we are we are a couple of weeks into the new year what do you hope will happen not only
in 1984 for the rest of your professional life what are your dreams what's left um to rule the
world there you go ladies and gentlemen this is madonna persona madonna a docu-original
where to start with the woman who sought to rule the world and achieved it welcome to docu and
welcome back universers subscribe to join the universe this is the pop personae docu-series
where i explore how a pop culture icon and their public image has made the world obsessed with them
i pinpoint and highlight the exact reason why a star is a star
and there has been no bigger and more adored and despised star than madonna she was undoubtedly
the most famous person of the 20th century rivaled only by michael jackson himself however
she has him beat as a divisive figure by a long shot the dancer who can't sing the [ __ ] with
no talent the saving grace of expression of female sexuality and pop music the pop music iconoclast
the pop culture icon she has everything and so much of everything to the point where people
forget why she even became famous her mononym madonna and the character of its public persona
cast a shadow that very nearly envelops her art almost just almost she quite simply has the single
most impressive catalogue of any pop musician in history and the sales to match she is an artist
artist a forever changing chameleon who wrote the damn book on how to reinvent and consistently
fill it with new bold chapters and madonna is a living legend there have been far and few female
pop stars that have not been inspired by her to a degree and the ones who have praised her publicly
could fill an endless list she is simply the most influential artist in pop music still alive today
why do we love her or more so why did we love her back then 1983 was an interesting time in music
the end of disco the rise of new wave and a major revolution of pop unlike anything seen before
or since dance pop was filling the clubs and needed a voice and madonna served as that voice
that face and that image that would push the genre forward and as far as it could possibly go
consistently for 25 years straight at the most mainstream level it could reach
she had a presence she was it everyone who knew her saw felt and believed that she was a star
by 1982 she had shoved a mixtape into the hands of producer mark hammons featuring a demo for
her first single everybody he introduced her to seymour stein then boom pop history was made
of teenage fans were treated to red satin madonna jackets madonna albums and madonna
posters as they waited for the singer to arrive for the premiere of her film
desperately seeking susan if anyone wonders why people would go to see this movie
madonna fans have the answer i love her i love her she's gorgeous i think she's like a singer
she's just live i mean everything about her she's fresh yeah
when the star herself arrived she blew a kiss to her fans what do you think of
the way madonna's dressed tonight huh and she gave us some hints about her character she's
irresponsible she is adventurous she's courageous and she's very vulnerable
we have some things in common you said you always knew you'd be a star did you
think it would be like this i'm not going to tell you gene wolfe entertainment tonight
i want my mtv she soon became the object of our affection and our dismay hit after hit
video after video she stunned us the madonna wannabes flocked to her cool girl image and
the world began to really absorb the brand madonna this was the first real visual marker of her new
and now unmatched power in the music industry the ability to make us wish we were as cool as her
in look in sound and dance she was the new archetype for the post-modern star
soon the industry started innovating its sound showing more skin getting more daring
with its production value in the arena where madonna remains its supreme champ
music videos what a place to express such a bold personality that can be witty brilliant sexy and
fascinating nonetheless at least when shown in the best light madonna can be very
madonna you won't be able to find a touch on him why well i lived here
oops no i did i did and my friend did the sound at snl and i'd go up to the
like does the name joan collins make youtube no have you seen her lately
in restaurants they were shutting down so everybody could run out of the kitchen and
watch you on television that amazing well it was i'd never seen anything quite like that
yup as it should be yeah all right so that's just is that just bold to you we have tape
tape of what why can't we just talk to each other why do we have to have all this control
you know the tape lists everything if you're ever gonna get a two shot you
have to shoot it from over there yeah okay this is the two shot now but when you want
to get single shots you'll move over do not excuse me what's your name don't care don't
shoot me don't shoot over there you're since going on dude you're much much
somebody is making so much [ __ ] noise
that same demeanor has made her the boss of the world and well
the world the 80s and 90s would marvel at and mock her blonde ambition but it proved to be incredibly
successful nonetheless speaking of leaving the 80s she went from pop tart to queen of pop
and to the consummate pop artist all within the span of about
6 years entering the 90s would combine all of these accomplishments and traits into one show
enter the merging of theater and pop music her single finest moment as an
entertainer and the one that would change fashion and pop music forever like a virgin
blonde ambition world tour 1990 this performance delivers what madonna gives best sexy raw vocals
great choreography and hard carnal sex it's not her best display of vocal technique and certainly
not technical dance moves but it is something that madonna gives that no one else can quite
simply it is the most madonna madonna performance of all time no one else can match that energy
however throughout that tour she did display some fine vocals and more than excellent dance moves
but in true madonna fashion the most controversial elements of her craft often supersede the parts
where she is an impressive talent with a unique world view this is who she is this is what she
became the girl who cannot help but to push a few buttons both with and without much intent
her public image can almost be purely defined by attention seeking often much to her own dismay
oh the terrors of being an it girl can pull off any look
and do it so well that people think you're a stylish fashion woman thing with a record deal
and not a singer first in my previous documentary madonna the power of image i stated that quote
madonna's pr is well enunciated by the fact that she's severely self-aware she is both the canvas
and the dolly the marble and the michelangelo of her image has she ruined her legacy one built on
fans who know the full extent of her incredible live performance ability and an industry that may
not respect her talents as a musician but will tip their hats to her most masterful branding
regardless she is a moment her iconic imagery has impacted the pop culture lexicon
unlike any other and within the context of mass media she always will stand out among
her peers because she's either outsold them outperform them or outlive them sometimes
all three but beyond that she is the chameleon what a wild run the early to mid 80s boy toy look
the spelt gaming glamour of 86 is true blue the dark natural hair color of 89's like a prayer the
blonde ambition ponytail and cone bras the bondage dominatrix of 92's erotica the denim clad ray of
light dancing in front of a time lapse the 70s disco inferno inspired look of 2005's confession
on a dance floor and countless others the list goes on and on as does the beat as does madonna
do you think perhaps that you will be someone who will challenge this kind of taboo of like
women losing their sexuality or not being seen as sexual animals as much when they get past their
fault here yes i mean i think i think that not only do we suffer from racism and sexism
and things like that but we also suffer from ageism and that is that once you
reach a certain age you're not allowed to be adventurous you're not allowed to be sexual
you know it and i think that's rather hideous and i mean a lot of people have said oh it's so
pathetic or what what is she going to hope she's not still doing that in 10 years i mean who cares
what if i am i mean is there a rule i mean what are you supposed to just die when you're 40 i
mean and that's basically what everyone wants people to do and i think it's stupid you just
want to just kind of you know put yourself out to pasture put yourself back in the closet exactly i
mean why life is long people are living to be you know 100 100 years old so you know i don't get it
funnily enough back then we were asking how long she'd be doing this even when she was just in her
early 30s funny how time changes ageism as she claims is her pitfall did we have very
many examples of women in rock still going and going as hard at the mainstream charts as her no
not really she is her own template as she prepares her own biopic to be shared with the world
i wonder how much of her perfect image crafting machine of a mind will truly let her be more human
than icon instead she's been giving us the icon that can be refreshingly and incredibly human
when she wants to be can she come off as fully genuine yet still in control as we know her to be
time will tell are you close to them i am yeah isn't it great to be able to call them up and
i don't know do you i don't know if you call your mother all the time but it's so
i i call my mother all the time yeah well i am constantly you know in in these situations
where i'm completely frustrated and absolutely no one can come to my rescue make me feel better
and i always say cut i wish i had a mother that i could call and um
i don't
what do you do with it you just you're by yourself um
yes
well when i'm dead they'll finally kiss my ass
oh we will michael whitney prince you that is how it works the woman who single-handedly
changed fame for the 80s 90s and 2000s knows very well what it means to sit atop a pedestal
knowing madonna her creativity will let her pick up those shattered pieces for a new
visual aesthetic to join her other incredible conceptual albums in her timeless library
she's the one we can't get rid of that's madonna divisive controversial creative
a very human survivor of the inhuman condition of fame so much more than a material girl
far from being like a virgin and proud to stand in the face of ridicule
if you enjoyed this documentary leave a like and comment what madonna's public persona means to you
turn on notifications to get more documentaries as soon as they drop doc you subscribe to join
the universe the first show i did ever did was in sixth grade and i painted my my body
with fluorescent paints and i put a bikini on and i put a flashing fluorescent black light in
front of me and turned all the lights off and danced in front of it to uh a song by the who
do you remember the reaction yeah everyone loved it my father grounded me for a month punished me
afterwards not how it works when marilyn monroe was alive they were so vicious and cruel to her
they ripped her to shred they wouldn't give it up to her in any way shape or form and then when
she died it's just like oh she's a comedic genius i mean excuse me i mean they do that
to everybody they did it to vincent van gogh they i mean it's history just repeats itself
over and over again that way we are a couple of weeks into the new year what do you hope will
happen not only in 1984 but for the rest of your professional life what are your dreams what's left
to rule the world there you go ladies and gentlemen this is madonna
let's see you are the one
i am the one everything that's a lot to live up to i hope i don't disappoint you
god knows i've disappointed a few people in my lifetime