Since the 1980s, she’s been known as the Queen of Pop. Madonna turns 60 in August, and it’s no surprise to anyone that she’s due to drop her 14th album in June. A dynamic performer and a prolific worker, we doubt Madonna would know what to do with herself if she was made to retire.
In 1983 she had her first international hit with Holiday, and she followed it up with Like A Virgin in 1984. She had (and still has) an amazing voice, she pushed the boundaries and above all she was comfortable with her sexuality – even though many of her critics weren’t! The Vatican famously condemned her Like A Prayer music video and religious groups began to boycott Pepsi who had used the song in their commercials.
In July 1985, adult magazines Playboy and Penthouse published nude photographs of Madonna that had been taken when she was a young student in 1978. This was the first glimpse the world had of Madonna in the nude, but it wouldn’t be the last. Let’s look back of 10 of Madonna’s best naked moments – no wonder The Androids sang “I’d rather do it with Madonna!”
1. The ‘Papa Don’t Preach’ Music Video
Circa 1986: At around the 1:38 minute mark, Madonna has the briefest of nip-slips and we don’t blame her. You try dancing your heart out in a black bustiere and see what happens to you! This nip-slip managed to um, slip, past the producers but once it was played on MTV it soon became one of pop music’s most iconic flashes.
2. Madonna’s Nude Selfie
May 2017: Madonna may be showing off her bling in this first image, but swipe if you want to see something a litter cheekier! In response to her incredible body (how is this woman turning 60?) her fans commented included “Perfection exists!” , “Flawless!” and “We love this woman!” Hey, if every 20-something is allowed to get their tush out on Instagram, why not Madonna as well.
3. The MTV Video Music Awards
The MTV Video Music Awards 1984: This was Madonna’s first VMAs performance, and she managed to make an everlasting impression. Her outfit – the white lace dress with fingerless gloves paired with the ‘Boy Toy’ belt – has become a testament to the fashion decade that was the 80s. We put this double nip-slip down to wearing another bustiere. Even though none of us are world renowned superstars, we know they are honestly one of the hardest pieces of clothing to perform in without busting out of!
4. Helmut Newton Photoshoot
November 2018: Madonna posts this striking flashback to her Instagram account. Even though the picture is censored (barely!) we can see she is naked on stage and channelling Liza Minnelli in ‘Cabaret’. This photoshoot was executed by photography genius Helmut Newton, whose work was a mainstay of Vogue before he passed away in 2004.
5. Martha Graham School of Dance
December 2018: Madonna posts this stunning throwback of her younger self on Instagram, and the story behind the picture is triumphant one. Madonna captioned her picture:
“I am 19. Living in NYC. A student at Martha Graham School of Dance. I modeled For Art Schools around the city to pay the rent. Painting, Drawing and Photography classes. Many of these photos were sold to Playboy and Penthouse when I became famous. The Photographer’s Exploited Me and then the Patriarchy tried to Shame me for Being Naked. I told the Press “I Was Not Ashamed” and this became headline news. And this turned into a collaboration between Warhol and Haring! I am the proud owner of 4 of these paintings. Given to me later. as a wedding gift. You cannot stop Art by trying to Shame it. Creation always wins“
Although Madonna’s naked pics were used against her once she became famous, the star held her head up high and refused to let the media and misogynists body shame her. Good on you Madge, you’re a true trailblazer.
6. Nudes II
Circa 2016: Martin HM Schreiber’s exhibition ‘The Madonna Nudes II‘ debuted worldwide, showing us remastered and never before seen photos that he took of Madonna in 1979.
7. Madonna’s Nudes Up for Auction
November 2017: Nearly 40 years after they were taken, photos of Madonna in the nude went up for auction. The pictures date back to 1976 when Madonna was a young student in Michigan, and they leave very little to the imagination. You quickly get the impression that body-confidence have never been a problem for the famous singer. They went up for sale at the legendary New York auction house ‘Gotta Have Rock N Roll‘ and were expected to fetch at least $200,000 US.
8. Sex by Madonna
Video: News reporters cover the launch of Madonna’s controversial book
October 1992: Before Kim Kardashian published ‘Selfish’, Madonna published ‘Sex‘. A coffee table book like no other, Madonna’s published work was full of nudes and erotica that whipped the media into a frenzy. Her fans loved it, congratulating her on pushing the boundaries and challenging mainstream ideas of what sex should be. Her critics loathed it, calling it unabashed attention seeking. Madonna herself said “I don’t think sex is bad. I don’t think nudity is bad. I don’t think that being in touch with your sexuality and being able to talk about it is bad. I think the problem is that everybody’s so uptight about it and have turned it into something bad when it isn’t. If people could talk about it freely, we would have more people practicing safe sex, we wouldn’t have people sexually abusing each other.” Nearly 30 years later the book is out of print but you can still buy it online, so you’ve got a chance make up your own mind.
9. Free The Nipple
April 2015: Madonna calls social media out on a double standard, questioning why no one has a problem with rears but presses the panic button when they see a nipple? The singer captioned her photo:
“Why is it ok to show ass but not breasts? Drowning in the hypocrisy of social media”
People are still asking this in 2019 Madonna, so once again you were well ahead of the curve.
10. The S.E.X Music Video
October 2017: We can’t wrap this list up without mentioning Madonna’s song S.E.X and the accompanying music video. Extremely NSFW, Madonna refuses to rein it in despite her age and that’s what we love about her. With her new album Madame X dropping in June and a world tour in the works, we can’t wait to see what this one-woman show will come up with next!
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