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Madonna
Singer/Actress
Date of Birth: 1958-08-16, Bay City, Michigan, USA
Height: 5' 4½" (1.64 m)
Height: 5' 4½" (1.64 m)
The artist known simply as Madonna is a pop culture powerhouse. Singer, dancer, songwriter, record producer, actress, fashion designer and yoga enthusiast, Madonna Louise Ciccione was born August 16, 1958 in Bay City Michigan to a middle class family with six children.
As a child, Madonna convinced her father to allow her to attend ballet class and eventually she was awarded a dance scholarship to the University of Michigan. At the end of her sophomore year, Madonna left school to pursue a professional dance career in New York. It was 1977. By 1979, she was performing as a dancer for the French disco artist Patrick Hernandez on his world tour. Her first band, the Breakfast Club was formed just after. Her next band Emmy was formed in 1980 and was a staple in the city’s dance clubs. Eventually, the band was heard by local DJ and record producer Mark Kamins who introduced her to Sire Records founder Seymour Stein.
Madonna signed a singles deal with Sire records, Warner Bros’ new wave label. Her first release “Everybody” came in 1982 and was an immediate success. Next came “Burning Up” in 1983 which was successful enough for Sire to get Madonna to record a full length album. Her debut record, “Madonna”, was a collection of dance songs and after its second mix by then famous producer, “Jellybean” Benitez (who added the song “Holiday”) the album was ready for release. It peaked at number eight on the US album chart, but the single “Holiday” was what gave her her first big break.
This was when Madonna become known for her quirky fashion sense and style which was quickly emulated by thousands of young girls around the world. She was becoming a fashion icon.
Her follow up album, “Like a Virgin” became her first number one album and the title track stayed at number one on the Billboard charts for six weeks. Other hits from the album included “Material Girl”, “Angel” and “Dress You Up”. The album sold 12 million copies worldwide. That year, Madonna performed “Material Girl” at the MTV Music Awards wearing a bustier/wedding gown. She had arrived.
1985 began her film career began for real with the film Desperately Seeking Susan. She also released the ballad ‘Crazy For You’ and began the Virgin Tour in the US with the Beastie Boys.
From 1986, when she released the album “True Blue”, she was married to actor Sean Penn. The music videos that accompanied the album became known for their lush cinematic style with sex, politics and religion thrown in for good measure. More than 20 years later, Madonna continues to use the same themes in her work.
During the 1980s and 1990s, Madonna continued releasing records, making hits and starring in movies. She starred in Dick Tracy and released the dance house anthem, Vogue”. Her Blond Ambition tour was hugely successful partially because of the explicit nature of her performance and many subsequent music videos released were deemed to explicit for MTV to play. In 1991, the documentary “Truth or Dare” was released which was followed by Hollywood’s “A League of their Own”.
Madonna became an entertainment mogul when she formed her own company Maverick. It consisted of maverick Records, a film production company, Maverick Films, with music publishing, merchandising and book publishing divisions. A joint venture with Time Warner, Madonna was paid an unprecedented $60 million recording contract and business deal. Her book Sex was the first Maverick vehicle and sold half a million copies in the US alone.
More films and more albums and singles were released including the album “Erotica” with its five singles and films, Body of Evidence and Maverick Films production, Dangerous Game. In total, she has made or contributed to 28 albums, which includes live recordings, soundtracks and compilations. She has had 8 world tours and 19 films, including the seminal Evita. Not all have been positively reviewed or box office successes, but that has never stopped Madonna.
Madonna has had a number of infamous relationships and is currently married to British filmmaker Guy Ritchie. Madonna is the mother of daughter Lourdes and son Rocco and hopes to adopt Malawian toddler, David Banda. The family lives in London and on their country estate in Wiltshire, England. She has spent years studying both yoga and Kabbalah, a variation of Judiasm.
View All As a child, Madonna convinced her father to allow her to attend ballet class and eventually she was awarded a dance scholarship to the University of Michigan. At the end of her sophomore year, Madonna left school to pursue a professional dance career in New York. It was 1977. By 1979, she was performing as a dancer for the French disco artist Patrick Hernandez on his world tour. Her first band, the Breakfast Club was formed just after. Her next band Emmy was formed in 1980 and was a staple in the city’s dance clubs. Eventually, the band was heard by local DJ and record producer Mark Kamins who introduced her to Sire Records founder Seymour Stein.
Madonna signed a singles deal with Sire records, Warner Bros’ new wave label. Her first release “Everybody” came in 1982 and was an immediate success. Next came “Burning Up” in 1983 which was successful enough for Sire to get Madonna to record a full length album. Her debut record, “Madonna”, was a collection of dance songs and after its second mix by then famous producer, “Jellybean” Benitez (who added the song “Holiday”) the album was ready for release. It peaked at number eight on the US album chart, but the single “Holiday” was what gave her her first big break.
This was when Madonna become known for her quirky fashion sense and style which was quickly emulated by thousands of young girls around the world. She was becoming a fashion icon.
Her follow up album, “Like a Virgin” became her first number one album and the title track stayed at number one on the Billboard charts for six weeks. Other hits from the album included “Material Girl”, “Angel” and “Dress You Up”. The album sold 12 million copies worldwide. That year, Madonna performed “Material Girl” at the MTV Music Awards wearing a bustier/wedding gown. She had arrived.
1985 began her film career began for real with the film Desperately Seeking Susan. She also released the ballad ‘Crazy For You’ and began the Virgin Tour in the US with the Beastie Boys.
From 1986, when she released the album “True Blue”, she was married to actor Sean Penn. The music videos that accompanied the album became known for their lush cinematic style with sex, politics and religion thrown in for good measure. More than 20 years later, Madonna continues to use the same themes in her work.
During the 1980s and 1990s, Madonna continued releasing records, making hits and starring in movies. She starred in Dick Tracy and released the dance house anthem, Vogue”. Her Blond Ambition tour was hugely successful partially because of the explicit nature of her performance and many subsequent music videos released were deemed to explicit for MTV to play. In 1991, the documentary “Truth or Dare” was released which was followed by Hollywood’s “A League of their Own”.
Madonna became an entertainment mogul when she formed her own company Maverick. It consisted of maverick Records, a film production company, Maverick Films, with music publishing, merchandising and book publishing divisions. A joint venture with Time Warner, Madonna was paid an unprecedented $60 million recording contract and business deal. Her book Sex was the first Maverick vehicle and sold half a million copies in the US alone.
More films and more albums and singles were released including the album “Erotica” with its five singles and films, Body of Evidence and Maverick Films production, Dangerous Game. In total, she has made or contributed to 28 albums, which includes live recordings, soundtracks and compilations. She has had 8 world tours and 19 films, including the seminal Evita. Not all have been positively reviewed or box office successes, but that has never stopped Madonna.
Madonna has had a number of infamous relationships and is currently married to British filmmaker Guy Ritchie. Madonna is the mother of daughter Lourdes and son Rocco and hopes to adopt Malawian toddler, David Banda. The family lives in London and on their country estate in Wiltshire, England. She has spent years studying both yoga and Kabbalah, a variation of Judiasm.
