Over the past few weeks, I have heard a lot about artists that take musical "risk" or "risk taking" albums.
So I decided to explore this concept, in a thread. There's truly no greater risk taker in the business than the queen of pop Madonna, so lets take a look at some of these iconic instances in her career. It's these moments of her career that serve as evidence of Madonna's true artistry.
Like a Prayer - Erotica
Erotica's predecessor studio album was the groundbreaking Like a Prayer. Like a prayer is best described by rolling stone as "as close to art as music can get" After that, she embarked on a groundbreaking tour and released her greatest hit at that point: the dance floor / ball anthem Vogue. Then came The Immaculate Collection, the music compilation album that still is the best selling music compilation in history - and one of the best selling albums in the world.
So, what kind of risk is that? Going from extreme commercial success with the popular genre of music to an album that left the more mainstream sounds behind and pursued a more urban sound (at that time, hip-hop and urban music were not the norm on mainstream).
Thematically, Erotica discussed more adult and serious topics: homosexuality, prejudice, AIDS, love and sex. - All of these things were taboo to speak about, all of these things were not in the mainstream media. Gay was considered a mental Illness, same sex relations were illegal in many countries including some states in the US.
So let that sink in, At Madonna's peak, at the highest point in her career, rather than re-create disco hits and attempt to achieve continued success, Madonna decided to change her image, to re-ivent her sound and to fight for something that was close to her heart knowing it was considered the unpopular thing to do and could have destroyed her career. - That kind of risk, is RARELY seen in the business and every gay person, at the very least owes Madonna respect for doing that.
Enjoy Deeper and Deeper (one of my faves from the album) here
American Life
Cut to 2003. American life was released, Some of Madonna's most personal work to date. The lead single in particular was inspired by the then ongoing Iraq war. I'm not sure if people here will be able to remember because the atmosphere at that time, the social context was totally different to what it is now. George Bush' approval rating was at an all time high, The approval rating for the war against Iraq was at an all time high and here we have Madonna releasing a video which addresses the brutality of war, the fact that children are being killed and the fact that no good comes from war with images of Sadam Hussein hugging and kissing George Bush . Madonna was labeled. Anti Bush, Anti American, Anti troops. The republican owned radio stations refused to play her album or singles but Madonna took that risk, Madonna chose to release American life at that time because she truly believed in her message even though it wasn't the popular choice and that's what real artists do - They present their concept and attempt to change the social climate. They inspire change regardless of the popularity of their ideals. That's what Madonna does.
The video for American life was eventually pulled by Madonna (something she has never done) because she didn't want to convey that she was anti-troops. The original video was still played at very late hours and showed across the world on countless news stories addressing the controversy.
The was she performed at the very first MTV awards was an incredible risk. That type of performance had not been attempted on that scale - The editor of billboard at that time said right after it that she would be done in 6 months time.
The was she performed at the very first MTV awards was an incredible risk. That type of performance had not been attempted on that scale - The editor of billboard at that time said right after it that she would be done in 6 months time.
I thought this thread was about musical risks. not attention-seeking antics.
I thought this thread was about musical risks. not attention-seeking antics.
Performance is part of music especially considering the fact she is a performance artist.
Again, Madonna knew that her performance would go either way. At that time, that kind of performance was not acceptable (in the social context) that's why the editor of billboard made his comment.
