Like or dislike Madonna, criticize her music, her look, and her existence. Today the Queen of Pop makes history in a free show for more than a million people on Copacabana beach. She may not break Rod Stewart‘s record, which 30 years ago gathered more than four million at the venue (no one will ever take that record from him), but the singer will surpass any other recent artist or “rival”.

I won’t be on the sands of the Copacabana, but I will be watching virtually. In the setlist expected for today, the Diva separated the songs that represent her 40-year career.

How to make the perfect selection? “Mine” would be different, just as yours and everyone’s would have their variations, but let’s see, song by song, how Madonna revisits four decades of repertoire in seven acts*. For the show in Brazil, she must change the repertoire in some scenes, but as it is part of the Celebration tour, which is rehearsed and thought out in detail, the variations will be smaller. We’ll talk about them when the Rio show is over!

*the setlist is what the singer presented in Mexico, the last show before Brazil, and which should be the same in Rio de Janeiro.

1st ACT
The opening of the show, It’s a Celebration, is generally performed by Bob the Drag Queen, dressed as Marie Antoinette as Madonna did at the MTV Awards and has the potpourri of hits such as D&D, Lucky Star, Celebration, Erotica, Vogue, BIM, and Material Girl, that is, one from each decade.

NOTHING REALLY MATTERS

The hit from the album Ray of Light is a curious choice to open the show as it is a song from the 1998 album, nothing that is recent or that old. Other than that, it’s brilliant because it’s a love song to the fans (in that context). The lyrics warn us:

When I was very young
Nothing really mattered to me
But making myself happy
I was the only one

Now that I am grown
Everything’s changed
I’ll never be the same
Because of you

Nothing really matters
Love is all we need
Everything I give you
All comes back to me

How can you not love Madonna?

In fact, Nothing Really Matters and the album Ray of Light (my favorite!) mark the singer’s Kabbalistic phase, all focused on the birth of her firstborn, Lolla, in 1996, and for whom Madonna wrote this song.

On the Celebration Tour, Madonna wears a floor-length black kimono and a radial diamond headdress designed by German designer Malakai specifically for the tour, adorned with 25 large Swarovski crystals and paved with microcrystals.

EVERYBODY

What is obvious, but still perfect, is to return to “Madonna’s first hit”, the 1982 single Everybody, from her debut album and where she includes elements of Where’s the Party, from the album True Blue.

It was with this song that a young dancer with dreams of stardom took the first steps of her reign. Written purely to make us dance, it was the song that Madonna asked her DJs to play on the dance floor. With the support of Mark Kamins, Everybody was successful at Danceteria and then, well, the record deal came and history was made.

INTO THE GROOVE

One of my top 10 by Madonna, the song that appeared on the soundtrack for the film Desperately Looking for Susan, will have the updated version of Hollywood Groove, from the 2013s, and is an anthem of joy and dance.

Initially written for another artist, it was among the demos of the original album but did not stand out to be included in Madonna or Like a Virgin. However, when Madonna recorded it for the film, it exploded on the charts and on vinyl in the 1980s and ended up being included in copies of Like a Virgin released from 1985 onwards. Here, Madonna celebrates her career and passion for dancing, talks about a flirtation with a Puerto Rican neighbor and well, it puts us in the rhythm!

BURNING UP

As we see, the opening set is really the set from Madonna’s early days. The tape that had Everybody and Into The Groove also included Burning Up. In the final version and in the video it was a “minor” and New Wave song, not so much what Madonna was or became. But on Celebration Tour Madonna sings like she did in her CBGB performances: with guitar and more rock notes. I always liked it!

OPEN YOUR HEART

The success of the 1986 album True Blue opened Madonna’s shows in those years, and has a curious story, in addition to the controversial video where Madonna appears to entice a minor.

Everyone knows about the rivalry with Cyndi Lauper and this could have been another one of the beefs between them. Open Your Heart was born as Follow Your Heart and was written by Gardner Cole and Peter Rafelson for Cyndi to record, but before it reached Cyndi, Madonna’s manager heard the demo and took it to her. Originally it was supposed to be rock, but in True Blue, it got a dance arrangement. Critics consider it one of the best singles in her repertoire. I have other songs from the same album that I would have preferred in the show and that were left out, but you can’t have everything, right?

HOLIDAY

Curious to see Holiday closing the 1st act because it was only close to the opening on the Virgin Tour, from then on it was almost always the encore or the closing of the shows. It will have a quote from I Want Your Love, by CHIC.

Although it was one of the biggest hits on Madonna’s debut album, Holiday was included at the last minute, when she and her ex-boyfriend, one of the producers, realized that Madonna still needed a more obvious hit. Written by Curtis Hudson and Lisa Stevens-Crowder for recording with their own group, Pure Energy, Holiday is one of Madonna’s anthems. The lyrics reflect an outburst when Lisa was watching negative news on television and said we all “needed a holiday”. More than 40 years later, it remains current…

2nd ACT

The second phase opens with the sound of In This Life, from the album Erotica in a video identified in the script as The Storm. It is the serious part of the show, with references to friends and artists who lost their lives to AIDS.

LIVE TO TELL

The slow song that anticipated the release of True Blue was written by Madonna for Sean Penn, not about the two of them, but for the film he was starring in at the time – At Close Range – and which needed a song.

Written in the 1st person, Madonna sings from the perspective of the film’s female character, a 16-year-old girl who ends up being murdered by her boyfriend’s father. At Close Range is inspired by a true story, but was forgotten in time while Live to Tell became an anthem.

In Celebration Tour, Madonna uses the duality of the lyrics, which talk about people who yearn for life, but who realize they don’t have much time, precisely to pay homage to artists and people who died too young. It will be a reflective and emotional moment.

Then, the singer changes clothes and the dancers participate in The Ritual, to the sound of Girl Gone Wild, from her album MDNA.

LIKE A PRAYER

The title song from the 1989 album is always a memorable moment in Madonna’s shows and one of her biggest hits. The original video talked about racism, religious intolerance, and the diva’s hope for a better world. This act closes with quotes from Unholy (a recent hit with Sam Smith), Girl Gone Wild, and Act of Contrition, this is the prayer song that closes the album Like a Prayer.

3rd Act

It would be the “romantic” moment of the singer and her love songs, but of course, if there is that there is sex! That’s right, here we will have Madonna making the television broadcast worry about what she will show on stage. Hahaha.

LIVING FOR LOVE

The opening song on her album Rebel Heart considered one of Madonna’s weakest, reflects her post-divorce conviction that she will not let her disappointments get her down. Simple and wonderful, of course. One of the artistic contributions of Diplo. It will have quotes from Fever, which Madonna recorded in Erotica, and a tribute to Prince, with elements from Let’s Go Crazy.

EROTIC

Here the public goes wild with the eternally provocative Madonna. Erotica, from 1992, was a “dirty” sounding album, where the singer left the comfort zone of radio hits and revealed her boldness to talk about sex, fantasies, AIDS, and many other issues. Forever linked to the book Sex, here Madonna scared fans who didn’t see themselves as ready to join her and showed that singing Like a Virgin and sexual flirtations was not enough. Diva. Goddess. It will have quotes from Justify My Love, You Thrill Me (one of my favorite versions) and Papa Don’t Preach.

JUSTIFY MY LOVE

The single that appeared on the Immaculate Collection compilation is a preview of what Erotica would be, with Lenny Kravitz in the background making Madonna’s purring rap something unforgettable.

HUNG UP

Still dizzy, let’s travel through time and music, moving forward to the hit song from one of Madonna’s best albums, when she reached 50 and released Confessions On a Dancefloor. Of course, the ABBA sample (Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!) makes up 60% of the song, but it is the ecstasy of everything it has shown so far.

BAD GIRL

Another song from Erotica, this ballad describes a woman who is “unhappy with her life because she believes she is behaving badly, due to the sadness that has overcome her since the end of a romantic relationship.”

Obviously, the ironic Madonna will use this success to close the “naughty” act, kind of with an air of guiltless mea culpa. Naturally, as she is Madonna after all!

4th Act

The dancers occupy the “Ballroom” interlude to the sound of Vogue and other songs, this is the act in which Madonna will talk about fashion and behavior.

VOGUE

The hit from the album Breathless is one of the biggest hits of Madonna’s 40 years. It clashes with the album because the other songs were inspired by the film Dick Tracy, in which the singer starred. But it entered precisely because Vogue was an underground movement in New York that Madonna made mainstream. Watch the Pose series to understand what Vogue was.

Vogue is also one of Madonna’s best videos, but on Celebration Tour, she gets a special local guest to help her give notes to the dancers. In Brazil, the guest will be Pablo Vittar, as seen in rehearsals. Considering that Anitta is also expected, who knows, maybe something will change? Let’s check it out later.

HUMAN NATURE

This song from the album Bedtime Stories has ALWAYS been in Madonna’s concert repertoire for the last 30 years. Here she warns that there is no point in expecting her to apologize for being who she is. Human nature can be repressive or challenging, we know which Madonna is. The show version will not be complete, it is almost a quote.

CRAZY FOR YOU

For those who only understood the flavor of USA For Africa with the documentary The Night That Changed Pop, you should be aware that this ballad that Madonna recorded for the 1985 film, Vision Quest, took We Are The World off the charts. success after more than a year of breaking records. Good revenge for being excluded, right?

Crazy For You is closely associated with Madonna’s romance with Sean Penn, although it is not her own composition. It’s iconic because in 1985, when Madonna became queen, it was her biggest hit.

5th Act

It is the block that opens with hits from the 2000s of Madonna’s career, but also where she explores her passion for Latin music. Conceptually more comprehensive, it brings together songs of love and reflection.

THE BEAST WITHIN

The B-side of the single Justify My Love talks about religion and sex, themes that Madonna loves. It is also a reference to the 1982 horror film The Beast Within,

DIE ANOTHER DAY

The song that placed Madonna in the James Bond universe is part of the 2003 album American Life. The album still reflects the post-9/11 effect, leading Madonna to question values and relationships.

DON’T TELL ME

Don’t Tell Me is Madonna’s country flirtation that appeared on the 2001 album Music. Delicious, a moment to dance to.

MOTHER AND FATHER

I found it curious that this song which was never a hit and which is on American Life is highlighted in the show, but it is, as we know, Madonna talking about the loss of her mother, at the age of 6, and her conversation with her father, her idol, about the hardships of life.

EXPRESS YOURSELF

The acoustic version of Like a Prayer‘s hit at the time, 1989, was somewhat revolutionary where Madonna advised her fans to refuse to be a second option. Perfect!

LA ISLA BONITA

What can we say about this Latin moment? Let’s remember that in 1986, Latin music was not mainstream and Madonna was the most popular artist on the planet. She began singing in Spanish, defying prejudice and opening doors for many artists on the radio. Thank you, Madonna!

DON’T CRY FOR ME ARGENTINA

Madonna as Evita was, for many, her greatest attempt as an actress to be taken seriously. She won a Golden Globe and the success, a Broadway classic, has been “hers” ever since.

6th Act

Interlude to the sound of I Don’t Search, I Find and I wonder: how does Madonna have so much stamina? Just going through the songs on the setlist one by one makes me exhausted. But let’s go to the penultimate block!

BEDTIME STORY

The title song of the 1994 album is important because it was one of Madonna’s least-played albums and marked her turn towards Bjork and focusing more on electronics. I love.

RAY OF LIGHT

Let’s jump like crazy? Ray of Light is for me Madonna’s musical peak, the album for which she deservedly won the Grammy.

RAIN

In the heat that will be in the Copacabana talking about rain may sound like a relief but I hope for a dry night. Rain is on the Erotica album. Yes, one more. Clearly, we can like Ray of Light but this is the album where Madonna laid the foundation for Celebration. A beautiful ballad.

7th Act

The end of the party, two hours later, promises to be devastating, opening with a video of the sound of Billie Jean and projected shadow images of Michael Jackson and a Madonna from the Like A Virgin era, with a smash of the two iconic songs from the 1980s. It also includes quotes from Express Yourself and Angel, by Madonna, and Smooth Criminal and Dangerous, by Michael.

BITCH, I’M MADONNA

Rebel Heart is a curious Madonna album, but this song, which will include quotes from Give Me All Yor Luvin, from the MDNA album, is Madonna letting the world know who she is. And as she sings I just wanna have fun tonight. Copacabana Beach will jump with her.

CELEBRATION

Celebration could only close the night and will have more than quotes from Music, it will end in samba, as we saw in the rehearsal. Will be amazing.

My review

Madonna avoided the obvious in this 40th birthday celebration, going through all the phases, but not settling down to play the hits, all of them or in chronological order. She put together a show that goes through the construction of her persona and legend and obviously over four decades she would have to leave successes out. I missed a lot of songs I love, but I understand the Queen’s message. I will always be her subject.

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