madonnalicious

Celebration Premieres on iTunes as Free Download for 48 Hours

Madonna’s hotly anticipated new video for her 'Celebration' single will have its exclusive world premiere on the iTunes store as a free download for two days beginning Tuesday, September 1, 2009. Madonna is a multi-award winning visionary in the realm of video performance. The 'Celebration' video, which contains mind-boggling dance moves, reaffirms yet again her reputation as the master of the 'short movie.' The video will be available for purchase on iTunes on Thursday, September 3rd.
The 'Celebration' video, directed by long time Madonna creative collaborator Jonas Akerlund ('Ray of Light') was filmed recently in Milan, Italy and features the Material Girl dancing with her amazing troupe of performers from her current 'Sticky & Sweet' Tour. The video also includes cameo appearances by Madonna’s daughter, Lola Leon and model/DJ Jesus Luz.
Simultaneous to the video debut, Madonna’s definitive greatest hits album, 'Celebration' which has been totally remastered and includes two new songs, can be pre-ordered on iTunes.

From BusinessWire.com - thanks to Simon

UK Magazines: Hello!

UK magazine Hello! (31 August issue 1087) features a massive ten-page article on Madonna's trip to Portofino in Italy to celebrate her birthday.

Click on the images to enlarge.

Press Pictures: Madonna's visit to the Western Wall

Madonna and Jesus Luz made a late night visit to the Western Wall in Jerusalem yesterday - here are a selection of press pictures from the visit.

Pictures from AP / Reuters Via Yahoo! News

Madonna makes nocturnal visit to Western Wall

American pop icon Madonna sparked a media frenzy when the Kabbalah follower paid a visit to the Western Wall, Judaism's top pilgrimage site in the Old City of Jerusalem.
Wearing high heels, blue jeans and a black jacket, the music diva was accompanied by several bodyguards and followed by dozens of photographers during her visit to the wall late on Sunday.
The 51-year-old landed in Israel on Sunday aboard a private jet and is due to give two concerts in Tel Aviv as part of her Sticky and Sweet tour.
During her visit, the singer will meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday, his office said, and opposition leader Tzipi Livni.
A fervent practitioner of Kabbalah, Madonna is also due to attend a symposium on the study of Jewish mystic discipline along with fellow Kabbalists, US actress Demi Moore and her husband and fellow actor Ashton Kutcher, local Israeli media said.

From AFP Via Yahoo! News

Sticky & Sweet Tour: Sofia Fan Pictures - Part 1

madonnalicious reader Gamze travelled from Istanbul to Sofia in Bulgaria and got to stand in the first row of the Golden Circle at the show that took place on Saturday 29 August and sent in these pictures from the concert.

Madonna arrives in Israel

Madonna arrived in Israel this morning (Sunday 30 August) ahead of the final two dates of the Sticky & Sweet Tour in Tel Aviv on Tuesday and Wednesday.

madonnalicious reader Michael sent in these pictures he took of the stage being constructed at Park Hayarkon.

Sticky & Sweet Tour: Bucharest Fan Pictures - Part 1

Here are our first set of fan pictures from Madonna's concert in Bucharest on Thursday 26 August - this set was taken by madonnalicious reader Adina.

Any fan pictures or reports can by emailed to us at madonnalicious@gmail.com

Madonna Rocks Sofia in Biggest Concert on Bulgarian Soil

US pop star Madonna rocked the Bulgarian capital Sofia Saturday night from 10 pm until 12 am in her first ever concert in Bulgaria.
Some 60,000 fans filled the Vasil Levski Stadium in downtown Sofia in what is the largest musical event of its kind to ever take place on Bulgarian soil.
The concert started shortly after 8 pm and the crowd was warmed up with various disco beats and mixes for about an hour.
Instead at 9 pm as advertised earlier, Madonna appeared on stage at about 9:55 pm. In the one hour before that the eager fans entertained themselves with more than 150 audience (Mexican) waves.
Madonna's amazing show that the 60,000 Bulgarians and foreigners saw in Sofia featured a look-alike of Michael Jackson, performing the famous moon walk. The King of Pop who died at the end of June 2009, would have celebrated Saturday, August 29, 2009, his 51st birthday.
In addition to her to top hits, Madonna's concert also included messages for religious tolerance and civic activism - something to which the Sofia audience responded with great cheers and enthusiasm.
One of the more provocative moments of the concert was when Madonna French kissed another woman - one of the dance performers on the stage.
Despite the concert's truly exciting atmosphere the audience failed to summon Madonna for any curtain calls after the huge screens on the 85-meter long, 40-meter high stage said 'Game Over'.
A total of 450 security personnel - the largest such number ever employed in Bulgaria for a single event - were in charge of keeping Madonna's concert in Sofia in order; police were largely not visible until the very end of the show when they helped regulate the exits and the routes to the closest public transport and subway stations. No accidents have been reported during the concert.

From Sofia News Agency (novinite.com)

UK Magazines: Grazia

UK magazine Grazia (31 August issue) featured this two-page article about Madonna's birthday celebrations in Italy earlier this month.

Gypsy trio criticizes crowd for booing Madonna

A Russian trio performing Gypsy music with Madonna said Friday they were 'pained' to see the pop star booed during her Bucharest concert for criticizing widespread discrimination against Gypsies.
Thousands of people applauded the trio's performance with Madonna in Bucharest on Wednesday night during her worldwide 'Sticky and Sweet' tour. But minutes later they booed and jeered the pop star when she said discrimination should end against eastern Europe's Gypsies, also known as Roma.
In a press conference Friday in Bucharest, Vadim Kolpakov, the youngest member of Kolpakov Trio, said the public reaction was unexpected.
'The audience was wonderful when we played,' he said. But he called the booing and jeering 'the worst' reaction the Roma group had received during the entire tour. 'Madonna was surprised (about the reaction) but I cannot comment for her,' Vadim Kolpakov said, declining to say if Madonna had made a similar comment about Gypsies at other concerts in eastern Europe.
'We want....to be recognized as equals,' said trio founder Sasha Kolpakov, a Russian Roma.
'It pains me to see discrimination in the world, it pains me to see discrimination of Roma,' Sasha Kolpakov said. 'There are good Roma people that we are proud of. There are also Roma who live in poverty and who have nothing to do, who beg or do illegal deeds.'
Roma are a nomadic ethnic group believed to have their roots in the Indian subcontinent. They live mostly in southern and eastern Europe, but hundreds of thousands have migrated west over the past few decades in search of jobs and better living conditions.
Romania has the largest number of Roma in the region. Some say the population could be as high as 2 million, although official data put it at 500,000.
The Kolpakovs said discrimination against Roma exists not only in eastern Europe but in the West too.
'We played in Italy and met Roma representatives in Milan. We heard there's a big problem (in Italy),' said Vadim Kolpakov, adding that he thought discrimination against Roma was increasing in Europe. 'I think it is going up,' he said, mentioning the killing of six Roma in Hungary and the burning of Roma caravans in Naples, Italy.
Kolpakov Trio will travel with Madonna to Bulgaria and Israel - the last two destinations on her tour. The Kolpakovs are Roma, while the band's third member is a Russian Jew.

From AP Via Yahoo! News

UK Magazines: Look

The 31 August issue of UK magazine Look features this one-page article about Madonna's birthday 'extravaganza' - click on the article to enlarge.

Celebration on US Billboard

Here is how Madonna's Celebration single is performing on Billboard:

#5 - Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play
#13 - Billboard Global Dance Tracks (New)
#19 - Billboard Euro Digital Tracks (Album version)
#36 - Billboard Hot Adult Top 40 (New)

Thanks to Micheal

Vote: Most Attractive Woman

Fans can now vote for Madonna as the Most Attractive Woman this month in an online poll by Hello! magazine.

To vote for Madonna visit www.hellomagazine.com/vote/mostattractivewoman - you can vote once every ten minutes. So get voting!

Thanks to Maddyct

Sticky & Sweet Tour: Barcelona Fan Pictures - Part 4

madonnalicious reader Carlos captured two great pictures of Madonna in action during the Barcelona show on Tuesday 21 July.

Madonna explains Gyspy comments

Madonna has said she was 'compelled' to comment on the discrimination of Romany Gypsies while on stage in Romania, despite being booed by fans.
The 51-year-old was jeered by the audience in Bucharest after saying the discrimination 'made me feel very sad'.
Publicist Liz Rosenberg said Madonna made the comments after being made aware of the prejudice towards Romany people in eastern Europe.
The star uses a group of Roma musicians on her Sticky and Sweet tour.
Madonna paused during her two-hour show to say: 'It has been brought to my attention, that there is a lot of discrimination against Romanies and Gypsies in general in Eastern Europe - it made me feel very sad.'
'We don't believe in discrimination, we believe in freedom and equal rights for everyone.'
The star then received more boos when she mentioned prejudice against homosexuals and others.
Rosenberg said Madonna had told her there were cheers as well as jeers from the 60,000-strong crowd.
'Madonna has been touring with a phenomenal troupe of Roma musicians who made her aware of the discrimination toward them in several countries so she felt compelled to make a brief statement,' she added.
Concert goer Ionut Dinu, 23, said: 'I jeered her because it seemed false what she was telling us. What business does she have telling us these things?'
Romania has the largest number of Roma in eastern Europe.
Nearly half of Europe's estimated 12 million Roma claimed to have suffered an act of discrimination over the past 12 months, according to a recent report by the EU Fundamental Rights Agency.
The agency says Roma face 'overt discrimination' in housing, health care and education.

From BBC News

Sticky & Sweet Tour: Barcelona Fan Pictures - Part 3

The Sticky & Sweet Tour hit Barcelona back on Tuesday 21 July and madonnalicious reader Michael shares some pictures from the concert with us.

Will Madonna Perform at the Video Music Awards?!

Madonna may be 51, but don't you dare think for even a second that she's too old for MTV.
There's a rumor flying around that the Queen of Pop will perform her new single 'Celebration' at next month's Video Music Awards in New York City.
Those set to perform during the show, which takes place Sept. 13 at Radio City Music Hall, include Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, Pink, Taylor Swift, Green Day and Muse.
Madonna's rep insists there are no plans for the VMAs this year. But let's say it does actually happen - would she be able to top some of her most memorable past appearances?
Who will ever forget Madge swapping spit with Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera in 2003?
And for those of us old enough to remember, Madonna first made her mark at the VMAs way back in 1984, when she rolled around the Radio City Music Hall stage in a white wedding gown and matching lacy gloves while performing 'Like a Virgin.'
'Celebration' is the title track of Madonna's upcoming greatest hits compilation. The VMAs certainly would make the perfect venue to promote the new release, as it drops Sept. 29.

From E! Online - thanks to Matthew

German Magazines: OK!

Madonna's Italian birthday celebrations are featured in the new edition of German magazine OK! (27 August issue) - click on the images to enlarge.

Thanks to Kirsten

Madonna defends Gypsies in Bucharest

Thousands of fans have booed pop star Madonna after she spoke out against the discrimination of Gypsies in eastern Europe during one of her concerts.
Madonna paused in the two-hour concert to say that Gypsies, also known as Roma, were discriminated against in eastern Europe. She said that made her 'sad' and nobody should be discriminated against.
Thousands in the crowd of 60,000 booed her. She did not react.
Roma musicians and a Roma dancer were featured in her show, held just yards from the giant palace of ex-communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. Their performances were applauded by the crowd.
There are officially some 500,000 Roma in Romania, but the real number could be around 2 million. They face prejudice and discrimination in Romania and other east European nations.

From AP Via Yahoo! News

Madonna stated in full:
'I've never been to Romania before and I am happy to be here, but I found out that there is a lot of discrimination against gypsies in Eastern Europe and that makes me very sad, especially because we believe in acceptance, gypsies, homosexuals, people that are different. Everyone must be treated the same, don't forget that.'

Sticky & Sweet Tour: Gothenburg Fan Pictures - Part 1

Here are our first set of fan pictures from the second Gothenburg show that took place on Sunday 09 August - this set of pictures was taken by madonnalicious reader Annika.

Scenes from Bulgaria concert to be filmed for DVD

A special crew will film parts of the Sticky & Sweet Tour concert in Sofia on Saturday 29 August, the Bulgarian promoter said today.
The footage will be included in the DVD for the tour. It's likely the moment filmed will be connected with the Michael Jackson tribute, who would have turned 51 on the night of the show.
At the same time fans from Michael and Madonna's biggest fan club - mmlegends.com are hosting a special iniative for the show. During the MJ tribute they will wear a white glove on their hands. And also - they are having a special 'Sticky & Sweet' version of the national flag, created by their member marcello, and also have three very touching surprises for Madonna during the concert. The last one will involve more then 1000 fans in the gold circle.

Thanks to Nikolay

Sticky & Sweet Tour: Belgrade Fan Pictures - Part 2

madonnalicious reader Milorad was at the Usce Park Sticky & Sweet Tour show in Belgrade on Monday 24 August and shares these pictures and reports with us.

She was in such a good mood, she was smiling all the time. She was talking all the time. She said: 'This is for the beautiful Serbian people' before 'She's Not Me', and 'No one's gonna stop me ever except you!' at the very end.

Sticky & Sweet Tour: Belgrade Fan Pictures - Part 1

Madonna played Usce Park in Belgrade on Monday 24 August - madonnalicious reader Mladenn captured both the soundcheck and the show in these pictures.

Madonna 2010 Calendar

The official 2010 Madonna calendar by Danilo will be released in the UK on Tuesday 01 September and is priced at £7.99.

The calendar features iconic shots of Madonna on tour throughout her career.

Thanks to Mo

Celebration: CD and DVD Tracklisting

Warner Bros. Records has confirmed the final track listing for Madonna’s upcoming 'Celebration' CD - The 'Ultimate' Compilation - and 'Celebration the Video Collection DVD' - both scheduled to be released on September 28/29th. The songs which were selected by Madonna and her fans have all been exquisitely remastered. 'Celebration' will be available as a two-CD set as well as a single CD.
The 'Celebration Video Collection DVD' will include unedited and never before seen footage of 'Justify My Love' along with 27 Madonna videos to be released on a DVD compilation for 'the very first time' including 'Into The Groove' and 'Give It 2 Me' as well as the just completed video of Madonna’s new single 'Celebration.'
Madonna clearly continues to rule the dance floor with her latest single. Her 'Celebration' Remix EP is #1 on iTunes Dance Album chart as well as #1 on the Masterbeat overall chart. The song is #5 on Billboard’s Club Singles Chart and the Greatest Gainer for the second week in a row. If 'Celebration' reaches #1 on Billboard’s Club Single Chart, it would be Madonna’s 40th! #1 Club single - the most of any artist in the history of the Billboard Club Singles Chart.
On the international front so far, the 'Celebration' single is already #1 in Italy and Holland, #2 in Japan and is Top 5 airplay in every other major market.
Another newly recorded song, 'Revolver' featuring Lil Wayne is also included on the 'Celebration' CD. Artwork for the packaging of the CD and DVD was designed by renowned street pop artist 'Mr. Brainwash.'
Currently on tour in Europe with her sold out 'Sticky & Sweet' Tour, the multi-Grammy winning Rock and Roll Hall of Famer with the highest grossing tour in history for a Female Artist, is scheduled to end her tour with her final show in Israel on September 2nd.

Madonna Celebration CD Track Listing:
CD 1:
01) Hung Up
02) Music
03) Vogue
04) 4 Minutes
05) Holiday
06) Everybody
07) Like A Virgin
08) Into The Groove
09) Like A Prayer
10) Ray Of Light
11) Sorry
12) Express Yourself
13) Open Your Heart
14) Borderline
15) Secret
16) Erotica
17) Justify My Love
18) Revolver

CD 2:
01) Dress You Up
02) Material Girl
03) La Isla Bonita
04) Papa Don't Preach
05) Lucky Star
06) Burning Up
07) Crazy For You
08) Who's That Girl
09) Frozen
10) Miles Away
11) Take A Bow
12) Live To Tell
13) Beautiful Stranger
14) Hollywood
15) Die Another Day
16) Don’t Tell Me
17) Cherish
18) Celebration

Madonna Celebration DVD Track Listing:
1) Burning Up
2) Lucky Star
3) Borderline
4) Like A Virgin
5) Material Girl
6) Crazy For You
7) Into The Groove
8) Live To Tell
9) Papa Don’t Preach
10) True Blue
11) Open Your Heart
12) La Isla Bonita
13) Who’s That Girl
14) Like A Prayer
15) Express Yourself
16) Cherish
17) Vogue
18) Justify My Love
19) Erotica
20) Deeper and Deeper
21) Rain
22) I’ll Remember
23) Secret
24) Take A Bow
25) Bedtime Story
26) Human Nature
27) I Want You
28) You’ll See
29) Frozen
30) Ray Of Light
31) The Power Of Good-Bye
32) Beautiful Stranger
33) American Pie
34) Music
35) Don’t Tell Me
36) What It Feels Like For A Girl
37) Die Another Day
38) Hollywood
39) Love Profusion
40) Hung Up
41) Sorry
42) Get Together
43) Jump
44) 4 Minutes
45) Give It 2 Me
46) Miles Away
47) Celebration

From Madonna.com