“You only see what your eyes want to see, how can life be what you want it to be? You’re frozen when your heart is not open” (Madonna, 1998).
Who does not know Madonna? Every generation has her influence from music, art, fashion, movies, stage performance, and even sexuality and spirituality. She is the woman who currently defeats herself for the most successful tour ever by a female singer and the only singer who has 45 singles in the billboard dance chart in history; not to mention her selling of albums and singles is approximately 300 million copies worldwide. Originally, she came from a small city in Michigan, Bay City. She went to The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor to study dance and music. However, she decided to leave her school and pursued her dream to be a professional dancer in New York City in 1979. From that moment forward, she met many musician and dancers, as well as producers, who worked with her and wanted to help her to achieve her dream: To conquer the world! Apparently, it was not a random wish, proven by her second album entitled ‘Like A Virgin’ in 1984. She did dominate the pop music in the 1980’s and influenced many teenagers in her era to be ‘Madonna wannabe’s’.
Fortunately, the influence of Madonna was still strong in my teenage years. I first knew her from the song “Frozen” from 1998. This woman in this music video amazed me. There was a spiritual connection that made me want to know her more. Not only was her music so catchy and diverse, but the way she sang and expressed herself in her performance was so bold and provoking. I decided to do research about her from watching MTV; because I was in a small town in Indonesia, I did not have any other technology than that to do inquiry. The more I did research, the more I fell in love and I could say that I became a huge fan. My friends ask me why I am crazy for Madonna. I understand their curiosity because I always relate everything that I say and do to a Madonna thing.
The following reasons may help them to see my point of view:
1.Musicality. Madonna’s music is so diverse.
She has produced a lot of good songs; from pop to electro and jazz to hip hop. She can sing beautifully across these different kinds of songs, even though people might say she is not so good as Mariah or Whitney. But, she has written and produced most of her own songs during her 32-year career. She evolved from a dancer to a singer who also plays instrument such as guitar and harp. No wonder many female singers say that Madonna opened the path for them to be a singer.
2.Work Ethic. Madonna is known for her perfectionism.
She never gets tired till her goals are fulfilled.
She is so detailed in her acts. She will make sure that everything will run as she wishes, even though it will cause many people in her team to complain. But in the end they all knew that they got a good lesson about discipline in work.
3.Creativity.
No other singers in the whole world are as creative as her. I can see it specifically in her stage performances. She does not only sing a song but also bring it into life by delivering a concert as a theatrical acts. It is no wonder why her current ticket sells for the Rebel Heart world tour have sold out in many cities. People want to see her live acts. Even the ‘Titanic singer’, Celine Dion, once admitted that there is no need to worry about Madonna, she would bring the greatest performance on earth.
4.Spirituality.
Her journey as a human being who searches for truth is inspiring me. She was raised Catholic but currently she said that she is a spiritualist who studies Kabbalah. The point that I took from her is that I should not just follow what I believe without questioning and experiencing it. It made me more firm in my faith to Jesus Christ as my God and savior.
5.Sexuality and Controversy.
She expresses herself without being afraid of other people’s thoughts. She does what she thinks needs to be done. She says things that she thinks need to be said. Many controversies have been there during her career. One ultimate one in my opinion was her music video for “Like A Prayer”, which brought Pepsi to cancel support for her 1990 world tour and the Pope to excommunicate her.
6.Sense of Humor.
This quality of hers is so similar to me. I love to laugh the way Madonna seems to. In one interview she said that people might not notice that she had this quality. People tend to take everything from her so seriously that they put negative label on her.
Madonna’s career is still going strong. She is the Diva. She is the Queen. She has inspired me to be who I am today. She influences me through her songs and stage performances such that I can be whatever I want to be. She will always be one of the biggest influences in my life on this earth. I cannot wait to meet her in person. One thing for sure is that I will see her concert in Atlanta in January 20, 2016.
FYI..I did went to her concert!
