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Madonna news - March 2009
← Feb. 2009 | April 2009 →
Madonna confirms adoption push, reunites David with biological father
Source: AP via Yahoo - 31 March 2009Madonna said Tuesday that she was following standard procedures in her adoption of a Malawian girl, her first response to accusations that she is using her fame to speed the process.
The pop superstar also took her 3-year-old adopted son, David, to visit the orphanage in Mchinji, a village near the Zambian border, where he once lived.
The orphanage's director Lucy Chipeta said she brought David, Madonna, her 12-year-old daughter Lourdes and 8-year-old son Rocco to see the room and crib that David had used.
"It was an emotional moment," Chipeta told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "I am happy she brought her other children to see his roots."
Madonna took the children to the orphanage with a security detail including uniformed Malawian police officers and plain-clothed guards from a private security firm. The entourage used two Toyota Land Cruisers to block a horde of journalists and more than 200 curious children.
There were scuffles with the journalists, including cameramen and TV crews, as they tried to enter the brick-walled orphanage.
Madonna brought David on Monday to meet his biological father for the first time since he left Malawi in 2006.
"Madonna is committed to maintaining an ongoing relationship with David's Malawian roots," said Liz Rosenberg in an e-mail to The Associated Press.
She also confirmed Madonna is trying to adopt a girl named Chifundo "Mercy" James who is about 4 years old.
"Madonna is currently awaiting a judge's ruling regarding the adoption of Mercy James. She is following all standard procedures that are required," Rosenberg wrote.
A Malawian judge held a closed-door hearing Monday on Madonna's application to adopt the girl but delayed ruling on the matter until Friday.
The girl's 18-year-old mother was unmarried and died soon after she gave birth, according to the child's uncle, John Ngalande. Her father is believed to be alive but has little contact with his daughter, he said.
A coalition of non-governmental organizations called the Human Rights Consultative Committee has criticized Madonna's adoption attempts, saying that adoption should be the last resort and that children need to be taken care of by their own family.
"Mercy James is a child who has her extended close family members alive and we urge Madonna to assist the child from right here," a statement from the coalition said.
But others have said that the adoption would give enormous opportunities to the child that she would be unable to achieve in the impoverished country, where 14 percent of adults are infected with the virus that causes AIDS. The U.N. estimates that half of the 1 million Malawian children who have lost one or both parents have been orphaned by AIDS.
Malawian law is fuzzy on foreign adoptions. Regulations stipulate only that prospective parents undergo an 18- to 24-month assessment period in Malawi, a rule bent when Madonna was allowed to take David to London.
Madonna may also face legal challenges as a single mother; she and Guy Ritchie recently divorced.
Madonna first traveled to Malawi in 2006 while filming a documentary on the devastating poverty and AIDS crisis. Her Raising Malawi organization, founded in 2006, raises funds to provide food, shelter, education and health care for children.
Madonna's adoption ruling delayed until Friday
Source: AP via Yahoo - 30 March 2009Madonna and her three children toured a day care center built by her charity Monday as critics slammed the star's attempt to adopt a second child from this poor African nation and a judge delayed a ruling in the case until Friday.
Some child advocacy groups say the 50-year-old pop star's plans to adopt a young Malawian girl have been fast-tracked because of Madonna's money and status. One accused her of acting like a rich "bully."
After spending about an hour in court Monday, Madonna swapped her high heels and formal skirt for camouflage trousers and big black boots for an outing into the hot, lush Malawian countryside.
Holding the hand of 3-year-old David, whose adoption from Malawi was finalized last year, the singer walked around the compound of the Mphandula child care center, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) from the capital.
Madonna also was accompanied by her 12-year-old daughter Lourdes and 8-year-old son Rocco — who sported a mohawk haircut for his first visit to Malawi.
The center, which provides primary schooling and other child care to about 4,000 children, boasts neatly cut lawn, swings and slides, and freshly painted classrooms.
This was the first time the star had seen the day care center completed. On her last visit in 2007, construction had just started. Asked by reporters how she liked the progress made, Madonna gave a thumbs up.
In one room, Madonna tried her hand at basket-weaving under the watchful eye of a few local woman. David was given a cow-skin guitar as a gift, and he pretended to strum the strings.
Meanwhile, a coalition of non-governmental organizations held a press conference in the capital, Lilongwe, criticizing the pop star's latest adoption application.
"We feel Madonna is behaving like a bully," said Undule Mwakusungula, chairman of the Human Rights Consultative Committee. "She has the money and the status to use her profile to manipulate, to fast-track the process."
Madonna's spokeswoman Liz Rosenberg in New York did not immediately return a call seeking comment Monday.
The girl Madonna is hoping to adopt is about 4 years old, according to a Malawian welfare official and another person involved in the proceedings who both confirmed an adoption application was under way. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the case is considered sensitive.
Monday's court roll listed only the child's name — Chifundo James, which means "Mercy" in a local language. Her uncle, John Ngalande, has said she was turning 4 soon.
The girl's 18-year-old mother was unmarried and died soon after she was born, the uncle said. Her father is believed to be alive but has little contact with his daughter, he said.
The coalition's Mwakusungula told reporters that adoption should be the last resort and that children need to be taken care of by their own family.
"Mercy James is a child who has her extended close family members alive and we urge Madonna to assist the child from right here," a statement from the coalition said.
Mabvuto Bamusi, the coalition's national co-ordinator, said they were asking the court to uphold the country's laws and to "fully" assess Madonna's second adoption bid.
"Celebrities adopting children are merely taking advantages of weaknesses in our country," he said.
Malawian law is fuzzy on foreign adoptions. Regulations stipulate only that prospective parents undergo an 18- to 24-month assessment period in Malawi, a rule bent when Madonna was allowed to take David to London.
David's adoption was a trying process for the singer, who has said the storm of criticism hurt.
The boy's mother died when he was a month old. His father has said he believed he could not care for David alone, and that placing the boy in an orphanage was the best way to ensure his survival.
Earlier Monday, David spent 2 1/2 hours with his biological father at an exclusive lodge where the pop star is staying.
"I was very happy to see him," the father, Yohane Banda, told The Associated Press, adding that David did not recognize him. "He asked me who I was."
Standing outside the courthouse with a number of other curious onlookers, E. Ngulinga said he understood the criticism directed at the pop star but that it was hard to deny a child the kind of opportunities offered by Madonna.
"That baby is going to have the advantages of going to school and of becoming someone," he said. "Here it is very difficult."
Ngulinga said he hoped the girl and David would return when they were older to help Malawi, an impoverished country where 14 percent of adults are infected with the virus that causes AIDS. The U.N. estimates that half of the 1 million Malawian children who have lost one or both parents have been orphaned by AIDS.
Madonna first traveled to Malawi in 2006 while filming a documentary on the devastating poverty and AIDS crisis. Her Raising Malawi organization, founded in 2006, raises funds to provide food, shelter, education and health care for children.
Madonna back in Malawi
Source: AP via Yahoo - 29 March 2009Madonna toured an impoverished village and discussed plans Sunday for building a new school in Malawi, the central African nation where officials said she would begin proceedings this week to adopt a young girl
Madonna, casually dressed with a white fedora, walked through the village of Chinkhota holding the hand of her 12-year-old daughter, Lourdes. Dozens of reporters looked on.
The 50-year-old pop star refused to answer questions about reports that she was in Malawi to adopt a four-year-old girl. She said it was "amazing" to be back in the country where she runs a charity organization and from where she adopted her son David, 3, last year.
Then she rushed away in a convoy of at least three sport utility vehicles, as crowds of shouting, waving children ran after her.
A security guard with the convoy said Madonna was speaking to villagers about building a school there. She was seen looking at an artist's impression of the proposed building. Hours earlier, Madonna landed at the airport in the capital of Lilongwe.
Madonna was expected to appear in court Monday to sign adoption papers.
A Malawian welfare official and another person involved in the adoption proceedings have said the girl Madonna is hoping to adopt is about 4 years old and her unmarried mother died soon after she was born. The girl's father is believed to be alive but no other details were available. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the case is considered sensitive.
A U.S. government official has also confirmed that an adoption bid by Madonna, an American, was under way.
Madonna has faced harsh criticism for years over David's adoption. Children's advocacy groups accused her of wielding her immense wealth and influence to circumvent Malawian law requiring an 18- to 24-month assessment period before adoption.
But locals were not so condemning.
Wilson Kalibwanji, a resident of Chinkhota, said he said he would willingly place his own son in her care to ensure him a better life.
"We are poor people," he said Sunday. "If a child's mother dies, it is hard for the man to bring the child up."
Austin Msowoya, legal researcher with Malawi's Law Commission, played down concerns that a second adoption by Madonna would violate any laws. He said the best interests of the child needed to be taken into account — whether that was staying in an orphanage in Malawi or getting "an education with Madonna."
"When you look at these two options, then perhaps it becomes in the best interests of the child to allow the adoption if the parents and the guardians consent to it," he told Associated Press Television News on Saturday.
But Save the Children UK said the recently divorced superstar risked sending the wrong message by going through with the second adoption.
"International adoption can actually exacerbate the problem it hopes to solve," spokesman Dominic Nutt said Saturday. "The very existence of orphanages encourages poor parents to abandon children in the hope that they will have a better life."
Nutt said he was not suggesting that Madonna was doing anything wrong — but he said the whole process of international adoptions was often flawed and sometimes linked to criminal activity.
He said, barring exceptional circumstances, children should be kept in the care of their extended families or within their communities.
Madonna's spokeswoman Liz Rosenberg in New York, who has not commented on the adoption reports, told The Associated Press the star would not respond to comments from Save the Children.
In a recent interview in Malawi's The Nation newspaper, the singer said she was considering another adoption but would only do it if she had "the support of the Malawian people and government."
If the adoption goes through, Madonna would become a single mother of four. She also has an 8-year-old son, Rocco, with former husband and British film director Guy Ritchie and her daughter Lourdes from a previous relationship.
She and Ritchie, who were married in 2000, obtained a preliminary divorce decree in November 2008.
Madonna first traveled to Malawi in 2006 while doing charity work and filming a documentary on the devastating poverty and AIDS crisis there. She is also establishing a separate school for girls there.
Madonna's attorney confirms Malawi adoption trip
Source: ContactMusic - 27 March 2009Madonna's lawyer has confirmed the singer will file adoption papers in a Malawi court next week - amid reports the toddler she tried to adopt last year has been removed from an orphanage to await collection by the star.
The singer will arrive in the African nation on Saturday to begin her bid to bring a second Malawian child into her family, following the finalisation of David Banda's adoption last year after two years of legal wrangling.
She will then file official documents to begin the adoption process in a courthouse in the capital city of Lilongwe on Monday, according to her attorney Alan Chinula.
Chinula says, "We are expected to be in court on Monday to file papers for a possible adoption."
Meanwhile, four-year-old Mercy James was reportedly removed from her orphanage near Blantyre, Malawi earlier this week and subsequently placed under a nanny's care at Kumbali Lodge, outside Lilongwe, where the singer has stayed on previous visits.
A source tells Britain's Daily Mail, "Mercy has been handed over to Madonna's people, who are already at the lodge, and is being cared for by a nanny.
"They are waiting for Madonna to arrive so mother and daughter can be united and then Madonna is expected to take Mercy with her when she leaves."
Madonna was alleged to have signed paperwork to adopt Mercy last year, but the reports never came to fruition - despite the little girl's grandfather telling a U.S. tabloid, "It breaks our hearts to know she will leave us, but adoption is best for her."
Madonna is already mum to adopted David Banda, three, Rocco, eight, from her marriage to Guy Ritchie and Lourdes, 12, whose father is Carlos Leon.
I Am Because We Are premieres online
Source: Madonna.com; also thanx to Ivy @ Hulu - 27 March 2009We are happy to announce that Madonna's "I Am Because We Are" documentary premieres on Youtube and Hulu today.
Directed by Nathan Rissman and narrated by Madonna, "I Am Because We Are" depicts a journey in the second poorest country in the world, Malawi.
In a country of 12 million people, so many children without parents has caused irreparable damage. The film attempts to explore what is going on in the heads and hearts of these orphans, and what the future holds for them. Suffering from AIDS, infections and malnutrition, most of the children in Malawi are in need for food, medical care, but also for proper education and guidance.
More than just a story about Malawi, 'I Am Because We Are' provides the audience with keys to help changing the situation but also spreads hope for a better world.
Visit the "I Am Because We Are" Youtube channel today to watch the full documentary.
"I Am Because We Are" is also available for online streaming from Hulu (location restrictions may apply).
For more info on the documentary, please visit www.iambecauseweare.com
Madonna to visit Malawi with adopted son
Source: Reuters via Yahoo - 26 March 2009U.S. pop star Madonna, who has said she may adopt another child from Malawi, may visit the southern African country in the next few days, a government official said on Thursday.
Officials said Madonna will bring her Malawian son David, whose adoption was controversial. Critics accused the government of skirting laws that ban non-residents from adopting children in Malawi, which has been badly hit by an AIDS epidemic.
"We expect her over the weekend or earlier than that...but without a doubt she is coming before the end of this month," the official at the Ministry of Gender and Child Development told Reuters.
The local Nation newspaper this month quoted Madonna as saying that Malawian friends had told her David needed a brother or sister and that she would consider adopting another child, but only with the support of the Malawian people.
David is growing up in the high-flying life of a global popstar, worlds away from his village of Lipunga, where his relatives eat staple food like maize meal from simple bowls and meals are cooked on open fires.
Madonna is expected to visit a site where her charity, Raising Malawi, will start building a multi-million dollar school for girls, the officials said.
David's father, Yohane Banda, told Reuters that he may see his son next week.
"Someone from Raising Malawi visited me last week and told me that my son may be visiting me sometime next week. I am delighted, I want to see my son," he said.
Madonna, who began adoption proceedings in 2006, took David when he was 13-months-old after his father had placed him in an orphanage following the death of his wife.
She has said he was happy to be involved in a case that might pave the way for more adoptions in Malawi. An estimated one million children in the country have been orphaned by AIDS.
Rights groups tried to block David's adoption, saying it would be illegal.
Child rights activist John Soo Phiri said Madonna may find it more difficult to adopt another child as a single parent after her divorce from film director Guy Ritchie.
"She will have to prove that as a single parent she still has the abilities to raise another child alone," said child rights activist John Soo Phiri.
Madonna Twitters: "Glad" to be single again
Source: ContactMusic - 26 March 2009Pop superstar Madonna stunned fans after taking over her manager's online Twitter account on Wednesday (25Mar09) to declare she is "glad" to have divorced Guy Ritchie.
The singer's longtime friend and producer Guy Oseary delighted those subscribed to his page on the the social networking site by announcing he was sitting next to the Material Girl herself.
He wrote: "Sitting here with Madonna. Firstly she wants to say hello to all the iconers (fan club members) out there. Madonna wants to thank all of you that took the time to send in their thoughts for g-hits (Greatest Hits) album. We will be online for the next 10 minutes."
And when a supporter then congratulated the star on parting ways with filmmaker Ritchie last year (08), the singer appeared to join in on the cyber chat - typing a message that expressed her delight over her divorce.
A user under the name Nickfirth wrote: "Hello Madonna honey am glad you are single again - you made your best music as a single woman! yeehaw!"
Minutes later, the singer apparently replied: "NOT AS GLAD AS I AM! M..............."
But before she signed off, Madonna couldn't help but single out gossip blogger Perez Hilton, accusing him of favouring fellow pop star Britney Spears by filming a video clip to air during her Circus tour.
In a note directed at Hilton, she wrote: "You obviously love Britney more cause you made an opening film for her show and not mine. I still love you, - going to sleep! - M"
~ Additionally, ICON reveals that Madonna might appear on Twitter again in the near future.
What do you expect from the upcoming Greatest Hits?
24 March 2009In our current poll, we're asking our visitors whether Madonna's new compilation album should focus on the post-GHV2 period, or it should be a complete retrospective of her 25 years. Vote here!
Last week we asked you to chose a 4th single for Hard Candy and the winner was Beat Goes On, taking 46% of the votes. Please keep in mind that Guy Oseary recently confirmed that a 4th single is unlikely at this point.
Raising Malawi auction
22 March 2009Madonna's foundation Raising Malawi is going to hold an auction on online store Ebay, starting April 2nd to help the Malawian children. Among the special items auctioned, there will be copies of I Am Because We Are Book, signed by Madonna herself, which accompanies the documentary of the same name. More info on the official Ebay page! (thanx to Axel)
Guy Oseary spills the beans on upcoming Madonna projects
21 March 2009Madonna's manager Guy Oseary has answered the 10 most asked questions by ICONers and his answers kill quite a lot of rumours:
Iconers, Guy would like to thank you all for the great questions you've submitted as part of his first Q&A session. He took the time to answer the 10 most asked ones. Just read on to learn more about Madonna's upcoming summer tour and projects!
1) Would you consider an Asian leg for Madonna's next tour?
Madonna loves Asia and definitely would love to go back.
2) What are the plans, if any, for a Sticky & Sweet Tour DVD/CD Release? Will it include a tour documentary?
We plan on having the DVD/CD come out in the fall, hopefully in November. Nathan Rissman shot hours and hours of b-roll. We will edit it down and definitely include highlights in the DVD.
3) Now that Madonna has decided to extend her Sticky and Sweet tour, is there any chance for her to release a 4th single off her Hard Candy album?
I don't see that happening.
4) Could you tell us more about the new Greatest Hits to be released by Warner Bros? Will it include unreleased tracks? Is there a release date available?
We are trying to get two new tracks on the album. But not sure if they should be "never before heard" gems, or simply start from scratch. She is thinking about doing something dance and up tempo, so stay tuned....
5) Will this summer's show be the exact same as last year's? Will Madonna make some changes to the set list, costumes?
Mostly it will be the same, with an added surprise song to the show. Again, stay tuned.
7) What is your best memory with Madonna?
My best memory? Too many to mention. I've been with Madonna for over half my life. My favorite moments are when we are alone, taking a walk through the countryside together or having dinner together. I do have fond memories of when I first became friends with Madonna. I was such a kid who knew so little, yet she took my hand and showed me the world. It's been an amazing ride.
8) Do you know what Madonna thinks of her fan club and all of her devoted fans there?
She loves her fans. Honestly everything she does she considers her fans. I can give you an example from tour -
When she did the L.A. Dodger Stadium show the whole front of the stage broke the night before the show. We almost cancelled. When I said "don't worry, everything will be fine no one will care", she responded "no my fans will care, they notice everything!" She doesn't want to do anything less than amazing for her fans. But at the same time, she didn't want to let down her fans by canceling the show, so at 9 pm the night before, she said the show must go on. All these decisions are always made with the fans in mind. She has seen many of Iconers showing up at each show and she really appreciates it - you know who you are!
9) Will Madonna release some unreleased songs or demos from her past albums at some point?
At some point, would love to do something amazing with the remixes and demos. Thanks to you guys for many of your suggestions on this, they are all being considered.
10) Why wasn't Australia included in the tour itinerary and will she visit Australia anytime soon?
Madonna really needs to go to Australia!! Its a must...and I'm going to do everything I can to make sure we get there next time Madonna tours. Unfortunately it didn't work out for this tour. She appreciates her Aussie fans coming to many of the shows. Israel never missed one show in Europe or South America and he waved his Australian flag at every single show. We are long over due for a trip down under and apologize for that, it will happen.
Something to remember: She never felt so good about herself
21 March 2009After becoming the biggest female artist in the world and conquering legions of fans with Like A Virgin & True Blue, Madonna set out for a new goal: she wanted to be taken seriously. She had just passed the age of 30 and with her recent success, she was able to express her very personal feelings through newfound artistic freedom. All that materialized exactly twenty years ago today, on March 21st, 1989 with the release of Like A Prayer.
Together with tried-and-true collaborators Patrick Leonard & Stephen Bray, Madonna harkened back to the days of Sly & The Family Stone's funk, mixed with flavours of The Beatles and one of her main inspirations, David Bowie, and created an organic record with real instruments, which would be her last of that kind, up to today.
The songs are among her most autobiographical ever. Till Death Do Us Part for example, tells us about the disturbing details of Madonna's marriage with Sean Penn, that would eventually come to an end. Creating a huge contrast, the sad lyrics are juxtaposed with upbeat and joyous music, something that would be repeated with 2008's Incredible, which coincidentally could describe the end of her second marriage. Promise To Try, a gorgeous piano ballad is the first in a string of songs in her career that would open up about the loss of Madonna's mother. Oh Father sounds like its big sister-song, but is more about Madonna's difficulties with her father, and also, "dealing with all authority figures in her life".
Rolling Stone magazine pointed out how Madonna manages to keep the balance with leavening the pain of the sad and serious songs with the lovely lullaby Dear Jessie (dedicated to Patrick Leonard's daughter, the prelude to Little Star, the lullaby to her own daughter), the lighthearted Cherish, which might be one of Madonna's happiest songs ever, is also the only remnant of the teen-pop from her early years, and which was one of the hits yielded by the album, and Act Of Contrition, that alludes to the title of the album as Madonna says a prayer over the music of the title track played backwards, ending an otherwise serious album on a goofy note as she furiously demands her "reservation" in the afterlife. Express Yourself, the groovy second single might be one of Madonna's most powerful moments, while Pray For Spanish Eyes, a sorrowful ballad that has many different interpretations among fans must be Madonna at her most vulnerable (also one of the strongest album tracks of her entire career).
It wouldn't be a true Madonna album without some then-current hot stuff on the record, namely the minimalist Minneapolis sound of her contemporary superstar Prince, with whom she created the duet Love Song, which is essentially a slower, less catchy 4 Minutes 19 years earlier. While the duet started off as a simple fooling around and became a proper song with sending back and forth between the two artists, Prince also lent some of her other talents for the record, he played guitar for Keep It Together & Act Of Contrition, albeit uncredited, except a mysterious "The Powers That Be" hint for the closer track.
While the total sales of Like A Prayer were only half of what the previous effort achieved in most territories (a more down-to-Earth total of 14 million copies sold), it still stands as one of her most remembered and loved records by fans and it was the first time when critics started to take Madonna seriously, as it got a lot of acclaim and continues to appear on numerous best of lists.
Unfortunately Like A Prayer is one of the least showcased albums on Madonna's tours: the Blond Ambition Tour saw the 5 North American singles performed, but subsequent tours only had the first two singles in their setlists, with two recent tours even completely ignoring this album. Not to mention that the promotion of Like A Prayer was very basic, although there were 6 singles and 5 videos released, apart from one MTV performance, the album was pushed aside by Madonna's acting career as she went onto filming Dick Tracy shortly after the album was released.
The albumcover is famous for not showing Madonna's face, while the first editions had the booklet infused with patchouli. Additionally, for the first time for a mainstream recording artist, an AIDS factsheet was included.
~ Share your opinion on Like A Prayer with us on Facebook!
Greatest hits album to feature new tracks, out in September
Source: People.com - 17 March 2009Calling all Madonna fans! The Queen of Pop is coming out with a long-awaited greatest hits collection this fall.
'We're hoping to have a greatest hits package come out in September," the singer's longtime publicist, Liz Rosenberg, tells PEOPLE. "We're all very excited about it."
With so many hit songs to choose from over her long career, the singer's manager, Guy Oseary, asked fans on Twitter Tuesday which tunes they think should be included. "Working on Madonna's greatest hits album," he wrote. "Any tracks that you think MUST be on?"
Still, the new album won't only feature songs her fans know and love. "Madonna does have plans to go into the studio to record a few new songs for this album," says Rosenberg.
The greatest hits album will be Madonna's last with Warner Records, with whom she sold more than 200 million albums. In October 2007, she ended her 27-year relationship with the label when she signed a reported $150 million deal with concert promoter Live Nation.
No Madonna and Britney showdown in NYC
17 March 2009Contrary to widespread rumours, the official site of Britney Spears denied all speculation on the guest stars for her current Circus tour, even labeling the source of the Madonna rumour as somebody who had never worked with Britney.
Madonna may adopt another child from Malawi
Source: Reuters via Yahoo - 16 March 2009Pop star Madonna has said she may adopt another child from the poor southern African country of Malawi despite the controversy surrounding an earlier adoption.
Critics accused the government of skirting laws that ban non-residents from adopting children in Malawi, which has been badly hit by the AIDS epidemic, after Madonna took on David Banda.
"Many people -- especially our Malawian friends -- say that David should have a Malawian brother or sister," she said in response to emailed questions from Malawi's the Nation newspaper.
"It's something I have been considering, but would only do, if I had the support of the Malawian people and the Government."
A Malawian court approved the adoption of David last year.
Madonna has said the controversy had been difficult to deal with but she was happy to be involved in a case that might pave the way for more adoptions in Malawi. An estimated one million children in the country have been orphaned by AIDS.
Madonna, who began adoption proceedings in 2006, took David when he was 13-months-old after his father had placed him in an orphanage following the death of his wife.
David is growing up in the high-flying life of a leading popstar, worlds away from his village of Lipunga, where Banda's relatives eat staple food like maize meal from simple bowls and meals are cooked on open fires.
Madonna said she wanted to keep him connected to his homeland.
"It is a big priority for me to educate my son about the world, but always to stay connected to his Malawian culture," she said.
"He has a big map of Africa in his room with lots of arrows pointing to Malawi."
Madonna said her divorce from film director Guy Ritchie would not deprive their children of either parent.
"I believe in family. So, everything between us is very amicable...we both agree that our children should always feel a deep connection with both their parents. It is our responsibility to give them that foundation," she said."
Vote & discuss the 4th single on Facebook
16 March 2009Wouldn't it be great if we got a 4th single off the Hard Candy album? Four months after the release of Miles Away, it seems unlikely but you never know if Warner Music wants to try to squeeze one more bit out of the last Madonna album under their label. Our new poll asks your favorite song for that 4th single; cast your vote now.
Want to discuss this further with other Madonna fans? Now you can! Join the Mad-Eyes group on Facebook and discuss this and other Madonna topics! As a member of this group you'll also be personally informed about important Madonna news, announcements and events. And of course you're encouraged to share your opinion and to add pictures and news stories to the group.
Madonna attends Britney's NYC show
Source: Hollyscoop - 12 March 2009Proving that she has nothing but love for Britney, Madonna made a surprise appearance at Brit's sold-out show Circus show Wednesday in New York City.
Shortly before Britney Spears took the stage at the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, Madonna, 50, arrived with her manager Guy Oseary and headed to one of the VIP suites.
Madge didn't go incognito either! She made it very obvious to fans that she was in their presence, even opting to "use the main stairs in front of everybody so they would all notice her."
"Celebrities definitely don't need to go up the main stairs to get to their suites," said a spy who spotted the Queen of Pop.
She stayed for most of the 90-minute show but left right before Spears' encore of "Womanizer."
"Britney was thrilled to have her there!" read a message on Spears' Web site. Who wouldn't be? It's Madonna!
Madonna dresses up as a schoolgirl for Purim
Source: New York Post - 12 March 2009Madonna's drive to reinvent her look appears to have taken a detour through daughter Lourdes' closet. The pop icon showed up to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Purim at New York's Kabbalah Centre Monday night in a black wig, schoolgirl's tie, striped arm warmers and retro glasses. Purim, which celebrates the ancient Jews' rescue from annihilation, is often celebrated with costume parties. Madge once attended dressed up as, of all things, a nun. Her boy toy, Jesus Luz, showed for the latest celebration dressed as "The Dark Knight's" Joker. He arrived holding hands with Jerry Seinfeld's wife, Jessica, who came in costume as Cleopatra.
Madonna in cut-rate concert
Source: The Moscow Times - 12 March 2009Pop star Madonna will be paid her "lowest-ever" fee for a concert in St. Petersburg in August, the concert's promoter said Wednesday.
The singer will perform on Palace Square on Aug. 2 as part of her Sticky & Sweet Tour. She won't visit Moscow.
"It will be the lowest fee in the whole history of Madonna. Madonna really will receive little. She wanted to come to St. Petersburg herself," said Yevgeny Finkelshtein, the president of PMI Corporation, RIA-Novosti reported.
He did not give a figure for the fee.
Madonna will be performing on Paratroopers Day, a notoriously rowdy holiday when servicemen usually gather on Palace Square. They may be moved to the Field of Mars, Finkelshtein said.
The 50,000 tickets go on sale March 16, costing from 2,000 rubles ($55).
Madonna does not reveal how much she makes for each show but has said she sold more than $280 million in tickets for 58 shows last year. Billboard magazine says she earned $242.2 million in 2008, making her the top-earning musician.
Madonna gave her first and only Russian concert in Moscow in 2006 as part of her Confessions Tour. The tickets sold out in four days, despite a warning from the Russian Orthodox Church, which disapproved of Madonna staging a mock-crucifixion during the show. The date and venue were changed by organizers two weeks before the concert, forcing 36,000 fans to exchange tickets.
From Russia with love
Source: Madonna.com - 11 March 2009Madonna fans, we are happy to announce that Madonna's Sticky & Sweet Tour will stop at St. Petersburg's Palace Square on August 2nd.
Please note that a devoted fan club presale will start on March 12. The public ticket sale will start on March 16th at 10am local time.
~ This will be Madonna's second visit to Russia after her controversial stop in Moscow with the Confessions Tour, which was moved to another venue because of security issues.
Madonna to dominate air & sea during Finland show
Source: ContactMusic - 8 March 2009Madonna has applied to close the seas around Helsinki, Finland so she can commandeer a small island to stage a gig for 80,000 people, according to reports.
The Holiday hitmaker is taking her Sticky & Sweet world tour to Jatkasaari, Helsinki in August (09).
And she has applied to officials to close the sea and airspace over the area to prevent ticketless fans from enjoying the spectacle for free, reports Britain's Daily Star Sunday.
A source tells the publication, "Madonna couldn't find a stadium in Finland big enough for all her fans so instead she's taking over an island.
"But to stop people watching from the water on boats, she and the promoters have applied to close the sea. She's also worried people will hire helicopters to watch from the sky so she wants to close the airspace over the site as well."
But locals are not happy with the request and are worried about the effect the concert will have within the community.
One says, "Who does Madonna think she is? To have 80,000 people in such a small area is a joke. We don't have the facilities to cope with so many people."
Madonna to launch another clothing line?
Source: ELLEUK.com - 6 March 2009Madonna set to team up with designer Christian Audigier for his label Ed Hardy.
Madonna is a huge fan of Ed Hardy tees, often spotted wearing the the label's iconic tattoo print and skull and heart motifs on her days off. Now she could be set to collaborate with the brand on her own collection. The Mirror is reporting that Madonna finalised a deal to design her own collection with Audiger (who is also creating costumes for the up coming Michael Jackson tour) while in L.A. for the Oscars last month.
The designs are rumoured to include tattoo printed T-shirts and crystal encrusted bodices. A complete 180 from the ladylike designs Madonna created for her range at H&M - but maybe the material girl is looking to change her style now that she is single again.
I Am Because We Are premieres in France
Source: Madonna.com - 6 March 2009Madonna and Nathan Rissman's 'I Am Because We Are' documentary will be released on March 25 in France. In the meantime, Nathan attended two of the previews organized in Paris (March 3rd) and in Lille (March 5th). As the documentary's director, he took the time to answer the audience's related questions and to share his thoughts about the situation in Malawi.
Working on the project for more than 2 years and spending a lot of time with children in orphanages helped Nathan to turn the documentary into an amazing and touching story made of what those children have to deal with on a daily basis. Suffering from AIDS, infections and malnutrition, most of the children in Malawi have lost their parents and are in need for proper education and guidance.
More than just a story about Malawi, 'I Am Because We Are' provides the audience with keys to help changing the situation but also spreads hope for a better world.
For more info about 'I Am Because We Are', please visit www.iambecauseweare.com.
Paris gets a Sticky & Sweet show in 2009 as well
6 March 2009Now that all the announced dates went onsale, Madonna keeps shocking her European fans: after playing to more than 130,000 fans in Paris last September, she adds a Parisian date for the 2009 leg of the Sticky & Sweet show.
She's scheduled to perform in Palais Omnisports de Paris Bercy on Thursday, July 9th (ICON presales: Monday, March 9th @ 10 am; general ticket sales: Thursday, March 12th @ 10 am).
This is a very bold move because on July 7-8th Madonna is doing the double in Manchester. Considering July 10th is a Friday and Madonna is performing in Belgium on the 11th, it's probably going to be the only Paris show this year, unless she goes back there after Belgium or after Spain, who knows...
There are now two occasions in the schedule where Madonna performs 3 dates in a row without a break, we seriously hope that both Madonna & Live Nation will hold all the announced dates and they won't be forced to cancel a few because of exhaustion...
Madonna honored at RIAJ Gold Disc Awards
Source: Billboard.biz via Madonna.com & LostAvenger @ UKMIX.org - 4 March 2009Japanese pop act Exile and Madonna were among the winners at the 23rd edition of the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) Gold Disc Awards at Tokyo International Forum in the Yurakucho district of Tokyo. The awards, held March 2, celebrate the artists that have sold the most in sales categories that range from singles and downloads to albums and total sales.
Madonna, on the strength of her Hard Candy (Warner Bros) album and digital download single Miles Away, got the Japan Gold Disc award for international artist of the year. She also won the mastertone of the year award for the same track.
International Artist Of The Year - Madonna
International Ringtone Clip Of The Year - Miles Away - Madonna
International Full Song Ringtone Of The Year - Miles Away - Madonna
International PC Download Of The Year - Miles Away - Madonna
According to the RIAJ, Madonna sold 314,595 albums last year & 1,005,523 downloads sold last year! Hard Candy sold more than 250,000 copies, while Miles Away, thanks to the tv show Change, sold more than 800,000 digital downloads in Japan!
Madonna's Hard Candy is in the top 3 Best Selling International Albums Of 2008, along with Coldplay's 'Viva La Vida' & Ne-Yo's 'Year Of The Gentleman'.
Something to remember: Her voice can take us there
3 March 2009
It's no exaggeration that March 3rd, 1989 should be mentioned in history books. Twenty years ago, all eyes were on Madonna. Coming back with a complete image makeover, an incredibly well-written single and the latest controversy that seemed to be the biggest ever, Madonna premiered a very special music video on MTV. Our M elevated the music video medium to a higher level.
Before Like A Prayer, nobody thought one could handle so many issues in less than 6 minutes. Madonna's video dealt with racism, bigotry and broke down all the taboos between religion and sex. The images of the woman called Madonna having the stigmata on her hands, dancing in front of burning crosses and getting sensual with a black saint were far beyond the limits of the conservative world. The controversial nature of the video eventually ended Madonna's contract with Pepsi for a commercial, which featured Madonna's own Like A Prayer track and premiered a day before the clip, that was instantly removed from airplay.
The idea behind the clip, in Madonna's own words:
Well, originally, when I recorded the song, I would play it over and over again, trying to get a visual sense of what sort of story or fantasy it evoked in me. I kept imagining this story about a girl who was madly in love with a black man, set in the South, with this forbidden interracial love affair. And the guy she’s in love with sings in a choir. So she’s obsessed with him and goes to church all the time. And then it turned into a bigger story, which was about racism and bigotry. I wanted to put something in about Ku Klux Klan, use burning crosses… but then Mississippi Burning came out and I realized I was hitting the nail on the head a little too hard. Too obvious. So I thought I should take a slightly different approach. My original idea was much sadder. Kind of: this is reality, and reality sucks.
Then Mary Lambert got involved as the director, and she came up with a story that incorporated more of the religious symbolism I originally wrote into the song. The whole album has a lot of religious imagery in it. The video still has the sadness, but it’s got a hopeful ending. I mean, I had these ideas about me running away with the black guy and both of us getting shot in the back by the KKK. Completely insane. So Mary made it more palatable.
The message of the video was so strong that even longtime Madonna collaborator Niki Haris refused to appear in the video because "as a black woman, burning crosses mean something to me". The thought-provoking clip remains groundbreaking up to today and regularly appears on all-time best list, and its importance cannot be underestimated in the waning days of the classic music video era.
Fortunately this project remains one of the very few occasions when the controversy did not overshadow everything: the Madonna/Patrick Leonard penned
song itself remains one of the most loved pop songs of the last two decades with its exceptionally catchy melody and innovative song structure. The track, which features a loud electric guitar solo as the intro, verses sung a capella, a choir accompanying Madonna and a funky bassline, broke genre restrictions and perfectly infused everything into a fantastic feel-good pop song.
Like A Prayer ended up being Madonna's best selling singles ever, reaching #1 in countless charts. It also marks the first single in Madonna's career that got the remix treatment: Shep Pettibone turned the single into a real dance track with adding house beats, which was immortalized on The Immaculate Collection and as the basis of all live renditions of the song: the Blond Ambition Tour saw Madonna performing the track in ecstatic fervor, the Re-Invention Tour brought a dancy-folk singalong, and 2008 marked the birth of a current fan favourite, the high energy house-rave mix of the Sticky & Sweet Tour. Whenever Madonna sings this song, everyone dances & sings along; we have no choice, we hear her voice!
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