Now it's all over the press. Billboard, MSNBC and EW have all been covering it. All over the world, the Confessions project was a smash hit but in the US, it's different. Is it a boycott after her anti-war comment on American Life or is it something else? Here's what some news sites wrote


From Billboard

Madonna is in the midst of a sold-out North American trek that may end up being the top-grossing tour ever by a female artist. But this on-the-road success is not carrying over to American radio airwaves. In the United States, the three singles from Madonna's latest Warner Bros. album, "Confessions on a Dance Floor," have not been embraced by mainstream top 40 radio.

"Hung Up" got middling airplay, "Sorry" was barely played, and "Get Together" has been all but ignored by pop stations. Naturally, this state of affairs has left executives at her Warner Bros. label -- and more than a few fans -- wondering, what gives?

More than 5,200 fans have signed an appeal at petitiononline.com. The "End the Madonna on U.S. Radio Boycott" petition is addressed to Clear Channel Communications CEO Mark P. Mays. Message boards at Entertainment Weekly and VH1, among others, are rife with everything from support for Madonna to conspiracy theories about why she can't crack the radio dial.

Warner Bros. was aware that the songs on "Confessions" could present challenges at mainstream top 40 radio, acknowledges Tom Biery, senior VP of promotions at Warner Bros. "Top 40 radio is so hip-hop-driven," he says. "We were coming in with a global pop star who made a dance record."

Guy Zapoleon, president of radio consulting firm Zapoleon Media Strategies, calls it an "interesting dilemma for the woman who certainly held the 'Queen of Pop' title for almost 15 years." Madonna's ability to redefine herself is well-documented, and Zapoleon says that this has helped her keep a "leading edge" to the new group of pop music fans that comes along every three to five years.

But this time, Madonna may have turned left while the pop climate was turning right. Other pop chameleons such as Nelly Furtado and Mariah Carey reinvented themselves with recent rhythmic/hip-hop-leaning singles. Madonna opted instead to return to her dance-pop roots

Madonna has had no such airplay problems internationally. Since its release last November, "Confessions on a Dance Floor" has topped the charts in 29 countries and sold more than 8 million copies worldwide, according to Warner Bros. For the week ending July 15, the album's third single, "Get Together," had a radio audience of fewer than 1 million listeners in the United States (aggregate, based on market size and station share). Conversely, in the United Kingdom, where all three singles have been A-listed by BBC Radio 1, the single had 38.4 million listeners.

Except for dance radio outlets like KNGY San Francisco, KNRJ Phoenix and KNHC Seattle, Madonna is missing from the terrestrial radio landscape in the United States. John Peake, PD at KNGY, believes that mainstream top 40 radio programmers have completely missed the boat on this project. "When 'Hung Up' didn't get instant callout, the stations gave up on it," he says. "If they had given it more time, the callout would've come home."

"Confessions" has been healthy at retail: It has moved 1.5 million copies, already double that of its predecessor, 2003's "American Life," which has sold 666,000, according to Nielsen SoundScan. File-sharing stats from BigChampagne and support from MTV's "TRL" are also solid. But, Biery says, "Radio still looks at callout research."

As Warner Bros. gears up for the release of the album's fourth single, "Jump," Biery remains optimistic, especially since the song was heard in TV and radio spots for the film "The Devil Wears Prada." The label will take a different strategy with this single, Biery says. "We'll begin with AC and hot AC formats," he notes. "Our goal is to have a true hit record with callout and then bring it back to the mainstream top 40 world."



From MSNBC

Is Clear Channel boycotting Madonna?
Singer’s fans have organized a petition demanding justice for Material Girl

Stephen Chernin / AP
Madonna performs during her concert on the New York leg of her "Confessions" tour. Madonna is known to have strong views about George Bush and the war in Iraq.
Is Madonna the subject of a Dixie Chicks-like boycott?

Songs from the Material Girl’s latest album, “Confessions on a Dance Floor,” have been hits around the world, but hasn’t fared as well in the U.S. Some fans are alleging that radio stations owned by Clear Channel — a company with strong ties to the Republican party — are refusing to play her music because of the pop star’s comments blasting George Bush and the war in Iraq. Madonna has been an outspoken critic of the war and during her current “Confessions” concert tour, makes obscene comments about President Bush. Clear Channel stations were said to be key in keeping the Dixie Chicks’ music off the air after one of them made highly publicized comments about being “embarrassed” to be from the same state as George Bush.

Over 5,000 Madonna fans have signed a petition that’s being sent to Clear Channel head Mark P. Mays, accusing the company of keeping the singer off the radio airwaves. “The evidence that there is a boycott from American Radio is too obvious for words ... Madonna rules the planet, EXCEPT for the USA,” according to the petition writer, who went on to note that Madonna holds the two top positions in the United World Chart, but a number of petition signers report that when they request Madonna’s music, they’re told by Clear Channel-owned stations she’s too old or not popular enough.

A spokesman for Clear Channel told the Scoop he had no comment on the alleged boycott. “It's not to say we won't have comment in the future — just not right now,” he said.

I just heard Get Together on the radio. That's a first time! (=

I don't think it is a boycott or anything like it. People in the US are just not interested, it shouldn't be hard to understand.

I do feel like something strange is happening too Madonna, I'm not sure if it's a boycott though. Although It wouldn't surprise me, the American media is so owned.

Just because an artist is popular in Europe, doesn't mean Americans will accept them. Just look at Anastacia and Robbie Williams. It's weird though cause Madonna did have some popularity there, though that seems like the distant past

Well, Get Together was #84 on the Pop 100 chart two weeks ago, maybe she's going up (we'll know last week's result tomorrow)?

The press still loves her, radio does not. She's 47, common she doesn't represent modern pop culture as much as she used to which makes it a bit hard to be a big pop star. Just the state of her career now. Better this then her making bad made for AC/adult radio light hits or rap songs lol.

simple : dance music is not famous in USA radio

thats what she gets for making dance music.......

Maybe Fighter was right? She needs to make another R&B album; R&B and Hip/Hop are what's hot in the U.S after all.

When did she do an R&B album?

In 1994, called ''Bedtime Stories.''



It helped her to recover from the flop Erotica in the US, but worldwide it didn't do that well. The first single ''Secret'' hit n3, while the second single ''Take A Bow peaked at n1 for 7 weeks.

I don't think it's a big deal like the media is portraying. As others have stated dance music isn't as popular in the US as it is in Europe and the rest of the world. Right now Hip Hop/Rap & R&B are dominant in the US.

I loved Human Nature from Madonna's Bedtime Stories album, that was my fav song from her and it was R&B-ish.

I don't think she'd do that. That'll make it look like she's desperate. I guess she doesn't really bother that she isn't getting a lot of airplay in the US. Since her CD is selling well around the world and decently in the US. She also did little US promotion before her tour.

The good news is Clear Channel who has a monopoly over US radio says R&B will be over this year in a press release! :P I'm okay with R&B tho, just that it's been dominating everything recently it's annoying

What? So, they're going to push R&B out of radio next?

apparently so. Well I dont think they're gonna stop playing it all together, just that its dominance is going to fall

They should leave R&B alone and stop playing rap instead.

r&b is crap..

GO MADONNA THE QUEEN OF THE POPWORLD!!

I like R&B.

I think when they say RnB, they're referring to mainstream RnB which usually has traces of rap and hip hop. I'm okay with it.
I just hope they give pop a chance after all this time!

The radio stations all play the same song. I dont know why people listen too the radio at all anymore.