-I saw you in Brooklyn, by the way,
performing your concert, and I was --
-"Madame X."
-"Madame X." -Mm-hmm.
-It was unbelievable. -Thank you.
-And I -- What I loved about it
was that you chose these smaller arenas.
You always do stuff that no one´s doing.
You zig when people are zagging. -Right.
-[ Laughter ] -And then, people --
You can quote me on that.
And -- But here´s what I was going to ask you. Do you --
-Did I make any money? -[ Chuckles ] No.
No, I wasn´t going to ask you that.
-I didn´t. [ Laughing ] -I was going to ask you...
When people take your ideas -- you do all these things first.
-Mm-hmm. -And then people take your ideas
and they don´t give you credit, and I go,
"No, Madonna did that already."
-Yeah, and they also don´t do it as good.
[ Cheers and applause ] I mean...
-That´s -- [ Laughs ] That´s exactly right.
-That sounds really, um, arrogant...
-Yeah. -...but it´s kind of true.
-No. -Yeah.
-"Madame X." This is on Paramount+ tomorrow.
What -- What do you hope people take away from this,
from watching this documentary?
-Um, that art is important in our lives.
I don´t think people emphasize that enough.
-Yeah.
-I -- I´m really inspired by James Baldwin, the writer.
-Yeah. -Have you heard of him?
-Of course. -Don´t lie.
-I have heard of James Baldwin. -Okay, yeah.
He was a great source of inspiration for me growing up,
and he was a great source of inspiration for the show.
And one of the things I quote over and over again in the show
is that artists are here to disturb the peace.
And so -- -Wow.
-And so I hope that I have disturbed
not only your peace this afternoon but...
-You always disturb my peace.
-...people´s peace while they watch the show,
but I mean that in the best way. -No, yeah.
You get in good trouble. -Good trouble.
-Yeah, you really do.
No, no, no! Now, why would you --
Madonna. Madonna!
[ Sultry R&B music plays ]
Stop, stop, stop, stop. Stop it.
Oh, my heavens. Stop it. Stop it.
I don´t know what to do. Stop it right now.
Absolutely -- This is --
♫♫
-No one´s gonna see anything. My God.
-Sorry.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh.
Every -- Look at this.
[ Laughter ]
I don´t know what -- I don´t what to --
-Because life is not just about interviewing kiddies.
[ Laughter ]
Okay? -Is that right?
-Don´t you want to talk to an adult?
-Is that right? Yeah.
-Let´s have some adult conversation.
-Are you talking to an adult right now?
-I´m not sure.
[ Laughter ]
I´m talking to someone who´s -- I feel, like, you´re --
You´re in some kind of conflict right now.
-Oh, interesting.
-Yeah, have you been to a therapist?
-I went a --
I went once or twice. I didn´t --
It wasn´t my thing. -No.
-Do you go to therapy?
-Um, I just -- I write.
[ Laughter ]
I write. -So -- So, no?
-It´s a form of therapy.
No, I write, and I also hope
that I have good friends,
and I talk my [bleep] out with people and, you know,
that´s a kind of therapy, don´t you think?
-I can be your friend. -You think?
-Yeah. You should call me. -You should´ve --
You know, you came over to my house once.
-I did. I had a great time. You introduced me to "Ladybug."
Um, whatever it´s called. "Miraculous."
I didn´t know what that was.
-Do your kids watch it? -Now, because of you.
-Okay. -I do everything because of you.
Oh, my gosh. Is this like --
See? This is why I don´t go to therapy.
It gets -- It gets -- It gets nowhere.
-You get -- Yep, and it´s gonna --
Just talk to me. -Do you smoke?
-No. -Me neither.
-I don´t. I smoke for photo shoots.
-But you never smoked? -No.
-Because of your voice? -Yeah, I just don´t like it.
-Yeah, me neither. Do you vape?
-I´d rather...
I like...opiates.
[ Laughter ]
-Ridiculous. I want to show a clip.
Here is Madonna in "Madame X." Take a look at this.
♫♫
-♫ It´s not gypsy blood ♫
♫ We live between life and death ♫
♫♫
♫ Waiting to move on ♫
♫ And in the end ♫
♫ We accept it ♫
♫♫
♫ We shake hands with our fate ♫
♫ And we walk past ♫
♫ There´s no rest for us in this world ♫
♫♫
♫ Finally a lost love ♫
-Yes! That´s what I´m talking about!
Everybody, Madonna is here!
Madonna!
[ Cheers and applause ]
I was trying to think of a question to ask you
that´s never been asked.
-Good luck. -I know.
How about this one? Ready for this?
-Yeah.
-This might be the best question I´ve ever asked.
-Okay.
-Has any review of anything
you´ve done gotten it right?
Is that a good question? -I mean, occasionally.
It´s rare. -So they don´t, really.
-In the 40 years that I´ve been doing what I´ve been doing --
-40 years? -40 years. Can you believe it?
-No. That´s insane. -It is. Yeah.
[ Cheers and applause ]
-Do you know who you are? Do you even know who you are?
You are Madonna. Oh, my God.
-I still don´t even know who I am.
-Yeah, you really are unbelievable.
I mean, the first single was what? "Everybody?"
-Mm-hmm.
-And do you remember anything about that?
Like, what would you do to -- Do you remember
hearing yourself on the radio, and going, "Wow"?
-I remember I was living on the Upper West Side,
on 99th and Riverside Drive, and was just broke
and wondering if things were
ever going to work out for me.
And I had signed my record deal.
And I was told that they were going to start
playing my song on the radio, "Everybody."
-Yeah.
-And then, suddenly, my roommate had her radio on
down the hall, and I heard it drifting down the hallway.
And I was like, "Wait, what is that?
What is that?"
And I ran down the hall, and she´s like,
"They´re playing your song on the radio.
And I just stood there like, "Wow!
It happened. It works."
It was like magic. -Yeah.
-It was the most amazing moment.
-Is this going to be in this -- I heard there´s a rumor that --
-A visual autobiography?
-Yes, of course. -Don´t call it a biopic.
-But, yeah, -- I would never call it a biopic.
-How dare you? -No, how dare you?
I think it´s cool. Once again, no one´s done this.
-Well, the reason I´m doing it is because a bunch of people
have tried to write movies about me,
but they´re always men.
Ugh!
-Wait. What do you mean? What are you talking about?
[ Cheers and applause ] No.
Men are good. Some men.
-Some men are good. -Yeah.
-Men -- "Good men" is pretty much an oxymoron, but --
-Oh, my gosh. -Anyways...
No, because people were writing --
I read Universal was doing a --
Like, they sent me the script because they wanted my blessing.
And I read it, and it was the most hideous,
superficial crap I ever read.
And then I found out that some --
I found out --
I´m not even gonna say his name,
but he´s a total misogynist was directing.
And I´m thinking, "Why would these people
make a movie about my life?"
There´s nothing true in the script.
The guy who is making it has no understanding of women,
no appreciation of women, no respect for women.
So, like, this happened a couple of times,
and I had to, like, call people up,
call up the heads of studios,
call up my agents and threaten them
and say that I will, like, stand in front of the building
and make -- and protest and make everybody´s life
a misery if they go through with it.
And they still did not take me seriously.
So, finally, I just threw down the gauntlet.
Have you ever thrown down the gauntlet?
-I´ve thought about it.
-Therein lies the rub.
You have to throw down the gauntlet.
-"Therein lies the rub." Yeah, I did.
-You have to do this. You have to do this.
-Oh, look at this.
[ Cheers and applause ]
-Okay? Never mind. I´ll pick it up myself.
-Yeah, exactly. "I´ll pick it up myself."
-Because that´s what you´ve got to do in life.
You´ve got to pick it up yourself.
Anyways, no, I just said, "You know what?
There´s nobody on this planet that can write or direct
and make a movie about me better than me."
And that is just the truth.
[ Cheers and applause ] -I agree.
I love that you´re doing that.
And, honestly, no one has -- -
-Keep talking while I undo my glove.
-Yeah, no problem. Yeah. -Say interesting things, please.
-I have an interesting thing to say.
These are myths and rumors about you,
and I want to know if some things
are true and some things are false.
Do you mind me going through these and you tell me?
-Go ahead. -Well, do I believe you?
Will you tell me the truth?
[ Laughs ]
Honestly, I can´t even tell you how nervous I feel right now.
You just -- You do -- You make me so -- you make me so --
-♫ Good inside ♫
-Yeah, you really do.
Okay. -Come on, you guys. Like a...
-♫ Virgin ♫
-Oh, my God. -♫ Touched for the... ♫
-♫ Very first time ♫
-♫ Like a...♫ -♫ Virgin ♫
-♫ When your heart beats ♫
♫ Next to mine ♫
-Come on, now. That´s what -- Look at this.
[ Cheers and applause ] An impromptu...
That´s what I´m talking about.
Alright. Wait, wait, wait! -Trying to get my --
-Alright, ready?
These are myths and rumors about you,
and it may or may not be true.
Your first job was at Dunkin´ Donuts,
and you were fired.
-Yeah.
It was one of the first jobs I had working
when I moved to Manhattan.
And I did get fired because I was
playing with the jelly squirter.
[ Laughter ]
-Okay, alright.
-Have you ever seen a jelly squirter?
-No, no, no, I haven´t. Alright, here we go.
Alright.
No, stop, stop, stop. Okay, here we go.
Just stop, stop, stop. Alright, here we go.
-It´s funny how everything is a sexual innuendo.
-It really is. How about this?
"Vogue" was originally only going to be a B-side
because it wasn´t considered strong enough
to be released as a single.
-Yeah, it´s true. -What?
But "Vogue" is the biggest song ever.
It was the B-side? What was the A-side?
-Well, there´s a lot of unenlightened people
in the world. -Yeah.
-They can´t see into the future.
-Did you write "Jimmy Jimmy"
thinking of me?
-Nope. -Okay.
-Here´s a myth or a rumor.
You turned down the role of Catwoman
in the film "Batman Returns,"
and the lead in "Showgirls" you turned down.
Did you ever see those movies?
And what did you think of them?
-I saw them both.
And I was -- I regret that I turned down Catwoman.
That was pretty fierce. -Oh, really?
-"Showgirls," no.
But I also turned down the role in "The Matrix."
Can you believe that? -You did?
-I wanted to kill myself. -Oh, stop it. You´re Madonna.
-That´s like one the best movies ever made.
-You don´t regret anything. Look at you.
-A teeny, tiny part of me regrets
that just one moment in my life.
-Madonna, are...
Wow. You´re unbelievable.
Why? Why?
But why are you such a troublemaker?
Why? Just stop. -Because.
Because artists are just here to disturb the peace.
-Just stop.
Just be good.
-Okay, okay. I´m sorry. -Behave!
-I will. -Please behave!
-Okay!
-Madonna, I can´t even tell you -- I really do mean this.
I´m just -- I love you, and I´m honored to have you here.
And I just love you. You´re one in a million.
I´m about to perform --
I´m about to perform some "Kid Theater"
but first, I need an acting partner,
and I couldn´t ask for a better one.
She´s a legendary pop icon and music superstar.
Please welcome the one, the only Madame X.
[ Cheers and applause ]
-♫ Kid Theater ♫
♫ Kid Theater! ♫
-Are you kidding?
-Are you kidding? I bow. I bow!
I bow down to the queen.
-Permission to stand up.
-I love you.
-Do you?
-Yes.
That´s exactly right.
That´s exactly right. That´s exactly right!
Alright!
Welcome to the show.
Madame X, thank you for doing this.
-Thank you for having me.
-You have a new movie out tomorrow on Paramount+
called "Madame X,"
and I thought it would be fun
to preview some scenes
for our audience by acting them out together,
but here´s the catch.
The scenes we´ll be reading are not from the actual film.
Instead, they are written by elementary school kids.
-Which is why I´m wearing an elementary school dress.
-Yes, of course. No, I know. Of course. I got it. I got it.
I totally got it.
We gave the kids no direction.
We just said "Madame X."
That´s all we told them and let them do the rest.
So, it´s time for "Kid Theater." Here we go.
-♫ Kid Theater ♫
♫ Kid Theater ♫
-This first one from Jess.
She´s 7 years old.
"Madame X."
She´ll be playing the role of Madame X.
I´ll be playing the role of Denny.
Higgins will read the scene description.
Higgins, set up the scene, please.
-Oh. -Sorry.
-Oh [bleep].
-No, wait. No. [ Laughter ]
That´s not in the script.
That´s not in the script at all.
-That´s not -- -I know,
but I´m holding two ice cream cones.
-It´s, um...
-Oh, this one here. -Well...
-This is so silly.
-Come on, baby.
[ Laughter ]
-Hurry up, it´s melting.
[ Cheers and applause ]
-This dance you´re doing right now,
it´s too slow. -Mm-hmm.
-Chin? -Chin.
[ Cheers and applause ]
-[ Laughs ]
-Yes, you do. Don´t talk back to me.
-[ Laughs ] That´s not in the script at all!
-[ Chuckles ]
-That´s in the script.
-Yeah, it is, actually, yeah.
[ Laughter ]
[ Cheers and applause ]
-A-A-Alright.
Alright! Hold on! Hold on! Hold on!
Alright! Alright! Hold on now.
Alright. Very good. No, no, no, no, no, no.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Alright. Okay.
[ Laughs ]
-I´m not done with my dance. You´re censoring me.
-No, I´m not. Never. I would never.
♫♫
No, alright! Alright! Alright! Okay! Okay!
This is -- Alright. Higgins, whose line is it?
whose line is it? Okay!
[ Indistinct shouting ]
-It´s your line!
"Madame XXX."
-Alright. Thank you.
[ Laughter ] -It´s melted.
Here, lick my hand.
-[ Laughs ]
-Just a litt-- -And scene!
Alright.
That was great. Alright, here we go.
Let´s do --
Alright, that´s one. Alright, let´s go.
Let´s do another one. This was sent by Theodore.
This stars two characters --
Madame X and...
Stupid Fox.
[ Laughter ]
-Let´s guess. -Do I play Ma--
[ Both laugh ]
-Okay. Here we go. Higgins, set it up.
[ Cheers and applause ]
-Thanks for the support.
[ Laughter ]
-Yeah.
-That´s kind of good. -Not bad?
-Not bad, actually. -Thank you.
-That´s kind of --
[ Cheers and applause ] Yeah.
-Alright. Alright. And scene!
[ Cheers and applause ]