madonna new world tour

• International edition
• Australia edition
• Europe edition

Madonna announces Celebration greatest hits world tour

Singer will celebrate four decades in music with a 35-date run beginning in Vancouver on 15 July, with one date at London’s O2 Arena on 14 October

Madonna has announced a tour celebrating her 40 years as a recording and touring artist. Dubbed the Celebration tour, the 35-date run will begin in Vancouver, Canada, on 15 July, and run through to winter, ending on 1 December at Amsterdam’s Ziggo Dome.

First teased in a promotional video for last year’s dance chart No 1s album Finally Enough Love, the Celebration tour was officially announced in a clip parodying Madonna’s 1991 tour film Truth or Dare. In the video, celebrities including Diplo, Jack Black, Lil Wayne and Amy Schumer play a game of truth or dare with Madonna, which culminates with Schumer “daring” Madonna to embark on a greatest hits tour. “You think people would come to that show?” Madonna asks. “The answer is – fuck yeah.”

Per a press release, the Celebration tour will showcase “Madonna’s artistic journey through four decades and pays respect to the city of New York where her career in music began.”

Supporting Madonna on all dates is drag performer Bob the Drag Queen, AKA Caldwell Tidicue. Best known for winning season eight of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Tidicue has also released a handful of singles, starred in a production of Angels in America at the Berkeley Repertory Theater, and hosts a podcast, Sibling Rivalry, with Monét X Change.

The Celebration tour is Madonna’s 12th concert tour. The last time she went on the road was in 2019 and 2020, when she performed in intimate venues in support of her album Madame X. That run saw her play 12 shows at the 2,200-capacity London Palladium, with similarly lengthy stints in New York, Los Angeles and more.

The only UK date of the Celebration tour announced thus far is on 14 October at London’s 20,000-capacity O2 Arena. In a statement, Madonna said: “I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for.”

Live Nation, the producer of the Celebration tour, has faced criticism in recent months, with the US government currently in the midst of an antitrust investigation into the touring giant and Ticketmaster parent company over whether it has abused its power in the entertainment industry. Scrutiny intensified in November, when Taylor Swift slammed Ticketmaster over the bungled pre-sale for her own greatest hits shows, dubbed the Eras tour.

In a letter to the company, the US Senate’s antitrust committee chair Amy Klobuchar expressed “serious concern about the state of competition in the ticketing industry and its harmful impact on consumers”.

Tickets for the Celebration tour go on sale on 20 January and are available from Madonna’s website .

• Pop and rock

Most viewed

Need help organizing for summer? We tapped 'The Home Edit' stars for their recommendations

• TODAY Plaza
• Share this —

• Watch Full Episodes
• Read With Jenna
• Inspirational
• Relationships
• TODAY Table
• Newsletters
• Start TODAY
• Shop TODAY Awards
• Citi Concert Series
• Listen All Day

Follow today

More Brands

• On The Show

Madonna announces 2023 tour that will celebrate her greatest hits

Madonna is getting ready to "express herself" all over again with her latest global tour.

On Tuesday, the music icon announced a new 35-city global tour, aptly named "Madonna: The Celebration Tour." The 64-year-old shared the news on her Instagram page and revealed that the tour would feature hits from across her four decades performing.

"Come join the party! 🎉💃🏼🎵🕺🏾🎤," she captioned the post.

The singer also teased the news in a video that paid tribute to her 1991 film "Truth or Dare." In the four-minute clip, Madonna is joined by several stars, including Amy Schumer, Jack Black, Lil Wayne and Judd Apatow, for a game of truth or dare.

Toward the end, Schumer dares Madonna to go on a tour and sing all of her best hits. It's a challenge that the icon gladly accepts.

A release posted to Madonna's website said the tour would follow her "artistic journey" and pay special homage to New York City, the place where her career began.

“I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for,” she said.

Want to know more about the tour? Here's everything we know so far.

What are the dates of the tour?

The tour will kick off its North American leg on July 15 in Vancouver then make its way to Seattle, Denver, Chicago, New York and other major cities.

• July 15 — Vancouver, B.C.
• July 18 — Seattle, Wash.
• July 22 — Phoenix, Ariz.
• July 25 — Denver, Colo.
• July 27 — Tulsa, Okla.
• July 30 — St. Paul, Minn.
• Aug. 2 — Cleveland, Ohio
• Aug. 5 — Detroit, Mich.
• Aug. 7 — Pittsburgh, Penn.
• Aug. 9 — Chicago, Ill.
• Aug. 13 — Toronto, Ont.
• Aug. 19 — Montreal, Q.C.
• Aug. 23 — New York, N.Y.
• Aug. 24 — New York, N.Y.
• Aug. 30 — Boston, Mass.
• Sept. 2 — Washington, D.C.
• Sept. 5 — Atlanta, Ga.
• Sept. 7 — Tampa, Fla.
• Sept. 9 — Miami, Fla.
• Sept. 13 — Houston, Texas
• Sept, 18 — Dallas, Texas
• Sept. 21 — Austin, Texas
• Sept. 27 — Los Angeles, Calif.
• Oct. 4 — San Francisco, Calif.
• Oct. 7 — Las Vegas, Nev.

The European leg of the tour will commence on Oct. 14 in London and will include stops in Barcelona, Paris, Milan, Berlin and other famous European cities.

• Oct. 14 — London, England
• Oct. 21 — Antwerp, Belgium
• Oct. 25 — Copenhagen, Denmark
• Oct. 28 — Stockholm, Sweden
• Nov. 01 — Barcelona, Spain
• Nov. 06 — Lisbon, Portugal
• Nov. 12 — Paris, France
• Nov. 13 — Paris, France
• Nov. 15 — Cologne, Germany
• Nov. 23 — Milan, Italy
• Nov. 28 — Berlin, Germany
• Dec. 1 — Amsterdam, the Netherlands

When do tickets go on sale?

Fans will have a few chances to get their hands on the coveted tickets:

General public sales: Tickets will go on sale Friday, Jan. 20 and Friday, Jan. 27 at 10 a.m. local time, and will be available to purchase on Madonna's website .

Fan club presales: If you’re a legacy member of Madonna’s official fan club, you can participate in the following presales.

• The first presale applies to North American shows that go on sale to the general public on Jan. 20. The presale takes place from Tuesday, Jan. 17 at 12 p.m. ET through Wednesday, Jan. 18 at 5 p.m. ET.
• The second presale applies to European and UK shows and will span from Wednesday, Jan. 18 at 9 a.m. GMT to 5 p.m. GMT.
• The third presale is for the North American shows that go on sale to the general public on Jan. 27. This final presale will run from Monday, Jan. 23 at 9 a.m. ET through Wednesday, Jan. 25 at 5 p.m. ET.

Citi presale: Citi cardholders can take part in two presales. Tickets can be purchased through the Citi Entertainment program.

• The first presale is for tickets going on sale to the general public on Jan. 20. The presale will run from Tuesday, Jan. 17 at 2 p.m. local time through Thursday, Jan. 19 at 6 p.m. local time.
• The second is for tickets going on sale to the general public on Jan. 27. The presale will run from Tuesday, Jan. 24 at 10 a.m. local time through Thursday, Jan. 26 at 6 p.m. local time. 

Canada American Express presale: American Express cardholders can participate in a presale for concerts in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal. Tickets will be available to purchase on Ticketmaster .

• The presale will span from Wednesday, Jan. 18 at 10 a.m. local time and run through Thursday, Jan. 19 at 6 p.m. local time.

European American Express presale:  American Express cardholders can participate in a presale for concerts in Sweden, France, Italy, Netherlands, Spain and Belgium. Tickets will be available to purchase on Ticketmaster .

• The presale will span from Wednesday, Jan. 18 at 9 a.m. local time through Thursday, Jan. 19 at 6 p.m. local time.

Who is the opening act?

Caldwell Tidicue, whose stage name is Bob the Drag Queen, will appear at all dates of the tour.

Chrissy Callahan covers a range of topics for TODAY.com, including fashion, beauty, pop culture and food. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, watching bad reality TV and consuming copious amounts of cookie dough.

Madonna unveils 2023 world tour dates with wild celeb-filled 'Truth or Dare' video

NEW YORK — Madonna will "Take a Bow" with a new tour through North America and Europe starting this summer that will be a "Celebration" of the pop icon’s hits, which include 38 songs in the Billboard Hot 100.

The artist, 64, announced the tour Tuesday with a  star-studded video that nodded to her 1991 film "Truth or Dare" with a roundtable featuring Diplo, Judd Apatow, Jack Black, Lil Wayne, Bob The Drag Queen, Kate Berlant, Larry Owens, Meg Stalter, Eric Andre and Amy Schumer as the group plays a NSFW version of truth or dare.

"Madonna, I dare you to do a world tour and play your greatest (expletive) hits," Schumer challenges. 

"Four decades? As in 40 years? As in all those songs?" Madonna replies. "That's a lot of songs. You think people would come to that show?" 

The room's consensus is yes. 

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

"OK, so the answer is: (expletive) yeah," Madonna says as the rest of the celebrities erupt into cheers, shouting "Madonna world tour!"

Evan Rachel Wood on her Madonna transformation: She 'is the most confident person on Earth'

When is the Madonna: The Celebration Tour?

The 35-city Live Nation-backed Madonna: The Celebration Tour will kick off July 15 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, with stops in Detroit, Chicago, New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Denver, Atlanta and Boston, among others. That leg ends on Oct. 7 in Las Vegas.

Then the Material Girl hits Europe, where she has 11 dates throughout the fall, including London, Barcelona, Paris, Berlin, Milan and Stockholm, among others. The tour will wrap in Amsterdam on Dec. 1.

Tickets go on sale starting Friday, Jan. 20.

Review: Madonna's 'Madame X' concert film is compelling and confounding

What music is Madonna performing during her tour?

The singer will "be highlighting her unmatched catalog of music from the past 40-plus years," according to the announcement. It will also "pay respect to the city of New York, where her career in music began."

"I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for," Madonna says in the announcement.

Some of Madonna’s Hot 100 hits include "Vogue," "Music," "Crazy For You," "Like a Virgin," "Like a Prayer," "Justify My Love," "Live to Tell" and "Papa Don’t Preach."

Madonna covers Vanity Fair 'Icons Issue'

Vanity Fair Italy, France and Spain teamed up for a joint " Icons Issue " featuring Madonna on the cover in honor of her Celebration Tour. When asked about how much her provocative and highly criticized career has cost her, the pop star said she "could answer several billion" dollars , but "the thing it’s cost me the most is loss of sleep and maybe less time spent with people I love – also peace of mind. But I feel that it is a necessary part of the journey I am on and it’s a price I have accepted."

Madonna has pushed boundaries throughout her career, but it's simply reflective of her environment. Vanity Fair Italy called her a pioneer of inclusivity and she seemed resistant to accepting the label. "I am not really sure what it means to say I was one of the first," she said. "The people who supported me were largely members of the LGBTQ+ community and of different ethnicities. That was my support system, so why wouldn’t I in turn support and champion them?"

Madonna discusses her relationship with religion

Madonna's persona and stage name is based on Catholic figure The Madonna or The Virgin Mary, a choice that has been met with backlash since the start of her career. Although she was raised Catholic, she told Vanity Fair that she's never taken criticism to heart. "I thought if the Catholic Church did not perceive my work as an artist as doing something good, then that was their problem and an extension of their narrow mindedness and inability to see that anything that brings people together," Madonna said.

Today, Madonna is "not subscribing to religious groups that are exclusive of others or extremist in any shape," but she does "think it’s important to have ritualistic behavior and a spiritual life."

"My relationship with religion is that I remain very involved in my own spiritual practice and I think it’s imperative for everyone to have a spiritual practice – but I am not defining that for other people," the singer added.

Contributing: Naledi Ushe, Hannah Yasharoff, USA TODAY; The Associated Press

More: Madonna’s ‘Erotica’ showed that sex doesn’t always sell. But it can move the needle.

And: Watch Madonna 'disturb the peace,' share her 'Matrix' regret in wild Jimmy Fallon interview

• FINALLY ENOUGH LOVE
• RAY OF LIGHT
• RAISING MALAWI
• Sign up Log in

MADONNA ADDS NEW DATES TO THE CELEBRATION TOUR

Due to overwhelming demand, Madonna today announced the addition of 13 new dates in North America across The Celebration Tour. Produced by Live Nation, the 35-city global tour now includes second shows in Seattle, Chicago, Toronto, Montreal, Boston, Miami, Houston, Dallas, Austin, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas along with a third show in New York. Tickets for the newly added performances go on sale tomorrow – FRIDAY, JANUARY 20TH at 10am Local Time alongside the shows already announced in each respective city. The highly anticipated tour will kick off on Saturday, July 15th at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, BC with stops in Phoenix, Chicago, Los Angeles, and more before making its way to Europe where she will perform in 11 cities throughout the fall, including London, Barcelona, and Stockholm, among others. The Celebration Tour will wrap on Friday, December 1st in Amsterdam, NL at Ziggo Dome. Following Madonna’s viral video that announced the tour earlier this week, the response has been incredible, with fans looking forward to seeing the best-selling female solo touring artist of all time perform her unmatched catalog of music from the past 40 plus years in a live setting. The tour toasts to the incomparable movement of individualistic celebration, creativity and cutting-edge innovation Madonna has created over the course of her career. The Celebration Tour will offer a one-of-a-kind experience with special guest Bob the Drag Queen a.k.a. Caldwell Tidicue across all dates on the global tour. TICKETS: Tickets for newly added dates will go on sale tomorrow, Friday, January 20th at 10am local time. Visit madonna.com/tour for complete tour and ticket listing. ADDITIONAL SHOWS: As previously announced, tickets for performances in Phoenix, Denver, St. Paul, Cleveland, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Washington, and Atlanta will go on sale Friday, January 27th at 10am local time. Citi is the official card of Madonna The Celebration Tour. Citi cardmembers will have access to presale tickets starting Tuesday, January 24 at 10am local time through Thursday, January 26 at 6pm local time. For complete presale details visit www.citientertainment.com . Legacy members of Madonna’s Official Fan Club will have a pre-sale opportunity starting Monday, January 23 at 10am local time through Wednesday, January 25th at 5pm local time.  VIP: Fans can also purchase VIP Packages, which may include premium tickets, exclusive access to a behind the scenes tour, group photo on-stage, pre-show reception, limited edition lithograph & more. For more information, visit vipnation.com .

Latest Stories

News archives.

• February(1)
• December(1)
• September(2)
• February(2)
• September(1)
• September(12)
• October(14)
• November(5)
• November(1)
• February(3)
• September(3)
• November(2)
• December(7)
• September(18)
• October(11)
• November(3)
• January(11)
• February(24)
• September(6)
• November(6)
• December(4)
• February(6)
• December(9)
• January(10)
• November(4)
• February(12)
• February(9)
• September(4)
• February(4)
• December(2)
• January(17)
• February(20)
• November(7)
• December(3)
• January(13)
• February(8)
• October(23)
• November(14)
• December(15)
• November(28)
• December(11)
• February(18)

• Terms and Conditions
• Privacy Policy
• Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information
• Concert Tickets

Madonna’s Celebration Tour Dazzles With Hits, Surrealistic Visuals, and Reminders of Our Mortality

By Kory Grow

“It’s so great to be home … I mean that in a way that only New Yorkers know,” Madonna , who adopted New York as her hometown in 1978, told the Brooklyn audience present for the North American kickoff of her Celebration Tour on Wednesday. “New Yorkers can identify with just-not-giving-a-fuck motherfuckers. We do shit our way. New York is not for little pussies who sleep.”

Madonna certainly wasn’t tired, and that was the point of the whole show, a tour de force of some of her biggest hits paired with surrealistic visuals that didn’t end until 1 a.m.

Throughout the night, dancers took the stage dressed as her during various points of her career — club kid Madonna, ice-cream-cone bra Madonna, BDSM “Human Nature” Madonna — making the show something like This Is Your Life for the Material Girl, who, at 65, is still two years shy of collecting full Social Security benefits. Several times during the performance she expressed just how happy she was to be there, and, well, anywhere. It’s why she performed Confessions on a Dance Floor’s “I Love New York” for the first time in 15 years on electric guitar before shredding her way through “Burning Up” with rare abandon.

Editor’s picks

Every awful thing trump has promised to do in a second term, the 250 greatest guitarists of all time, the 500 greatest albums of all time, the 50 worst decisions in movie history.

The celebration in the tour’s name simply denotes the fact that Madonna is here, especially since she acknowledged throughout the show so many peers who have died in various ways: Prince, Michael Jackson, Keith Haring, and Jean-Michel Basquiat among them. Screens bearing black-and-white images of dozens if not hundreds of notable people who died of AIDS, from Robert Mapplethorpe to Eazy-E, accompanied by her moving rendition of “Live to Tell.” It would’ve felt like an awards show’s farewell montage if the rest of the concert weren’t so joyous.

Madonna Closes Out Celebration Tour in Front of Record-Setting 1.6 Million Fans in Brazil

How to livestream madonna’s free brazil concert in the u.s., the pet shop boys are having a renaissance. what have they done to deserve this.

The orgy began with erotic boxing in laser-banded rings, as Madonna sang “Erotica,” and it congealed into a mass of people for “Justify My Love.” She just climbed right in and gave out kisses. For “Hung Up,” topless women and men came out and teased her until she kissed one of the women, all leading her to climb on Mercy’s grand piano to sing “Bad Girl.” (How intimidating must it be to have your mom be Madonna singing next to you and then mounting your instrument in a red satin negligee like it’s a seedy cabaret?)

The 14,000-strong, sold-out audience, which was a broad mix of genders, races, and sexualities, many of whom were wearing “Italians Do It Better” T-shirts (how Brooklyn!), seemed stunned by the spectacle. Shouldn’t everyone have been dancing and making out during “Erotica”? And in the fourth act, shouldn’t everyone have been striking a pose during Madonna’s ebullient “Vogue,” a song that found Madonna and one of her crew members (and love interest), boxing coach Josh Popper, grading her dancers’ (and one of her daughters, Estere’s) vogues like Dancing With the Stars ? Instead, most of the crowd seemed to just take in the concert, possibly because they knew it was a special occasion or possibly because it was approaching midnight on a Wednesday. The appreciative crowd still cheered for every song, though.

Madonna lifted the mood with Music ‘s “Don’t Tell Me,” in which she battled the evening’s occasional MC, Bob the Drag Queen, who was dressed like a cowboy with a cow print hat. Before singing Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” on her acoustic guitar, she pleaded for peace in the Middle East, asking the audience to turn on its cellphone flashlights. “Each and every one of us have a light inside of us,” she said. “And each and every one of us can share that light with the with the person standing next to you … even the people you don’t like. Be counterintuitive. Share your light with someone you don’t want to share your light with.… Keep your lights on when you leave here tonight.” And then she recapitulated the evening’s theme in “I Will Survive”: “Did you think I’d crumble, did you think I’d lay down and die … Did you? ” she asks pointedly.

The final two acts served as something like Madonna’s statements of intent — to provoke, to enrich, to confound. After a montage of all her controversies, Madonna, in voice-over, said, “I think the most controversial thing I’ve ever done is to stick around.” And then she sings three songs that exist on different planes from each other: the surrealistic “Bedtime Story,” the lysergic dance song “Ray of Light” (which she sings floating in a giant cube over the audience), and the down-to-earth “Rain.”

She capped these songs with the intro to the final act that focused on her sometime friendship with Michael Jackson. It was long and strange and mashes up “Billie Jean” with “Like a Virgin” (which she did not sing), and the only explanation for why she made it is in the title of the next song, “Bitch I’m Madonna,” which is the other message of the whole evening: “Bitch, I’m Madonna/Who do you think you are?” (That self-assuredness is also the only explanation why she skipped “Borderline,” “Dress You Up,” “Papa Don’t Preach,” and “Frozen.”) Her troupe, dressed like a thousand different Madonnas from pop-music history, danced to the song, and the night ended quickly with “Celebration” and a “Thank you, Brooklyn” before she disappeared into the stage.

Madonna Set List:

“Nothing Really Matters” “Everybody” “Into the Groove” “I Love New York” “Burning Up” “Open Your Heart” “Holiday”

“Live to Tell” “Like a Prayer”

“Erotica” “Justify My Love” “Hung Up” “Bad Girl”

“Vogue” “Human Nature” “Crazy for You”

“Die Another Day” “Don’t Tell Me” “Mother and Father” “I Will Survive” “La Isla Bonita” “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina”

Donna Summer's Estate Reaches Settlement With Kanye West Over Alleged 'Theft' of 'I Feel Love'

Billie eilish releases highly-anticipated third studio album 'hit me hard and soft', 2024 acm awards: the complete winners list, jason aldean pays tribute to toby keith with 'should've been a cowboy' at 2024 acm awards.

“Bitch I’m Madonna” “Celebration”

I went to The Celebration Tour for the 1st time tonight in Brooklyn. Despite me seeing many pics, videos, & reviews beforehand, I was blown away. Madonna & the show were everything & so much more. If you’re unsure about going, just GOOOOO! Cherish Madonna & give her flowers! pic.twitter.com/sofCHV1DWU — Madonna Nation ❌ (@MadonnaNationX) December 14, 2023

Holiday // Madonna @ Barclays, The Celebration Tour #MadonnaCelebrationTour #Madonna @Madonna pic.twitter.com/wz7RCtQgIu — ethan jon (@ethanjon) December 14, 2023

Into the Groove // Madonna @ Barclays … The Celebration Tour #MadonnaCelebrationTour #Madonna @Madonna pic.twitter.com/sDWjVfm4aJ — ethan jon (@ethanjon) December 14, 2023

MADONNA PERFORMED I LOVE NEW YORK!!!! pic.twitter.com/gNgkRik3Gl — saint gregory (@repressedhomo) December 14, 2023

Hear Miley Cyrus' Edgy Cover of Talking Heads' 'Psycho Killer'

• Classic Covers
• By Emily Zemler

T-Pain Finds His Own Way on Inspirational Single 'On This Hill'

Zayn reaches for the heavens in 'stardust' music video, watch peso pluma showcase hit single 'la durango' on 'fallon'.

• Late-Night TV

The 2024 ACM Awards Were Cute, Feel-Good, and (Mostly) Predictable

• By Joseph Hudak

Most Popular

'mad max' director says 'there's no excuse' for tom hardy and charlize theron's 'fury road' set feud: tom 'had to be coaxed out of his trailer', sam rubin, longtime ktla entertainment reporter and anchor, dies at 64, melania trump confirms her son barron just made a total 180 once again with his future, dj akademiks says he'll take entire industry down if convicted in rape lawsuit, you might also like, flourishing films boards sales on singapore-india company mumba devi’s ‘grand sugar daddy’ and ‘not today’ at cannes (exclusive), richemont sales slow in fourth quarter, as group names nicolas bos ceo, the best yoga mats for any practice, according to instructors, ‘megalopolis’ first reactions boast that francis ford coppola’s epic transcends genre: ‘it’s the craziest thing i’ve ever seen’, under armour plans revamp after dour earnings report.

Rolling Stone is a part of Penske Media Corporation. © 2024 Rolling Stone, LLC. All rights reserved.

Verify it's you

Please log in.

Madonna’s ‘Celebration’ Show Is Very Late but Worth the Wait at U.S. Tour Launch: Concert Review

By Ramin Setoodeh

Ramin Setoodeh

Co-Editor-in-Chief

• ‘Furiosa’ Fires Up Cannes With 6-Minute Standing Ovation for Anya Taylor-Joy and Teary Chris Hemsworth 2 days ago
• Cannes Kicks Off With Robotic 3.5-Minute Standing Ovation for AI-Themed Comedy ‘The Second Act’ Starring Léa Seydoux 3 days ago
• Cannes Film Festival Opens With Storm Clouds, Meryl Streep and Messi the Dog 3 days ago

Hello, Brooklyn. Is Madonna in the house? It’s after 10 p.m. on Wednesday night, and the Material Girl is nowhere to be found on the first hometown stop of her career-retrospective “Celebration” tour.

Popular on Variety

The vibe inside the Barclays Center had started off with puffs of pot smoke and Fire Island-circuit, party-ready club music curated by DJ Honey Dijon. Costumed fans decked out in glitter, Madonna T-shirts, hoodies and even a “Like a Virgin” wedding dress grew increasingly impatient. It’s a power move for a stadium artist to keep his or her concert-goers waiting … and waiting … and waiting, and it’s certainly one that Madonna is (in)famous for. But this isn’t the ’90s, and New York is no longer the city that never sleeps. People were starting to get drowsy. Those gummies had started to kick in.   

Finally, at 10:45 p.m., the evening’s host, Bob the Drag Queen, sauntered onstage in a pink Marie Antoinette-like ruffled gown. As he invited fans to travel back to 1978 New York City, with “Madonna at 19 years old,” he declared, “This is not just a show. This is not just. This is not just a partttty. It’s a celebration, bitches!” 

Photos: Ricardo Gomez

The song, and the dance, felt apt: Madonna may have dodged fate only very recently. She addressed the bacterial infection in a rambling speech to fans, between songs, early on, standing next to an actor dressed as Madonna, meant to represent her as a young woman.

“Oh my god,” the real Madonna said. “It’s so great to be back in New York. You have no idea. The enthusiasm, the joy, it’s just coming out of my pores. It’s amazing. Touch me right now. Please someone, touch me.” Madonna, at 65, looked at her younger doppelganger. “Touch me. Yes. Thank you. So uh — the relief. People can speak my language, the language of c–t! Uh, I don’t know where to begin. First of all, no one is more surprised that I have made it this far than me. Yeah, four decades, motherfuckers! And I got to tell you, I didn’t think I was going to make it this summer, but here I am. Thank you for having me. Thank you for standing by me, for your support, your love.

“You don’t understand — the love from a New Yorker is like making a big fat smelly rat come up to you and put your arms around you: ‘I made it.’ I’m not comparing you guys to rats,” she continued. “I know that sounded weird. First of all — I mean, fifth of all, I want you to meet myself. Have you met myself? She was little bit shy back in the day. Let’s see if she’s ticklish.” The real Madonna poked the other Madonna, hugged her, and then seemed peeved to be sharing the spotlight, so she ordered her to sit down. 

Madonna, after all, doesn’t co-headline with anyone — not even herself. But for all that she’s changed music, she may, today, be chasing the descendants her fame helped create. “The Celebration Tour” is coming at the end of the year defined by three other superstar artists on the road — Taylor Swift’s “Eras” tour, which became the first concert in history to gross $1 billion globally; Beyonce’s “Renaissance”; and SZA’s “SOS” tour. In all honesty, “The Celebration Tour” doesn’t fall in the same league as those transcendent fan experiences — and it’s also no match for Madonna’s greatest concert of this century, 2005’s “Confessions” tour, based on her tenth studio album “Confessions on a Dance Floor.”

But Madonna is still Madonna, and that’s probably enough even if the “Celebration” show doesn’t always stick the landing. Throughout the night, there are too many costume changes to count, yet Madonna is best when she puts the music front and center, focusing on her vocals instead of trying to outdance her competition. The booming acoustics inside the Barclays Center may have also thrown her off her game, as Madonna asked fans if they could hear her, and she complained at one point, “It’s an echo bowl in here.”

It’s enough to make you pine for a time when New Yorkers could really stay out all night dancing to Madonna on a weeknight. At least, among those willing to wait to be transported, the indestructible Madonna could give us a ride in her time machine.

• Celebration Intro/Nothing Really Matters
• Into The Groove
• I Love New York/Burning Up
• Open Your Heart
• Live To Tell
• Like A Prayer
• Act of Living For Love/The 90’s (Interlude)
• Erotica/Papa Don’t Preach
• Justify My Love/Fever
• Hung Up On Tokischa
• Vogue (Estere’s Ball)
• Human Nature/Crazy For You
• The Beast Within (Interlude)
• Die Another Day
• Don’t Tell Me
• Mother And Father
• Survive/La Isla Bonita/Argentina
• I Don’t Search I Find (Interlude)
• Bedtime Story
• Ray of Light
• Billie Jean vs. Like A Virgin
• GMAYL/Bitch I’m Madonna

More From Our Brands

Hear miley cyrus’ edgy cover of talking heads’ ‘psycho killer’, custom line just unveiled a new 127-foot superyacht in venice—and we got a first look, under armour plans revamp after dour earnings report, the best loofahs and body scrubbers, according to dermatologists, law & order: organized crime finale recap: joe’s gotta go — plus, grade it, verify it's you, please log in.

• Today's news
• Reviews and deals
• Climate change
• 2024 election
• Fall allergies
• Health news
• Mental health
• Sexual health
• Family health
• So mini ways
• Unapologetically
• Buying guides

Entertainment

• How to Watch
• My watchlist
• Stock market
• Biden economy
• Personal finance
• Stocks: most active
• Stocks: gainers
• Stocks: losers
• Trending tickers
• World indices
• US Treasury bonds
• Top mutual funds
• Highest open interest
• Highest implied volatility
• Currency converter
• Basic materials
• Communication services
• Consumer cyclical
• Consumer defensive
• Financial services
• Industrials
• Real estate
• Mutual funds
• Credit cards
• Balance transfer cards
• Cash back cards
• Rewards cards
• Travel cards
• Online checking
• High-yield savings
• Money market
• Home equity loan
• Personal loans
• Student loans
• Options pit
• Fantasy football
• Pro Pick 'Em
• College Pick 'Em
• Fantasy baseball
• Fantasy hockey
• Fantasy basketball
• Download the app
• Daily fantasy
• Scores and schedules
• GameChannel
• World Baseball Classic
• Premier League
• CONCACAF League
• Champions League
• Motorsports
• Horse racing
• Newsletters

New on Yahoo

• Privacy Dashboard

Madonna announces massive world tour including UK date

• Oops! Something went wrong. Please try again later. More content below

Madonna has announced a world tour, including dates in London, New York and Paris.

The singer announced the news in a video starring famous friends including Diplo, Jack Black, Lil Wayne, and Amy Schumer with a nod to her 1991 film Truth or Dare .

Madonna: The Celebration Tour will visit 35 cities across the globe, kicking off in North America in July.

After stops in Chicago, Miami, LA and more, the singer will then visit cities across Europe, including a show in London’s O2 Arena on Saturday 24 October.

The “Like a Virgin” singer will then head onto the likes of Barcelona, Paris, and Stockholm.

The 64-year-old year old will finish her tour in Amsterdam in December.

“I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for,” said Madonna.

General release tickets will go on sale at 10am (local time) on Friday 20 January and will be available here .

This is the first time Madonna has toured since 2019, when she performed across America and Europe to celebrate her Madame X album.

THE CELEBRATION TOUR NORTH AMERICAN DATES :

Sat Jul 15 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena

Tue Jul 18 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena

Sat Jul 22 – Phoenix, AZ – Footprint Center

Tue Jul 25 – Denver, CO – Ball Arena

Thu Jul 27 – Tulsa, OK – BOK Center

Sun Jul 30 – St. Paul, MN – Xcel Energy Center

Wed Aug 02 – Cleveland, OH – Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse

Sat Aug 05 – Detroit, MI – Little Caesars Arena

Mon. Aug 07 – Pittsburgh, PA – PPG Paints Arena

Wed Aug 09 – Chicago, IL – United Center

Sun Aug 13 – Toronto, ON – Scotiabank Arena

Sat Aug 19 – Montreal, QC – Centre Bell

Wed Aug 23 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden

Thu Aug 24 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden

Wed Aug 30 – Boston, MA – TD Garden

Sat Sep 02 – Washington, DC – Capital One Arena

Tue Sep 05 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena

Thu Sep 07 – Tampa, FL – Amalie Arena

Sat Sep 09 – Miami, FL – Miami-Dade Arena

Wed Sep 13 – Houston, TX – Toyota Center

Mon Sep 18 – Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center

Thu Sep 21 – Austin, TX – Moody Center ATX

Wed Sep 27 – Los Angeles, CA – Crypto.com Arena

Wed Oct 04 – San Francisco, CA – Chase Center

Sat Oct 07 – Las Vegas, NV – T-Mobile Arena

THE CELEBRATION TOUR EUROPE DATES:

Sat Oct 14 – London, UK – The O2

Sat Oct 21 – Antwerp, BE – Sportpaleis

Wed. Oct. 25 – Copenhagen, DK – Royal Arena

Sat Oct 28 – Stockholm, SE – Tele2

Wed Nov 01 – Barcelona, ES – Palau Sant Jordi

Mon Nov 06 – Lisbon, PT – Altice Arena

Sun Nov 12 – Paris, FR – Accor Arena

Mon Nov 13 – Paris, FR – Accor Arena

Wed Nov 15 – Cologne, DE – Lanxess Arena

Thu Nov 23 – Milan, IT – Mediolanum Forum

Tue Nov 28 – Berlin, DE – Mercedes-Benz Arena

Fri Dec 1 – Amsterdam, NL – Ziggo Dome

Recommended Stories

Dolphins owner stephen ross reportedly declined $10 billion for team, stadium and f1 race.

The value of the Dolphins and Formula One racing is enormous.

Welcome to the WNBA: Caitlin Clark's regular-season debut is anything but easy

Clark set the Indiana Fever’s franchise record for turnovers (10), shot 5-of-15 from the floor and struggled with the Connecticut Sun’s physical defense.

2024 NBA Mock Draft 7.0: Who will the Hawks take at No. 1? Our projections for every pick with lottery order now set

With the lottery order set, here's a look at Yahoo Sports' projections for both rounds of the 2024 NBA Draft.

Caitlin Clark, Fever facing plenty of growing pains early after another blowout loss in home debut

The atmosphere was electric for Clark's home debut and there were brief flashes from the Fever, but it's clear they've got plenty to work on before they can compete with the WNBA's elite teams.

What scouts think of Bronny James' NBA prospects

The biggest question looming over the NBA draft combine this week: How will Bronny James do?

NFL schedule release: The top 10 must watch games of the regular season

What are the most anticipated games for this NFL season?

2024 NFL schedule: Everything you need to know about this season's slate of games

Here's what you need to know about the 2024 NFL schedule after Wednesday night's announcement.

Fox Sports host Doug Gottlieb hired as Green Bay's coach, will reportedly still host radio show

Gottlieb's repeatedly courted controversy in his media role and will reportedly continue to host his nationally syndicated radio show while coaching Green Bay.

Rory McIlroy files for divorce from wife Erica after seven years of marriage

On the eve of the PGA Championship, Rory McIlroy has filed for divorce from his wife, Erica.

The Spin: Making a call on 5 slumping fantasy baseball stars

All five of these hitters were drafted highly in fantasy baseball leagues. So far, they have not lived up to their ADPs — and that's an understatement. Scott Pianowski analyzes.

Fantasy Baseball Numbers Do Lie: Luck evening out will change fortunes for these 5 players

Dalton Del Don puts some fraudulent stats under the magnifying glass as we move through Week 7 of the fantasy baseball season.

Lionel Messi's salary, Inter Miami's payroll are MLS record highs

Even without his Apple deal and his equity in Inter Miami, Lionel Messi is making more money than all but a few MLS teams.

Memorial Day sales 2024: Everything we know, including early deals you can shop now

Mark your calendar: The holiday weekend runs May 24-27, but you don't have to wait to save.

Top 25 MLB free-agent rankings: Are Juan Soto, Alex Bregman and Pete Alonso helping or hurting their future paydays?

Free agency is more than 5 months away, but today's performances will shape this winter's contracts.

Where does Jared Goff’s $212M extension leave Dak Prescott and Cowboys?

In one scenario, Dallas makes Prescott the highest paid player in NFL history. In another, the Cowboys decline that commitment, at which point another team will make him the top paid player in NFL history.

Why the Premier League should adopt playoffs to crown a champion

Manchester City could potentially win a fourth straight EPL title Sunday without having beaten either of its two top challengers this season.

Former MLB infielder, Little League World Series star Sean Burroughs dies at 43

The seven-year major leaguer collapsed while coaching his son's Little League game on Thursday.

MLB Power Rankings: Phillies lead Dodgers, Braves as trio of NL contenders top this week's list

Here's a look at the rookies who have stood out on each team through the first quarter of the 2024 season.

Utility stocks are on fire — here are Wall Street analysts' top picks

Utility stocks are outperforming the broader markets. Here's a look at three top picks from analysts.

Cleveland Cavaliers 2024 NBA offseason preview: There are some questions to address

The Cavaliers have some questions about frontcourt fit and the future of star scorer Donovan Mitchell.

• Skip to main content
• Keyboard shortcuts for audio player

Madonna draws 1.6 million fans to Brazilian beach

Anastasia Tsioulcas

Pop star Madonna, performing Saturday night at a massive free concert at Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Pablo Porciuncula/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Pop star Madonna, performing Saturday night at a massive free concert at Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Madonna capped off her "Celebration" tour with a trip to the beach: Rio de Janeiro's famed Copacabana Beach, to be exact, where on Saturday night she put on a massive free show for some 1.6 million fans. It was the last performance during her globe-trotting retrospective tour as well as her only "Celebration" date in South America — and it garnered the biggest live crowd of her career.

Madonna postpones tour while recovering from 'serious bacterial infection'

The 1.6 million estimate came from Riotur , the city's official tourism agency. Madonna, who had not performed in Brazil since 2012, enthused about the evening on Instagram : "Words cannot express my gratitude!" she wrote in a caption to a drone video showing the beachfront crammed with fans. As with other "Celebration" shows, she invited local stars onstage with her: In Rio, her guests were Brazilian performers Anitta and Pabllo Vittar , the latter helping Madonna shift her track "Music" into a samba .

Copacabana Beach has something of a history when it comes to huge pop spectacles: In 2006, The Rolling Stones played for an estimated 1.5 million fans there, while a 1994 New Year's Eve show with Rod Stewart reportedly drew some 4.2 million attendees.

• Rio de Janeiro
• Copacabana Beach

Today's Digital Daily

site categories

Parent item expand the sub menu, exclusive: iris van herpen unveils the world’s first 3d-printed wedding dress, yohji yamamoto writes letter to the future at 10 corso como, ‘bridgerton’ season three new face hannah dodd on francesca’s journey, madonna stars on the cover of vanity fair’s first european ‘icon issue’.

On Tuesday the music artist announced a new world tour celebrating her four decades in the industry.

WWD Correspondent

• Share this article on Facebook
• Share this article on X
• Share this article on Flipboard
• Share this article on Pin It
• Share this article on Tumblr
• Share this article on Reddit
• Share this article on LinkedIn
• Share this article on WhatsApp
• Share this article on Email
• Print this article
• Share this article on Talk

How does “icon” translate in Italian, French and Spanish? Apparently, as “ Madonna .”

After announcing a new world tour on her Instagram account Tuesday, the music diva was revealed as the cover star of three different editions of Vanity Fair .

The Italian, French and Spanish versions of the magazine joined forces to launch an “Icon Issue,” the first of an annual initiative dedicated to celebrating a personality that has shaped modern culture.

Related Articles

Indie brand baia's summer lover capsule takes sartorial staples to the beach, the cult pizzeria backed by remo ruffini's archive is landing in capri.

In the interview flanking the images and short films, the music star confirmed she is working on a new show and preparing her return to the stage as part of her plans, which include her own biopic.

“I’m about to create another show, and I’ve been working for several years on the screenplay about my life. This is a good time for me — I’m gathering ideas, getting inspired, hanging out with creative people, watching films, seeing art, listening to music,” she said.

Incidentally, the artist’s announcement of “The Celebration Tour” on Instagram came with dedicated posts and a video showing her playing truth-or-dare with other celebrities, including Amy Schumer. “Madonna, I dare you to do a world tour and play the greatest motherf—ing hits,” says Schumer in the video, before the singer accepts the challenge.

Madonna also talks about feminism, sexuality, religion and diversity in the interview, which highlights the artist’s ongoing battles against patriarchy and the price she had to pay for maintaining her convictions.

Her upbringing in a Catholic family and her spiritual approach were also part of the conversation with Vanity Fair’s European editorial director Simone Marchetti , who conducted the interview. These added to a reflection on the importance of her family life and seeing her children grow, expressing their talent and creativity.

Complementing the words of Madonna, special interviews with John Galliano and Pedro Almodóvar explored the respective relationships with the music star through the years.

“Madonna’s career has a biblical dimension, a universal scope,” stated Galliano in a passage. “The first time I saw her, she was already inspired, fearless, with integrity and artistic pride.”

While Vanity Fair Italy hit newsstands on Wednesday, followed by Vanity Fair Spain and France on Jan. 25, the magazine’s “Icon Issue” has been billed as a time-extended artistic project since it will include an urban art performance in Milan and a photography exhibition to be staged at the city’s Palazzo Reale during fashion week in September.

Sign up for WWD news straight to your inbox every day

‘Back to Black’ Star Marisa Abela Talks About The ‘Iconic’ Style of Amy Winehouse

WWD and Women's Wear Daily are part of Penske Media Corporation. © 2024 Fairchild Publishing, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Fashion Expand fashion menu

• Fashion Trends
• Fashion Features
• Fashion Scoops
• Designer & Luxury
• Ready-To-Wear
• Accessories

Business Expand business menu

• Government & Trade
• Mergers & Acquisitions
• Marketing & Promotion
• Human Resources
• Business Features
• Real Estate

Beauty Expand beauty menu

• Beauty Features

Men's Expand mens menu

• Mens Accessories
• Mens Clothing Furnishings
• Mens Designer Luxury
• Mens Lifestyle
• Mens Retail Business
• Mens Sportswear
• Mens Fashion

Runway Expand runway menu

• Men’s Fall 2024
• Pre-Fall 2024
• Spring Ready-to-Wear 2024
• Fall Couture 2023
• Resort 2024

Denim Expand denim menu

Sustainability expand sustainability menu.

• Environment
• Social Impact

Home/Design Expand home-design menu

• Interior Design
• Architecture

WWD Weekend Expand wwd-weekend menu

Events expand events menu, eye expand eye menu.

• Celebrity Real Estate

Shop Expand shop menu

More expand more menu.

• Fairchild Live
• RetailRx Community

Verify it's you

Please log in.

'Show-Stopping Spectacle' Or 'Lacking A Little Punch'? What The Critics Are Saying About Madonna's Tour

Contributor

Madonna is finally back where she belongs, taking to the stage over the weekend to kick off her highly-anticipated Celebration Tour.

The 35-city tour was announced earlier this year, but the Queen of Pop was forced to delay the start of it due to a serious bacterial infection that landed her in hospital for several days back in June.

But Madonna was on fine form as she began her show at London’s O2 Arena on Saturday night, where she played to 20,000 fans, and also spoke candidly her recent health scare .

Taking fans through her 40-year career, her set list included her most recognisable hits such as Into The Hollywood Groove, Holiday and Like A Prayer.

In addition, her children joined her on staged, Estere was voguing whilst her son David played the guitar.

OKAY ESTERE IS GIVING!!! MADONNA I LIVE FOR THIS BALLROOM SCENE YOU HAVE IN THE CELEBRATION TOUR! pic.twitter.com/lzGWdNwzJ4 — amri🐝 (@saintslaurentz) October 15, 2023

Madonna’s son, David Banda, paying homage to the Late Prince during Opening Night of #TheCelebrationTour . London, Oct. 14, 2023. pic.twitter.com/Hxv6kxesqm — Drew S. (@DrewSrivanlop) October 15, 2023

The general consensus from critics so far has largely been positive, but they have honed in on some pain points – h ere’s what they all had to say...

Guardian (4/5 stars)

“[...] You could argue that the show loses its sense of narrative thread – you’d be hard-pushed to describe a segue that jams together Human Nature, Crazy for You and Justify My Love with readings from the Book of Revelation as anything other than puzzling – but what it lacks in clarity, it makes up for with its setlist.

“You could see the Celebration tour as a capitulation, an artist in her 60s finally admitting her history is what really matters. Equally, you could view it as Madonna playing to her strengths: as Like a Virgin and Ray of Light boom out over the O2, those strengths seem very strong indeed.”

Evening Standard (4/5 stars)

“Though the narrative of the show, a journey through Madonna’s life, started out strong, it weakened and became more confused as time went on. Technical difficulties early on also forced Madonna to muddle her way through a prolonged bout of stand-up for almost ten minutes.

“Still, it frankly wouldn’t be a proper Madonna show without a few surprise jokes about trading sexual favours for hot showers early in her career, nor a couple of musical curveballs. Forty years at the top of pop, and she’s still unpredictable as ever.”

“The concert was billed as Madonna’s first-ever greatest hits set and, on that front, it did not disappoint.

“Not every moment was so successful. The Bjork-penned Bedtime Stories felt superfluous, and did we really need a second version of Justify My Love (the obscure Beast Within remix, which quotes extensively from the Book of Revelations) when songs like Express Yourself and Frozen were discarded as snippets? The narrative, too, began to meander. After a strong autobiographical structure in the opening act, later sequences were hard to decipher.”

Independent 5/5 stars

“The O2’s sound system failed during the song, but the hitch – which the singer shrugged off – only added to the vintage vibe.

“The show’s high point arrives courtesy of an achingly beautiful rendition of 1986’s Live to Tell, during which Madonna floats above our heads as the screens fill with images of the many talented gay men lost to the Aids epidemic.”

“Tonight, the Madonna show goes on and, after that early hitch, it simply doesn’t stop, laying on spectacle after spectacle and show-stopper after show-stopper. With so many stages, set-ups and costume changes, you could probably catch this gig half a dozen times and still not spot everything (and many of this crowd, teetering on the brink of delirium ever since the Madonna pop-up store opened in the adjoining mall this morning, seem set to do just that).

“This show is proof that there is no such thing as too much Madonna. True, the lack of a live band occasionally makes things lack a little punch.”

Rolling Stone

“For all of the genius production masterminded tonight by her creative director, the renowned producer Stuart Price, there are sections of the show that feel overwrought and, at one point, entirely misguided.

“The overwrought comes in a bizarre video interlude of The Beast Within, which sees flames engulf the stage and Madonna’s dancers looking like they’ve come straight from the set of Dune 2. It’s an undeniable spectacle, but it feels overlong.

“Here’s a true icon who, for the most part at least, is determined to show that her throne as the Queen of Pop remains roundly intact. A celebration, well and truly delivered.”

Daily Mail 4/5 stars

“If this show has a problem it’s that it’s rather too long, too self-indulgent – and has too many pretentious interludes...”

Madonna’s Celebration Tour continues at The O2 on Wednesday.

More In Entertainment

• Share full article

Opinion Guest Essay

The Nerve of Madonna to Pull It Off, Again

Credit... Pablo Porciuncula/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Supported by

By Mary Gabriel and Kristin J. Lieb

Ms. Gabriel is the author of “Madonna: A Rebel Life.” Dr. Lieb is a professor at Emerson College and the author of “Gender, Branding, and the Modern Music Industry: The Social Construction of Female Popular Music Stars.”

• May 16, 2024

Eighteen years ago, Madonna observed : “Once you pass 35, your age becomes part of the first sentence of anything written. It’s a form of limiting your options and almost putting you in your place. For women, naturally.” She was 47 when she said that and intent on challenging the cultural script that suggested women, especially female performers, had a use-by date.

“Why is that acceptable?” she asked the music writer Brian Hiatt nearly 10 years later, still battling critics who told her to dress her age, act her age — in short, pack it in and retreat from the spotlight because she was past her prime. “Women, generally, when they reach a certain age, have accepted that they’re not allowed to behave a certain way. But I don’t follow the rules.”

To the question “Is she still relevant?” her Celebration Tour, which concluded this month, is proof that she is. Madonna performed before the largest audience ever gathered to watch a female artist and staged the single biggest free stand-alone concert in history: 1.6 million people turned Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach into a dance floor on May 4. According to Billboard , her six-month, 80-show tour grossed $225.4 million, making her the only woman in history to gross more than $100 million during each of six concert tours. (The only solo male in that category is Bruce Springsteen.)

But there’s so much more to her triumph than numbers. That a 65-year-old female pop star pulled off this tour and, despite our increasingly intolerant times, the performance was her most relentlessly and delightfully queer since 1990’s groundbreaking Blond Ambition Tour would be unimaginable, except that it was Madonna. The Celebration Tour proved that Madonna wasn’t afraid of drawing attention to her long career; she owned it proudly.

All of her past selves showed up, in role and in costume, to help celebrate the many ways she has evolved and the many ways she and her collaborators have explored and expressed gender throughout the years. It was a beautifully inclusive, encouraging spectacle. If history is a guide, the social and artistic ramifications of her performance will extend long after her tour.

Madonna’s 1985 Virgin Tour, her debut, included only 40 shows in North America and grossed about $5 million. But its impact on young lives is immeasurable. The young women and girls in her audience were on the cusp of unleashing their sexual selves and embracing their independence, which is what made them so terrifying to a broader society intent on keeping them polite, passive and manageable.

Madonna’s message to her young audience was: Embrace your power, dream big and dare to be your own damned self. That message would resonate through a generation and across the globe, as aspiring Madonnas grew up to be politicians, lawyers, doctors, teachers, members of the armed forces, Third Wave feminists, riot grrrls and pop stars themselves.

Madonna was, in fact, the lead author of the female pop star playbook, and she continues to write the unexplored and perilous back end of it while artists like Olivia Rodrigo and Billie Eilish adapt the front end and more established stars like Beyoncé and Taylor Swift refine what’s possible in the middle. Madonna’s continuous career represents a universe of possibility for their own, despite the entertainment industry’s willingness to jettison midcareer women in favor of artists with younger faces and bodies.

But for women not named Madonna (or Beyoncé or Taylor Swift), growing older and maturing in public is much more fraught. Older men are considered wise, but older women are often ignored or discounted. Thanks to the intervention of the pharmaceutical industry, men are encouraged to have an active sex life into their 80s. The idea of older women having sex remains, for many, repellent.

Madonna has challenged our notions of what a woman should do and be on all those counts: She chooses to age as she sees fit, she says what she believes loudly and forcefully, and she is as proudly sexual as she was in 1985.

With her Celebration Tour, Madonna demonstrated night after night for six months that an older woman can exhibit power and strength — joyfully, generously and defiantly. Her glorious performance was perhaps even sweeter when we recall that hip and knee injuries disrupted her Madame X tour four years ago and a bacterial infection threatened not only the Celebration Tour but also Madonna’s life.

Forty years ago, Madonna showed audiences, particularly girls and women, that they could mute the killjoy chorus keeping them from self-realization. On the Celebration Tour, Madonna doubled down on this idea, encouraging fans to follow their hearts, minds and inner freaks by both being herself onstage and employing diverse and talented dancers to carry that message in their own convincing and resonant ways.

If this were the last tour of Madonna’s career — and we sincerely hope it was not — she would retire as the most influential female pop star of all time, a legitimate legend who wowed audiences, defied expectations and broke records. Having served more than 40 years in the public eye, she could take a holiday, take some time to celebrate. It would be, it would be so nice.

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

Follow the New York Times Opinion section on Facebook , Instagram , TikTok , WhatsApp , X and Threads .

Kristin J. Lieb is a professor at Emerson College and the author of “Gender, Branding, and the Modern Music Industry.”

Mary Gabriel is the author of “Ninth Street Women: Lee Krasner, Elaine de Kooning, Grace Hartigan, Joan Mitchell, and Helen Frankenthaler, Five Painters and the Movement That Changed Modern Art” and ”Madonna: A Rebel Life.”

Advertisement

Watch CBS News

Madonna's biggest concert brings estimated 1.6 million to Rio's Copacabana beach

May 5, 2024 / 2:02 PM EDT / AP

Madonna put on a free concert on Copacabana beach Saturday night, turning Rio de Janeiro's vast stretch of sand into an enormous dance floor teeming with a multitude of her fans.

It was the last show of The Celebration Tour, her first retrospective, which kicked off in October in London.

The "Queen of Pop" began the show with her 1998 hit "Nothing Really Matters." Huge cheers rose from the buzzing, tightly packed crowd, pressed up against the barriers. Others held house parties in brightly lighted apartments and hotels overlooking the beachfront. Helicopters and drones flew overhead, and motorboats and sailboats anchored off the beach filled the bay.

"Here we are in the most beautiful place in the world," Madonna, 65, told the crowd. Pointing out the ocean view, the mountains and the Christ the Redeemer statue overlooking the city, she added: "This place is magic."

Madonna performed her classic hits, including "Like A Virgin" and "Hung Up." For the introduction to "Like A Prayer," her head was completely covered in a black cape, a rosary gripped in her hands.

The star paid an emotional tribute to "all the bright lights" lost to AIDS as she sang "Live to Tell," with black and white photos of people who died from the illness flashing behind her.

Later, she was joined on stage by Brazilian artists Anitta and Pabllo Vittar.

Rio spent the last few days readying itself for the performance.

An estimated 1.6 million people attended the show, G1 reported, citing Rio City Hall's tourism agency. That is more than 10 times Madonna's record attendance of 130,000 at Paris' Parc des Sceaux in 1987. Madonna's official website hyped the show as the biggest ever in her four-decade career.

In recent days, the buzz was palpable. Fans milled outside the stately, beachfront Copacabana Palace hotel, where Madonna is staying, hoping to catch a glimpse of the pop star. During the sound check on the stage set up in front of the hotel, they danced on the sand.

By midday Saturday, fans crowded in front of the hotel. A white-bearded man carried a sign saying, "Welcome Madonna you are the best I love you."

Flags with "Madonna" printed against a background of Copacabana's iconic black and white waved sidewalk pattern hung from balconies. The area was packed with street vendors and concert attendees kitted out in themed T-shirts, sweating under a baking sun.

"Since Madonna arrived here, I've been coming every day with this outfit to welcome my idol, my diva, my pop queen," said Rosemary de Oliveira Bohrer, 69, who sported a gold-colored cone bra and a black cap.

"It's going to be an unforgettable show here in Copacabana," said Oliveira Bohrer, a retired civil servant who lives in the area.

Eighteen sound towers were spread along the beach to ensure that all attendees can hear the hits. Her two-hour show started at 10:37 p.m. local time, nearly 50 minutes behind schedule.

City Hall produced a report in April estimating that the concert would vinject 293 million reals ($57 million) into the local economy. Hotel capacity was expected to reach 98% in Copacabana, according to Rio's hotel association. Fans hailing from across Brazil and even Argentina and France sought out Airbnbs for the weekend, the platform said in a statement. Rio's international airport had forecast an extra 170 flights during May 1-6, from 27 destinations, City Hall said in a statement.

"It's a unique opportunity to see Madonna, who knows if she'll ever come back," said Alessandro Augusto, 53, who flew in from Brazil's Ceara state — approximately 2,500 kilometers (1,555 miles) from Rio.

"Welcome Queen!" read Heineken ads plastered around the city, the lettering above an image of an upturned bottle cap resembling a crown.

Heineken wasn't the only company seeking to profit from the excitement. Bars and restaurants prepared "Like a Virgin" cocktails. A shop in the downtown neighborhood famed for selling Carnival attire completely reinvented itself, stocking its shelves with Madonna-themed costumes, fans, fanny packs and even underwear.

Organization of the mega-event was similar to New Year's Eve, when millions of people gather on Copacabana for its fireworks display, local authorities said. That annual event often produces widespread thefts and muggings, and there was some concern such problems might occur at Madonna's show.

Rio state's security plan included the presence of 3,200 military personnel and 1,500 civilian police officers on stand by. In the lead-up to the concert, Brazil's navy inspected vessels that wished to position themselves offshore to follow the show.

A number of huge concerts have taken place on Copacabana beach before, including a 1994 New Year's Eve show by Rod Stewart that drew more than 4 million fans and was the biggest free rock concert in history, according to Guinness World Records. Many of those spectators also came to see Rio's fireworks show, though, so a more fitting comparison might be to the Rolling Stones in 2006, which saw 1.2 million people crowd onto the sand, according to Rio's military police, the newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo reported at the time.

Ana Beatriz Soares, a fan who was at Copacabana on Saturday, said Madonna has made her mark across the decades.

"Madonna had to run so that today's pop artists could walk. That's why she's important, because she serves as an inspiration for today's pop divas," Soares said.

"And that's 40 years ago. Not 40 days, 40 months. It's 40 years," she said.

More from CBS News

WNBA season gets underway featuring Caitlin Clark's debut and more

Mixed-breed dog wins Westminster's agility competition for first time

Teen who vanished 26 years ago rescued from neighbor's cellar

Dow hits 40,000 for the first time as bull market accelerates