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12. Out NorthEast www.outnortheast.com12
ICONS – Out Northeast Icons. Words; Paul Corduex | Illustration : Brand NuMadonnaTurning 50 this summer and hitting the headlines again followingrumours of an imminent divorce from hubby Guy Ritchie, Madonna isnever far from the public eye. Her award-winning career has spannedthe decades and on the rare occasion she tours, her shows are immediatesell-outs. You may think you know a lot about the chameleon of pop,you’re probably her Number 1 fan, but just what makes Madonna one ofthe biggest gay icons in recent history?Her path to stardom began when she lefther Catholic family in Michigan and movedto New York City in 1977 with $35 and astraight ‘A’ graduation from Rochester ArmsHigh School. Hard to imagine now, but theyoung Madonna Louise Ciccone faced toughtimes in New York and took jobs in fast foodrestaurants to make ends meet. She fell backon her dance training and performed whenand where she could.By 1982, Madonna had toured as a dancerand had fallen in and out of severalrelationships with men. Most notably,Stephen Bray with whom she had writtenand performed several dance tunes under theband name Emmy. On the back of Emmy’sdemo recordings, Sire Records signedMadonna to their label and spawned albumsand singles, including Like a Virgin whichwent to Number 1 in the ‘States selling 12million copies worldwide.Within four years, Madonna had appearedin several films, and had Number 1 singlesand albums in the UK and America. Althoughher acting performances were generallymet with moderate critical acclaim, thefilms were commercially viable. 1985 sawa collaborative US Tour with the BeastieBoys entitled The Virgin Tour. Madonna’swork continued a contradictory sexual andreligious theme throughout the 1980s andshe sparked a fashion trend amongst youngwomen for wearing jewellery with religiouscrossed and lace tops.Now married to actor Sean Penn, Madonna’scareer looked set to explode as she released1986’s True Blue album including theTop5 single Papa Don’t Preach. She actedalongside Penn in several productions andmade her stage debut in Goose and Tom-Tom.It was during this second phase of her careerthat she gained negative publicity from theCatholic Church into which she had beenbaptised. The Pope himself urged ItalianCatholics not to support her world tours andto boycott her music. It is from this periodthat some of Madonna’s most memorablesongs images come, closely associatingCatholic symbolism and sexuality.Following the set-up of her own recordlabel Maverick in 1992 and her divorce formPenn in 1989 following a troubled marriage,Madonna embarked upon yet another stageof her development. Her most successful filmcame out of this period, 1996’s Evita in whichshe played the lead role of Eva Peron. Themid-nineties were dominated for Madonna bymore sexual themes and a cooling off of hercommercial appeal as a singer. Her albumswere banned in some countries for theirstrong sexual content and S&M connotations.Her infamous first book, Sex, was alsoreleased by Maverick and sold well despitebeing slammed for it’s overt sexual and eroticcontent.It was as the 90s ended and the newmillennium approached that we weregiven the first glimpses of the Madonna wenow know and love. Her music career wasrevived and in her personal life she met andbegan a relationship with the man she wasto marry and form her longest partnershipwith, British film director Guy Ritchie.Musically, Madonna’s albums Ray of Light,Music and Confessions On A Dance Floorwere commercial successes with the onlynotable failure being American Life, whichwas her most unsuccessful album to date.Her latest album, Hard Candy was releasedthis year and he has enjoyed success withthe first single 4 Minutes, as well as makingher directorial debut with the film Faith andWisdom. Madonna’s latest world tour entitlesSticky and Sweet begins in August 2008.Having weathered the storm of her troubledrelationships and successfully fought thecritics Madonna has become a legend inher own lifetime. Mystery and speculationsurrounds her and she has caused more thanher fair share of drama and controversy. Asher 50th year approaches, single once moreand facing an uncertain personal future,Madonna can take strength from the millionsof gay and straight fans for whom she is theultimate icon.www.outnortheast.com 13. Out NorthEast
Page 1: Please take oneMadonnaa True IconAl
Page 4 and 5: Issue 11 - August / September 2008P
Page 6 and 7: News from the North East - www.outn
Page 8 and 9: Page 8 - Top Title - The Bangshees
Page 10 and 11: Scene News with Anita Collins... sc
Page 14 and 15: Jason Caddy chats to Anders, from A
Page 16 and 17: A taste of SuperGay from Martin Ley
Page 18: Manchester Pride, Behind the Scenes
Page 21 and 22: Flying Music in association with CS
Page 23 and 24: 23the Jazz Café, offering a great
Page 25 and 26: Fabulous Stomach with Keith Wardhea
Page 27 and 28: CivilPartnershipsDomestic ViolenceC
Page 30 and 31: Gareth Longstaff with a brief guide
Page 32 and 33: Paul Corduex reviewsreaddead Famous
Page 34 and 35: englishlads.comI remember writing i
Page 36 and 37: community listings62 Scotswood Road
Page 38 and 39: \ \ \ \ have you been scene out? ww
Page 40 and 41: listings62 Scotswood Road, Newcastl
Page 44 and 45: listings62 Scotswood Road, Newcastl
Page 50 and 51: Your Horoscopes with Jasmine Starrh

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