Well... Madonna's clearly gone and stuck the fork in herself again. I well remember the time when a new Madonna project meant a healthy, steady stream of interesting new content. Singles and videos which served as a reminder that - indeed - she was Madonna and that no one could make it all spin like she could. But for her last few albums, it's been a blunt 3-video slap in the face, 1 single per couple months for half a year, then a 3+ year full retreat from the industry.
I guess you could say I've never been a big Madonna Tour guy. Can she really compete against Lady Gaga and the voice of someone who currently seems to stick to her voracious No-Lipsyncing policy? Reviews of her latest (truly awful) album, Rebel Heart, have tripped over themselves to remind us this is the same Madonna who gave us Ray of Light. A fact I certainly had trouble remembering after probably her worst single ever, "Girl Gone Wild." Which of course belonged to her much better 2012 album, MDNA. I should have taken that single as a sign of Madonna's future confessional bangerz but I didn't realize how much sloppier her music could become. Since... bitch, she is Madonna. But the Lady Gaga thing clearly has worn her down and the only platform she seeks to put any effort onto is the stage where Gaga will always dominate. Because she has a better voice, a louder fanbase, and a far greater commitment to costumes, wigs, you name it.
Fuck, I miss Madonna. This one, the Madonna who folded radios in half. This one, the Madonna who made everyone bow down. This one, by hella miles! The Madonna who took risks. Even this one, the Madonna who showed unique grace under constant pressure to slow down or fade out because of her age. But, above all, especially this one. The one of a kind Madonna no one could imitate. This one? Is clearly the Madonna who knew her once un-challenge-able reign was over when Gaga did this. Since then, Madonna's only "Bitch, I'm Madonna" moment was calling "Born This Way" reductive (in spite of its message) because it sounded a bit too much like "Express Yourself." 5 years later, guess what happened? Gay marriage was legalized nationwide in the U.S. So... hardly reductive, after all.
A Gaga with 5 years of music under her belt has become a force more powerful than Madonna was in her first 5. Even in today's #Hashtag world where almost nothing means anything. (You keep fighting those Awards' Battles, Nicki. Covet and cherish and continue to place value only on the ones the racists won't let you have.) (Like I said: nothing means anything.) I guess I should say I love "Bitch I'm Madonna" just a little. Because at least it isn't her 51st millennial shade of this. Confessional Banger Madonna is watered down and vanilla. And a hypocritical take-back of her once powerful declaration: "I'm not a Christian!" Of course, if Gaga makes it super mainstream to clutch that crucifix, who is Madonna to say she won't follow?
