US Magazines: Entertainment Weekly

The current issue of US magazine Entertainment Weekly reviews the Hard Candy album and features this brand new picture of Madonna.

Thanks to Joseebus

Hard Candy release in Poland

Warner Music Poland have confirmed that Polish fans will be able to get their copies of Hard Candy on Friday 25 April.

Thanks to Ziomek

Belgian Magazines: DM Magazine

Madonna is on the cover of DM Magazine, a supplement of Belgian De Morgen newspaper today. The magazine featured a six-page article.

Thanks to N I C O

Hard Candy CD release in Spain

FNAC announced that music stores in Callao, Sevilla, Valencia and Bilbao will open at 00:00am on Tuesday 29 April exclusively to celebrate the official release of HARD CANDY. For more information visit www.fnac.es

Thanks to Ian

French Magazines: Elle

The French version of Elle magazine will feature this Madonna cover on the April 21 issue of the magazine (in stores Monday) - with this fabulous Tom Munro shot.

From the Fashion Spot

Madonna seeks delay in Malawi adoption case

U.S. pop star Madonna has asked a Malawian court to delay a hearing to finalize her adoption of a boy from the southern African nation, a lawyer close to the case said.
The singer's law firm in Malawi filed an application requesting the High Court in Lilongwe to hear her adoption of David Banda on May 15 instead of April 22, as originally scheduled, the lawyer said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Madonna's need to travel to the United States for business reasons was cited as the reason for the delay, the lawyer said.
Court officials refused to confirm the application.
'Adoption is a confidential matter and we separate adoption files from the regular case files,' Thomson Ligowe, assistant registrar in the High Court, told Reuters.
Malawi's government recommended earlier this month that the court approve the adoption of Banda.

From Reuters Via Yahoo! News

Events: London Hard Candy Party

The London HARD CANDY PARTY will also be celebrating the release of Madonna's single 4 Minutes.
Come along for Music, Videos, Prizes, Cocktails and lots of fun.
Free entry and bring friends, no tickets required.

SATURDAY 03 MAY
12:00pm - 8:00pm
G-A-Y basement bar.
The venue: www.g-a-y.co.uk/bar

For more information visit madonnafanparty.mysite.orange.co.uk

Events: Las Vegas and Washington DC Parties

Las Vegas:
Warner Music is hosting an official Madonna 4 Minutes release party at JET nightclub at The Mirage Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on Friday 25 April. For more information visit www.lightgroup.com/events

Washington DC:
Monday 28 April is the official Madonna Hard Candy CD Release dance party and midnight sale of Hard Candy at Be Bar in conjuntion with Melody Records and Warner Brothers in Washington DC - for more information visit www.bebardc.com.

Events: Dublin Hard Candy Listening Party

A listening party for Hard Candy will be taking place in Dublin on Monday 22 April - the album will be played and goodies will be given out.

Thanks to Chris

Filth and Wisdom to hit cinemas in North America

Variety.com are reporting that Madonna's directorial debut Filth and Wisdom has been picked up by IFC Entertainment and will be released theatrically in the Autumn in North America coinciding with video-on-demand availability.

UK Press: Daily Mirror

Today's edition of UK newspaper the Daily Mirror featured this brand new picture of Madonna working up a sweat in London in the 3am gossip column.

4 Minutes #1 on United World Chart

4 Minutes takes the #1 spot on the United World Chart. The track had the largest point increase week for the week.
The chart is based on Global Airplay, single sales, paid downloads of over 60 countries.

Thanks to Savymicheal

Vodafone poster for Hard Candy

This Hard Candy posters advertising the pre-release album downloads and other Madonna goodies will be featured in Vodafone store windows from today.

Thanks to James

Madonna offered £12.5m for two gigs?

Madonna has reportedly been offered £12.5 million to play two gigs in Dubai.
The singer is currently confirming the details of a world tour to promote her Hard Candy album and is considering playing two dates in the Arab state.
A source told The Sun: 'Madonna is about to break another record by playing the most lucrative concert of her whole career - or anyone’s career for that matter.'
'The negotiations for the tour to stop in Dubai in November are being finalised and she will get £7.5million for the one show only. The figure is so big because of her new contract with Live Nation and the huge funds available from private promoters in Dubai.'
The '4 Minutes' singer is also considering performing at a private party in the city for a £5 million fee.
Madonna signed a £60 million recording contract with concert promoters Live Nation in 2007.

From digitalspy.co.uk

Chinese Magazines: Modern Weekly Lifestyle

Madonna was featured on the cover of Chinese publication Modern Weekly Lifestyle this week. The article inside reprises the Dazed and Confused interview.

Thanks to River

4 Minutes Worldwide Updates

From Argentina - thanks to Miguel:
Just wanted to let you know that Madonna´s video '4 Minutes' is being played everyday from 4:00pm to 5:00pm in 'Los 10 Mas Pediddos' in MTV Argentina.
That program is a countdown of the 10 most requested videos. People can vote at www.mtvla.com/canal/los10
Just vote by selecting Madonna´s video and filling the form with their name, email, age, and city. People can vote as many times as they want.

From Australia - thanks to Jan:
On downloads alone, Madonna's '4 Minutes' has hit #3 on the official ARIA chart!

From Belgium - thanks to Dan:
Just wanted to tell you that Madonna entered the Belgian Ultratop Flemish chart at #3 with '4 Minutes' - www.ultratop.be/nl
And she enters at #2 in the French part of Belgian chart - www.ultratop.be/fr

From Israel - thanks to Nadav:
'4 Minutes' scored #1 on Galgalaz again, that's two weeks in a row - www.glgltz.co.il

From North America - thanks to Rob:
Just wanted to let you know that I listen to USA Dance Radio - www.live365.com - it is mainly dance, club and electronica genre and I just heard them play '4 Minutes'....this is great as it is an online radio station....I think that MADONNA fans should check it out and keep requesting '4 Minutes'.

From UK - thanks to Brian:
If you don't know already '4 Minutes' is #1 on 'The Hits' channel (13:00HRS) today. Just wait til Monday when the physical CD is available, it's going to be MASSIVE!

From USA - thanks to Shant: GOOD NEWS! Madonna's video for '4 Minutes' was #1 on MTV's TRL on Wednesday, but down to #5 on Thursday - keep voting at www.mtv.com/ontv/dyn/trl and get Madonna back to #1.

Events: New York City Hard Candy Party

Madonna won't put out free downloads

Pop superstar Madonna is refusing to copy Radiohead by releasing her next album as a free download - even though she is one of the best-selling artists of all time.
The Material Girl star admires the British rockers and their brave move to release their latest album In Rainbows as a digital download - allowing fans to choose their own price for the record.
But the 49-year-old isn't ready to have the public judge how much they should pay for her music just yet.
She says, 'It is a cool idea but I am not sure if it works exactly. It is like a new world out there and people have to try a lot of things and make mistakes.'
'Some things will work and some things will not, but it is kind of revolutionary and we are in that strange moment - the darkness before the dawn before we really know what is next.'
'I don't know if I want to put my songs out there and ask other people what it is worth, but I am definitely ready to try new things.'
Hard Candy, the singer's 11th studio LP, is slated for worldwide release later this month.

From contactmusic.com

Madonna's message to YouTube fans

Madonna has filmed a funny video clip message to fans who make their own videos to 4 Minutes - the clip was filmed on the set of the video for her second single Give It 2 Me.

Check out Madonna's official YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/user/madonna

4 Minutes on the Billboard charts

4 Minutes drops to #7 on this weeks Billboard Hot 100 due to a slight decrease in digital sales. However overall Madonna is still doing quite well according to other Billboard Charts:

#1 - Billboard Canadian Hot 100
#2 - Billboard Hot Digital Songs
#2 - Billboard Hot Digital Tracks
#3 - Billboard Pop 100
#4 - Billboard Hot Dance Airplay
#11 - Billboard Pop Airplay

Thanks to Micheal

Preview all the tracks on Hard Candy

Visit www.vh-m.com/madonna/hardcandy to listen to lengthy teaser clips of all the tracks on Hard Candy.

The site also features another new picture by Steven Klein.

The man who keeps Madonna comfortable at night

Craftsman Jonathan Tebbs has got 'in bed with Madonna' in a magical deal.
The brass bed restorer hit the high notes with The Queen of Pop, who polished off the purchase in person.
Jonathan, who owns A Barn Full of Brass Beds at Conisholme, near Louth took the bed personally to Madonna and husband Guy Ritchie's central London home.
He is reserved about the details of his visit because he has so much respect for Madonna.
Jonathan (44) said: 'I was honoured to undertake such a task for The Queen of Pop. It was an amazing experience meeting her. It was at first a feeling of surprise. It was a pleasure to meet her.'
'A bed is such a personal thing and I was pleased to supply precisely what she wanted.'
He said there was tight security at the couple's plush home.
Jonathan is no stranger to meeting the demands of celebrities, having supplied the cast of the Harry Potter films with beds for their dormitory at Hogwarts, as reported.
Jonathan and his wife Naomi (34) visited the set of Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix when he supplied moviemakers with a second set of authentic, beautifully restored brass beds.
As a supplier for blockbuster film sets, Jonathan is hoping his latest celebrity encounter with Madonna might tempt her director husband, Guy Ritchie to continue the genre of using brass beds in his gangster movies and maybe turn the old bed rust into romance.
He said: 'I hope Guy Ritchie can use them as well as Harry Potter.'
Jonathan's firm specialises in the restoration of original Victorian and Edwardian antique brass beds.

From thisisgrimsby.co.uk - thanks to Margit

UK Press: Sunday Mirror

The supplement magazine that comes with UK newspaper the Sunday Mirror featured this small snippet using a funny quote taken from Vanity Fair magazine.

Events: Minneapolis Hard Candy release party

The Party is at Jetset Bar in Minneapolis 115 1st St. Minneapolis, MN 55401
From 9 to Midnight (probably later) - for more information visit www.jetsetbar.com

Vote: 100 Most Influential People

Madonna's rating are sliding on Time magazine's poll to find out the list of the 100 Most Influential People - at the moment she is only a low 37.

Fans should keep rating Madonna using the slider at www.time.com

Thanks to Dimitri

South African Magazines: You

Madonna is on the cover of South African magazine You (17 April issue 071) looking at the release of her 20th album (madonnalicious presumes they are adding complilations and soundtracks into that figure!) - click on the images to enlarge.

Thanks to Hylton

UK Midweeks

Great news is coming in from the UK Midweeks chart. It looks like Madonna is heading for her 13th UK Number One single on Sunday on downloads alone.

However the sales are VERY close with Estelle so fans should make sure they buy 4 Minutes and buy the remixes seperately as they all count as single sales!

#1 - 4 Minutes / Madonna ft Justin Timberlake - 14,480
#2 - American Boy / Estelle ft Kanye West - 14,061
#3 - Black & Gold / Sam Sparro - 12,281
#4 - Cry For You / September - 10,551
#5 - Low Flo / Rida ft T-Pain - 10,471

Thanks to londonfan30

Vote: Favourite Magazine Cover

madonnalicious readers, it is time to vote for your favourite current magazine cover starring Madonna - just vote in the poll on the left-hand column of this page and choose from Dazed and Confused, Elle (UK), Elle (US), Interview, Q or Vanity Fair.

4 Minutes #1 on European Airplay Chart

Today Nielsen International just released Europe Top 5 Airplay Chart for this week. Madonna has done it again she has the most played song across Europe:

#1 - 4 Minutes / Madonna
#2 - Mercy / Duffy
#3 - Bleeding Love / Leona Lewis
#4 - Stop & Stare / One Republic
#5 - I'll Be Waiting / Lenny Kravitz

Thanks to Micheal

US Magazines: Blender

US music magazine Blender reviews Madonna's Hard Candy in the latest issue and gives the album 4/5 - click on the articles to enlarge.

Thanks to Polo

Camilla 'related to Madonna and Celine Dion'

US pop queen Madonna, Canadian crooner Celine Dion and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall are all descended from the same French carpenter, according to a records archive launched Wednesday.
Canadian records spanning more than 300 years from 1621 were published on the family and social history website ancestry.co.uk and revealed the unlikely link between the three women.
Camilla - the second wife of Prince Charles - Madonna and Dion are all descended from French carpenter Zacharie Cloutier, according to the website.
'The fact that Camilla and Madonna are related, however distantly, highlights the truly unpredictable and entertaining nature of family history research,' said ancestry.co.uk spokesman Simon Harper.
The ancestors of some of Canada's most famous Quebecois, including former prime minister Pierre Trudeau, are included in the archive.

From AFP Via Yahoo! News

UK magazine Look (07 April issue) also highlighted the fact that Madonna, Camilla, Celine and also Alanis Morisette are distantly related!

Finnish release date for Hard Candy

Warner Music Finland has announced that Madonna´s Hard Candy will be in stores in Finland on Friday 25 April (four days before the USA!).

Thanks to Sami

Events: Hard Candy party in South Africa

VH1 competition to win tickets to Roseland

Beginning today, VH1.com is accepting submissions for their 4 Lines To See Madonna promotion – a contest where two creative fans will win a pair of tickets to see Madonna perform at a special show at New York’s Roseland Ballroom on April 30 – one day following the release of HARD CANDY.

To enter, visit the VH1 Blog at MadonnaTickets.VH1.com and provide your best 4 lines of poetry about Madonna. Submissions can focus on any Madonna-related topic – from her upcoming album release to her astonishing 26-year career. Show the world you have what it takes to stand out in the sea of Madonna fans and you could be one of two winners to receive two tickets to a once-in-a-lifetime exclusive Madonna performance.

Submissions will be accepted on the VH1 Blog through April 24, 11:59 AM and will be judged on creativity and originality.

Romanian Magazines: TV Mania

Madonna makes the cover of the biggest TV guide magazine in Romania. The magazine is called TV Mania (18-24 April issue), and it features an article about Madonna fighting another round in the music ring. It also speaks about Madonna turning 50 and still being there, looking incredible and ready to fight for a new number one album.

Thanks to Ionut

Madonna interview on Finland TV

A Madonna interview will be shown in Finland on MTV3 Channel tomorrow as a part of the 45 Minuuttia program.

The program is shown on Wednesday 16 April at 8:00pm (local time) and there is a preview clip of the show at: www.mtv3.fi/45minuuttia

Thanks to Juha

UK Press: Metro

Free UK city newspaper the Metro featured this advert today advertising the exclusive Vodafone download of a 4 Minutes remix.

4 Minutes Remixes Available Now

Madonna's 4 Minutes edits and remixes are now available on iTunes and Amazon.

Most importantly please be sure to download each remix SEPARATELY, as they count as single sales that way. If you buy the EP, it only counts as one sale.

Thanks to Mike

Confessions On A Dance Floor rises up the charts

Maybe it is the anticipation for the release of Hard Candy but Madonna's 2005 album Confessions On A Dance Floor re-entered the UK Album chart at #28 last week and has risen up the chart this week to #20.

Thanks to John

Events: Hard Candy Party in Frankfurt

Click on the flyer to enlarge and read more details about a Hard Candy party taking place in Frankfurt, Germany on Friday 16 May.

Madonna Live at New York's Roseland Ballroom

Here is the official press release announcing Madonna's Hard Candy showcase at New York City's Roseland Ballroom:

'In celebration of the release of Madonna's upcoming CD HARD CANDY, Control Room, MSN and Verizon Wireless will present the one and only Madonna live at New York's famed Roseland Ballroom on Wednesday evening, April 30th, it was confirmed today by Warner Bros. Records. The Control Room-produced show will be available live on MSN Music In Concert (www.music.msn.com) on April 30th in the US and on May 15th ex-US.
Verizon customers will be amongst the handful of lucky winners who will attend the show. Other lucky fans will need to line up outside of Roseland to receive tickets on a first come basis. This special event will be the first time Madonna will debut songs from her hotly anticipated new album HARD CANDY which is scheduled to arrive in stores on April 29th.
The first single from the album, '4 Minutes' has already jumped to the Number One spot in many countries. The song, which features Madonna, Timbaland and Justin Timberlake was produced by Justin Timberlake and Timbaland.'

Madonna NRJ Competition Posters

madonnalicious reader Olivier has sent in these pictures of posters advertising Madonna's NRJ Paris showcase competition - these posters are all over the Paris subway system!

Madonna on Washington D.C Radio

Madonna called into Washington D.C.'s WPGC 95.5 R&B/Hip-Hop radio station this morning just after 8:00am in a 10-minute interview with Donnie Simpson during his morning show to discuss the new album Hard Candy, her children, and her work with Malawi.
Madonna, who interviewed as she ate lunch in London, was not shy as she talked during some portions with a mouth full of food. She was very vibrant as she discussed her discontent with the media continuously calling every album effort as another 're-invention' when, as she put it, 'I'm just doing me.'
Madonna also gave praise to Timbaland and Pharrell on their work with the new album, and how she knew that 4 Minutes was going to be an instant hit, although Miles Away was the first collaboration she did, and how she hoped that it would also be a future single.
On Lourdes, she described her as being '11 going on 19' and that she's 'finally discovered boys.' When asked if she planned on touring, Madonna confirmed 'late summer' and joked, 'I guess that means we should start rehearsing now?' and made mention of her thoughts on how she will top herself with the next tour.

The interview can be streamed online at www.wpgc955.com

Thanks to CHARMAR

Vodafone Madonna Hard Candy Special

Fans in the UK who are Vodafone customers can take advantage of a download of an exclusive remix of 4 Minutes and the chance to preview and download a track-a-day from Hard Candy starting next week (Monday 21 April).

For more information visit www.vodafonemusic.co.uk/madonna

Madonna continues to break all the molds!

The quote from Ryan Seacrest today was 'Madonna continues to break all the molds!' as 4 Minutes made the highest debut EVER on the American Top 40 (AT40) weekly radio countdown, at #12.

Thanks to *Mathias!

Events: French Hard Candy Party

Verizon Wireless Gets Exclusive Madonna Track

Verizon Wireless says that it has secured an exclusive agreement in the USA to offer mobile downloads of a new song from Madonna, Timbaland and Justin Timberlake. Available exclusively in the U.S. to Verizon Wireless' V CAST Music customers and internationally to Vodafone customers, '4 Minutes' is the first single from Madonna's 11th studio album for Warner Bros. Records.
Starting today, the underground version of the song is available to Verizon Wireless customers through V CAST Music as a full-song download, ringtone and ringback tone.
'As Madonna is one of the most iconic artists of our time and Timbaland is one of the most influential producers of today, we are undeniably excited to team up with them, as well as Justin, to deliver this exclusive remix to our customers,' said Ed Ruth, director of digital music for Verizon. 'Together with Vodafone, we will set a new precedence for the global release of a song, with a combined reach of hundreds of millions of fans across the globe via their cellphones.'
In addition to Madonna's original '4 Minutes' track, co-produced by Timbaland and Justin Timberlake and Nate 'Danja' Hills, and the underground mobile remix available on Verizon Wireless' V CAST Music and Vodafone, exclusive video footage of Madonna, Timbaland and Justin Timberlake's 'mobile remix' recording session is now available on Verizon Wireless' V CAST Video service.

From cellular-news

Israeli Magazines: Time Out

The Tel Aviv edition of Time Out magazine (10-17 April issue) features a Madonna Hard Candy shot on the cover and a five-page article with a list of 50 things about Madonna to celebrate her upcoming 50th birthday!

Thanks to Omer

Vote: MTV TRL and MTV TR3S

Fans can keep requesting 4 Minutes on MTV TRL at www.mtv.com/ontv/dyn/trl

The Latin America music channel MTV TR3S still don't have the 4 Minutes video on their TRL list. However, it could end up on air by popular demand - fans only need to write 'Madonna - 4 Minutes' at the bottom and submit at www.mtvtr3s.com/ontv/dyn/mi_trl/voting

Thanks to Shant and Trovante

Competition to win tickets to Paris show

French radio station NRJ are offering fans the chance to win tickets to Madonna's Paris concert promoting Hard Candy that takes place on Tuesday 06 May.

To enter the competition visit www.nrj.fr/op/madonna_crt_69_avril08

Thanks to Dariush