In April 1987 I was on a US International Communications Agency Traveling Fellowship coast to coast US with other international journalists from the Bahamas, Haiti, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Montserrat etc. (starting from New York on the East Coast by air and road to Seattle in Washington State on the West Coast with stop overs in several states like Florida, Texas, Maryland, Virginia, Utah, etc.) and the only way to survive that long a journey was music. I had gone into a Radio Shack in New York when I arrived there after a training programme at the Voice of America Training School in Washington DC, and I ensured that I got a good midget recorder to record and play music from.
Music from FM radio stations in buses provided gave us the energy to go on such a long but enjoyable journey. As expected, the radio stations were all playing the same music from same artistes, whether it was Jazz, R&B, Soul, Disco, FunkPop or Rock. I wish I could still share those vibes with you these days, but they were recorded in cassettes and even if one can still retrieve them, what machine will you use to play them in these techy days?
That April 1987, the hit songs were Cutting Crew’s ‘I Just Died in Your Arms’, released earlier in July 1986 as a single from their debut studio album, Broadcast, Earth Wind and Fire were still grooving and then La Isla Bonita by Madonna, released in February 1987 and getting airplay on all stations like wildfire. It was like once the song had finished playing on one station and you tune to another, same song was on!
La Isla Bonita was not Madonna’s first or last hit, but the song stayed with me and was always playing in my head throughout the tour, even though I did not really have time Madonna and her genre of pop music before 1987. Since then, she had gone on to wow many of us and millions of people all over the world with her brand of music which has always been danceable, and her dance style has also endeared her to music fans everywhere.
About a month ago – on Saturday, June 24, 2023 – Madonna developed a serious bacterial infection which led to several days stay in Intensive Care Unit in New York. She had to cancel many concerts. She was expected to kick-off an 84-date global tour on July 15 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada but all that is now history, although the star is currently on the road to 100% recovery despite going through the life-threatening experience. She remains in observation but her life is no longer in any type of danger, although she will have to take extra care as she regains her strength and health.
Popularly called the Queen of Pop, Madonna has now popped up, back on social media to thank her fans for all their good wishes while she was in ICU, a period which was a scary experience for her family and friends.
Madonna’s last health scare was in 2020 when she had to undergo replacement surgery almost a year after an injury she sustained on her Madame X tour forced her to cancel several North American shows.
Madonna has been in the spotlight for decades and has had a handful of high-profile relationships over the years. The Queen of Pop has been married twice — first to Sean Penn from 1985 to 1989, then to Guy Ritchie from 2000 to 2008. She has six children – two biological children and four adopted.
Madonna made a lot of money off of her songs. In total, the pop star has churned out 14 studio albums and has sold 335 million albums from the mid-80s to 2015, as captured by Guinness World Records. That made her the best-selling female recording artist ever. She has well over 200 officially released tracks over the course of her career, a stunning percentage of which should remain familiar to even casual pop fans of her lifetime.
Her biggest hits include ‘Don’t Tell Me’ (2000), ‘Borderline’ (1984), ‘Frozen’ (1998), ‘La Isla Bonita’ (1987), ‘Music’ (2000), ‘Hung Up’ (2005), ‘Vogue’ (1990), ‘Like A Prayer’ (1989). There are also “Papa Don’t Preach,” and “Material Girl,” among many others.
Born Madonna Louise Ciccone on August 16, 1958 in Bay City, Michigan, she was raised in Pontiac and Rochester Hills, north of Detroit.
Her first entry on the US Billboard Hot 100 was “Holiday” (1983), which also became her first top-ten hit song in several countries. The following year, she achieved her first number-one single in Australia, Canada, and the US with “Like a Virgin” from the album of the same name.
Madonna dropped out of college in 1977 and moved to New York with $35 in her pocket. She launched the Material Girl clothing line, created with her daughter Lourdes and named after her famous hit. The style of the clothing line was inspired by the 1980s and the prevailing girly punk image of Madonna.
Her assets are currently valued at around 900 million dollars and she is one of the richest singers in the world today. Before becoming famous, Madonna worked multiple minimum wage jobs to barely make ends meet.
Her portrayal of Perón in Evita earned her a Golden Globe. Also, Madonna entered the Guinness Book of Records as the actress who changed the most costumes in a movie. In order to fulfill the expectations of the filmmakers, in preparation for filming, Madonna intensively attended vocal lessons and read a lot about E. Peron.
As she recovers from her infection, her managers will have a tough time repackaging the cancelled tours and international engagements. But you can trust Madonna. She will come back kicking and swinging in the sassing way only she knows how to do. Go Madonna, Go!
