When her album “Like a Prayer” was released it blew the world away selling seven million copies and went straight to number one on the charts. The music video for “Like a Prayer” was extremely controversial but very well received from those who did not fear it. The Pope was not a fan, as we all know.
Madonna has been linked to Sean Penn (the two married & divorced), Dennis Rodman, Vanilla Ice, Carlos Leon, Dan Gilroy, Warren Beatty, and Tony Ward. You know about her recent divorce from Guy Ritchie. I think it is nice that they adopted a child, they have the money to financial give him a good life, very important when raising a child.
Her Sticky and Sweet Tour is the highest grossing concert tour ever by a solo artist.
Albums
Madonna 1983
Like a Virgin 1984
True Blue 1986
Like a Prayer 1989
Erotica 1992
Bedtime Stories 1994
Ray of Light 1998
Music 2000
American Life 2003
Confessions on a Dance Floor 2005
Hard Candy 2008
Tours
Madonna has had eight successful tours in the course of her career, being:
1985: The Virgin Tour
1987: Who’s That Girl World Tour
1990: Blond Ambition World Tour
1993: The Girlie Show World Tour
2001: Drowned World Tour
2004: Re-Invention World Tour
2006: Confessions Tour
2008: Sticky & Sweet Tour
Her most recent accomplishment is having been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, on March 10, 2008. The Guinness World Records list her as the world’s most successful female recording artist of all time and as the top-earning female singer in the world. They also list her net worth at around $490 million, with over 200 million records sold.
She currently lives in Marylebone, London at her country estate in Berwick St. John, Wiltshire, where she lives with her three children.
Sources:
Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madonna_(entertainer) . Madonna Bio: “Madonna: Full Biography”. MTV. http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/madonna/artist.jhtml. “Madonna: Artist Chart History”. Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/retrieve_chart_history.do?model.vnuArtistId=50294&model.vnuAlbumId;.
