Unpopular opinion: Madonna

[MountainMonster 2,466]

None of her albums are as good as Gaga’s. 
 

What she pioneered was making a musical version of the Marilyn Monroe archetype, and that’s turned against her with time because her brand was built on sexuality.

[MountainMonster 2,466]

1 hour ago, nkta said:

Compared to Madonna, Gaga actually doesn’t have any good ballads 🥲

That’s the hottest take in this entire discussion. 

[MountainMonster 2,466]

12 minutes ago, Controversiaga said:

Tooo many people talk about her age and it’s irrelevant 

You’re really gonna have to consider changing your name, truly not living up to the controversy with this take and your boring straight guy hook up. 

[Elderflower 542]

Madonna's impact cannot be understated. 

She is the blueprint for reinvention, fusing religion and sex in pop music (the sacred vs. profane dichotomy), dissolving gender boundaries, and being a queer ally while also being a main pop girl. She was also a part of pioneering the music video format. We could go on and on, and instead I recommend reading some of the Wikipedia articles on her cultural impact (not including all):

Fashion of Madonna; Feminism of Madonna; Madonna and contemporary arts; Business of Madonna; Madonna and religion; Madonna and sexuality; Philanthropy and activism of Madonna; Madonna as a gay icon; Madonna studies (the academic subfield); and lastly, the main article, Cultural impact of Madonna

What other pop star has had not one, not two, but three imperial phases? She had no business releasing something as good as Confessions on a Dance Floor at 47, 20+ years into her already groundbreaking career.

Edited 3 hours ago by Elderflower

[LateToCult 41,682]

99.9% of the music is forgettable.

[NotoriousEden 620]

I obviously love Gaga cause why else would I be here but Madonna’s discography far exceeds Gaga’s in almost every dimension. Madonna has managed to cultivate a career really unheard of by anyone. She has redefined what it means to he a star and invented many things thy are now common place. She is somehow able to change her sound, voice, appearance, aesthetic for each album and is really the one that invented ERAS. Taylor Swift rides on the coattails of what Madonna has defined. Comparing Taylor’s “Eras” to Madonna’s is actually so laughable considering half her albums could be the same album

[MountainMonster 2,466]

11 minutes ago, Elderflower said:

What other pop star has had not one, not two, but three imperial phases? She had no business releasing something as good as Confessions on a Dance Floor at 47, 20+ years into her already groundbreaking career.

Not sure if id say she had more than one true imperial phase - 50% of her number ones are from 3 years, 1984-1986. Only 6 top 20s after 2000, and one number one in 2000. 44% of her top 20s are from 84-89 and an additional 44% are from the 90s. 
 

and if you want to limit the numbers to just top 10s (2-10), 45% of those are from 84-89 and 50% from the 90s. You could maybe argue two “imperial phases”, the late 80s-early 90s and mid-late 90s. But she has not been imperial since then. Just a rogue few hits since 2000 and nothing after 2010. 
 

Her impact is profound. But, I think it’s grossly exaggerated. And reinvention was not her invention. There were plenty of divas doing it before her. 

[Controversiaga 15,238]

1 hour ago, MountainMonster said:

You’re really gonna have to consider changing your name, truly not living up to the controversy with this take and your boring straight guy hook up. 

Peaceiaga 

[Bronco 22,847]

3 minutes ago, MountainMonster said:

Not sure if id say she had more than one true imperial phase - 50% of her number ones are from 3 years, 1984-1986. Only 6 top 20s after 2000, and one number one in 2000. 44% of her top 20s are from 84-89 and an additional 44% are from the 90s. 
 

and if you want to limit the numbers to just top 10s (2-10), 45% of those are from 84-89 and 50% from the 90s. You could maybe argue two “imperial phases”, the late 80s-early 90s and mid-late 90s. But she has not been imperial since then. Just a rogue few hits since 2000 and nothing after 2010. 
 

Her impact is profound. But, I think it’s grossly exaggerated. And reinvention was not her invention. There were plenty of divas doing it before her. 

Are these just US figures? 

Because since 1998, Guinness World Records have recognised her as the highest selling female artist globally. She's still unbeaten nearly 30 years on (although Taylor can't be far behind at this point). 

She was the highest grossing female touring act from 2004 to 2023.

18 certified multiple platinum albums globally.

17 Golden Disc awards in Japan, she's also the record holder for most wins of the AOTY award there. 

13 UK #1s, 24 Canadian #1s. Germany's chart company recognises her as the most successful singles artist in German chart history. 

15 Top 10s on the UK chart since 2000 including 5 #1s.

In the US, Billboard in 2021 reported that she was the most successful solo artist in the chart's history. Second only to the Beatles. 

She has 50 US Billboard Dance Chart #1s - the most number of #1s recorded by any artist on any Billboard chart to date. 

Like we can absolutely recognise since 2008 onwards her output and performance has declined. But it requires blinkers or ignorance to suggest she's only had a few rogue successes since the 90s.

 

[ActualPatient 2,490]

it's imprinted on me that she's not a nice person, based on how she treated Gaga historically.

That's why im not interested at all in supporting her music or artistry.

Edited 2 hours ago by ActualPatient

[HotLikeMexico 6,349]

Oofff the little monsters are still BITTER over an old beef. Yall need to move tf on. 

[dynamite 66,232]

Just now, HotLikeMexico said:

Oofff the little monsters are still BITTER over an old beef. Yall need to move tf on. 

Please don't call Madonna old beef it's unkind! 

[HotLikeMexico 6,349]

12 minutes ago, dynamite said:

Please don't call Madonna old beef it's unkind! 

Why you being ageist hoe.

[Elderflower 542]

37 minutes ago, MountainMonster said:

Not sure if id say she had more than one true imperial phase - 50% of her number ones are from 3 years, 1984-1986. Only 6 top 20s after 2000, and one number one in 2000. 44% of her top 20s are from 84-89 and an additional 44% are from the 90s. 
 

and if you want to limit the numbers to just top 10s (2-10), 45% of those are from 84-89 and 50% from the 90s. You could maybe argue two “imperial phases”, the late 80s-early 90s and mid-late 90s. But she has not been imperial since then. Just a rogue few hits since 2000 and nothing after 2010. 
 

Her impact is profound. But, I think it’s grossly exaggerated. And reinvention was not her invention. There were plenty of divas doing it before her. 

Confessions restored her global dominance, particularly in Europe and the UK. It was massive, and it continues to influence mainstream music. Confessions is still one of the fastest-selling albums worldwide, surpassing Ray of Light and Oops!... I Did It Again.

"And reinvention was not her invention" haha yeah no ****, but no one did it like Madonna before she came along, which is widely recognized by scholars and music critics. 

[Brazilwood 4,349]

I have a hard time connecting to her visuals and world building. Some songs are great, only album I listen to from start to finish is Ray of Light, everything else I tried and hit a wall, no dopamine. I see the impact, but it doesn't impact me that much  some days I just find myself mumbling Muuuuusic... makes the people... come together