How many will there be in the end? Two million? Maybe more. Madonna on the beach Copacabana it will be the biggest musical event ever. The ideal zenith of a career that celebrates forty years this year. A gigantic concert, from the number 1 pop star in the world. Free entry, but for the rich there are places with a privileged view in rooms close to the beach at a cost of 800 dollars. An 800 square meter stage, a total expense of 11.7 million dollars of which 3.3 million for the singer’s fee. Rio De Janeiro in turmoil, with the prices of hotels near the sea having tripled and a total turnover of 57 million dollars.
The question is: is he really the number one pop star in the world? Or is this gigantic show of strength just the last chance to feel like you’re still on top of the music business?
If you look at the numbers, Guinness World Records elected her “female artist of all time”, crediting her with more than 400 million records sold. Before the current Celebration Tour, he had grossed $1.3 billion from his concerts. The problem, if we can speak of a problem, is her leadership in the world of female pop. Madonna doesn’t accept anything less than unchallenged dominance. She resisted criticism from those who called her “a cultural vampire” for decades, effectively changing the mold of what a female pop star could be.
She has taught entire generations of artists to manage all aspects of their music and work themselves. AND he celebrated female sexuality in a radical, sometimes even excessive way, claiming a freedom of choice and customs that set a precedenthelping raise awareness in millions of girls and women overwhelmed by the male model.
To obtain this status, however, he used his body to the point of exhaustion. The exasperated sexualization of his image inevitably has to deal with time. That body that had made her immortal in its own way has been modified, stressed in every possible way, and at 65 the signs cannot remain invisible. On the occasion of the 2023 Grammy ceremony he had argued via social media with those who pointed out some deformations of his face, a consequence of cosmetic surgery: “They are close-up photos with a long lens camera that would distort anyone’s face”, he growled, adding that he lives in “a world that refuses to celebrate women over 45 and feels the need to punish them even if they continue to be strong-willed, hardworking and adventurous.”
An acceptable speech, but what Madonna transmits today is a complicated relationship with time. Musically he still pursues the younger generations, hiring trendy producers and aiming straight for the most contemporary dance. But in recent years, since Lady Gaga to Dua Lipa to Beyoncé to the phenomenon Taylor Swift, its female leadership is in sharp decline. Instead of looking for less difficult roads, Madonna challenges her rivals on the level of youth, with controversial results to say the least. From record sales to the effectiveness of her shows, Madonna struggles, ending up asking the impossible of her physique: in March she confessed during a concert that she almost ended up in a coma due to a bacterial infection, which forced her to interrupt the tour. She told fans that she said no to God calling her, that she needed some time off to regain her strength, and closed by confessing: “It’s a strange thing to finally feel like you’re not in control, and that was my lesson… letting go.” But he bounced back faster than before.
In recent times he has infuriated concertgoers by arriving on stage up to two hours late (“I don’t have to apologize, I’m always late”)made a major gaffe by asking a spectator why he didn’t stand up and dance without realizing he was in a wheelchair, but he continues running like there’s no tomorrow. Her tomorrow is the millions of people who will flock to Copacabana to hear her sing (for free). It will be a great record. Yet another of the wardrobe maid who made a star. Forty years ago.
