Madonna surprised the people of the Vigário Geral slum, in the South of Rio de Janeiro, when she appeared on Friday, December 7, to attend a group presentation at the Centro Cultural Waly Salomão, run by Grupo CulturalAfroReggae, a grassroots movement created with by work of Anderson Sá, a former drug trafficker and that was the subject of the 2005 documentary film "Favela Rising". AfroReggae run a project with children and teenagers in the community.

Madonna was accompanied by Brahim, Yaman, Norman, Rocco and other dancers from her show and attended performances by AR21, Makala Música e Dança, Orquestra AfroReggae, Afro Circo, Párvati, Afro Samba e Afro Lata na Praça Tropicalismo.

Check out Terra.com and AfroReggae.org for more pictures.

Images from the rehearsals and the MDNA show at the Morumbi Stadium in Sao Paulo on December 4th.

Madonna gigs outsell Lady Gaga three to one

Madonna concerts in South America outsell rival Lady Gaga by three to one, according to latest statistics.

The statistic is even more embarrassing to Gaga as Madonna's MDNA Tour tickets are also three times more expensive than briefs for her 'Born This Way' world tour.

The Examiner reports that Lady Gaga's management used under-hand tactics, such as issuing buy-one-get-one-free deals to fans, in order to boost crowd numbers. The singer played in front of a crowd of 50,000 in Peru but only 17,000 tickets were sold.

However, Madonna played in the same venues on the South American leg of her worldwideMDNA Tour and managed to sell-out the stadiums without having to resort to issuing incentives to raise numbers.

The feuding pair have been at each others throats ever since Madonna claimed that Gaga's track 'Born This Way' sounded "familiar" to her 1989 hit Express Yourself. Throughout this year's MDNA Tour, Madonna has mocked the similarities between the two songs by performing a mash-up of Express Yourself and 'Born This Way' followed by a pointed snippet of a track called She's Not Me.

During a show in Atlantic City in September, Madonna dedicated her song Masterpiece to Gaga, before saying: "I love her. I love her. I do love her. Imitation is the highest form of flattery."

Last month, Madonna's famous conical bra was sold for $51,971 (£32,450) at auction. The iconic garment - which was made famous by the Queen of Pop during her 1990 Blonde Ambition tour - fetched twice its estimated price when it went under the hammer at a music memorabilia auction at Christie's.

purplethunder3121 said:

Images from the rehearsals and the MDNA show at the Morumbi Stadium in Sao Paulo on December 4th.

yay! I was there..and lemme say it again..in the golden triangle

Madonna on Forbes' top earning women in 2012 list

1. Britney Spears – $58 million
2. Taylor Swift – $57 million
3. Rihanna – $53 million
4. Lady Gaga – $52 million
5. Katy Perry – $45 million
6. Beyonce – $40 million
7. Adele – $35 million
8. Sade – $33 million
9. Madonna – $30 million
10. Shakira – $20 million

The figures represent earnings from May 2011 to May 2012, before subtracting management fees, legal costs and taxes (which together can eat up the bulk of a big payday). The totals were compiled with the help of data from Pollstar, RIAA and others, in addition to interviews with managers, lawyers and concert promoters.

Forbes

[Edited 12/14/12 17:26pm]

Madonna through the ages at Madame Tussauds

Three versions of Madonna, as she has appeared over the course of her career, are on display at London’s Madame Tussauds museum. As well as her current look, new figures have been created showing the singer in guises from her Sticky And Sweet tour and the Like A Virgin era. Three dancers who have worked with the enduring pop star helped launch the waxworks, two of which will be shipped to Tussauds in Tokyo next Spring.

BBC

World famous Madame Tussauds London today revealed a brand new wax figure inspired by the Madonna's iconic "Vogue" number of the MDNA Tour. The new figure is joined for three weeks only by two more new wax incarnations of the Queen of Pop in the "Candy Shop" outfit from the Sticky & Sweet Tour and the 1984 MTv "Like a Virgin" style.

These two figures will then head to Japan where they will take up residence at the new Madame Tussauds Tokyo in March next year.

"This is a first time we have ever launched three different figures of one performer here at Madame Tussauds London, so it’s a very special event," PR Manager, Nicole Fenner said.

"We are very lucky to be able to bring together these three extremely striking portrayals of one of the most influential and iconic contemporary music artists of all time and we know fans are going to relish the opportunity to meet not one but three Madonnas. But our two Japanese bound figures will be with us only until Thursday January 3, so those who want to see her in triplicate should make plans to do so now!"

Madame Tussauds Studios London has been making wax figures for over 150 years, each masterpiece taking four months and a team of 20 dedicated sculptors to create.

Over 500 precise body measurements are referenced, real head hairs are inserted one by one, and countless layers of paints and tints are applied to build up skin tones - all to achieve the kind of astonishing realism that has kept Madame Tussauds world renowned for over two centuries.

Prices to Madame Tussauds are from £15 for adults and children (4-15 inclusive) when you pre-book at www.madametussauds.com/london.

[Edited 12/14/12 17:34pm]

Madonna in Buenos Aires

SoulAlive said:

Madonna Rules Billboard.com's Readers Poll 2012

by Jason Lipshutz, N.Y. | December 18, 2012 4:15 EST

Once Billboard.com readers weighed in on their favorite artists, songs and albums of the year, Madonna emerged as the 2012 MVP and came out on top in four other categories.

One year after pop divas like Britney Spears, Adele and Lady Gaga ruled the 2011 Billboard.com Readers' Poll, Madonna dominated the competition in the 2012 edition of our year-end fan forum. Once Billboard.com readers weighed in on their favorite artists, songs and albums over the past 12 months, Madonna emerged as the 2012 MVP, and came out on top in four other categories.

Best Of 2012: Year In Music Main | Top 25 Tours of 2012: Madonna Reigns

Check out all of the results below, including the percentage of the votes that each candidate received in each category, and give us your feedback in the comments section.

Madonna's achievements included earning the most votes for favorite Billboard 200 No. 1 album with her chart-topping "MDNA"; winning the Best Tour crown for her MDNA trek, which grossed more money than any other run this year, according to Billboard Boxscore; nabbing favorite TV performance for her Super Bowl halftime show extravaganza last February; and even winning most memorable feud for her war of words with Lady Gaga. For that incredible year, Madonna was handed the MVP crown from last year's winner, Britney Spears; in doing so, she topped Frank Ocean, Taylor Swift and Nicki Minaj, who came in second, third and fourth in voting, respectively.

She's irrelevant

Rumour is now that Madonna has been rehearsing "I heard it through the Grapevine" as part of a Marvin Gaye tribute for the Grammy's.

If true I'm happy she's focusing on her music career as opposed to directing another film.

Well...

So Madonna came to Chile on Tuesday evening to give a concert on Wednesday.

The weather forecast had warned one week before it was going to rain that day.

The producer of the event said the stage and the show was professional enough so even if there was a storm, the show would be there and fans would enjoy it.

The soundcheck was normal, the sun shone sometimes. Madonna told off some people who were smoking and threatened them with leaving the stadium without performing if they didn't stop smoking.

Wednesday night, Madonna started the show 2 hours later. People were very pissed waiting for her under the rain.

As everybody knew the different stages of the show, it was shocking to see she skipped the whole first part.

She performes around 13 songs and left.

Fans got very frustrated with this.

I'm glad I decided not to get tickets.

tritoncin said:

Well...

So Madonna came to Chile on Tuesday evening to give a concert on Wednesday.

The weather forecast had warned one week before it was going to rain that day.

The producer of the event said the stage and the show was professional enough so even if there was a storm, the show would be there and fans would enjoy it.

The soundcheck was normal, the sun shone sometimes. Madonna told off some people who were smoking and threatened them with leaving the stadium without performing if they didn't stop smoking.

Wednesday night, Madonna started the show 2 hours later. People were very pissed waiting for her under the rain.

As everybody knew the different stages of the show, it was shocking to see she skipped the whole first part.

She performes around 13 songs and left.

Fans got very frustrated with this.

I'm glad I decided not to get tickets.

A friend of mine was there (4 the the 5th show on this tour) and said that it was worthy...I don't think I would have this same feeling anyway..but the Show in Sao Paulo/Brazil was much better than I was expecting..so good I was tempeted 2 go Argentina 2 see it again!

jayaredee said:

Rumour is now that Madonna has been rehearsing "I heard it through the Grapevine" as part of a Marvin Gaye tribute for the Grammy's.

If true I'm happy she's focusing on her music career as opposed to directing another film.

There's also talk that she's gonna start a new album soon

Madonna on Year End Billboard Charts

No. 1 on Top 25 Tours
No. 23 on Top Artists
No. 44, MDNA on Billboard 200
No. 42 on Billboard 200 Artists
No. 42, MDNA on Current Albums
No. 3 on Dance/Electronic Albums Artists
No. 2, MDNA on Dance/Electronic Albums
No. 5 on Dance/Club Artists
No. 33, “Turn Up the Radio” on Dance/Club Songs
No. 41, “Give Me All Your Luvin’” on Dance/Club Songs
No. 44, “Girl Gone Wild” on Dance/Club Songs
No. 40, MDNA on Canadian Albums
No. 76, “Give Me All Your Luvin’” on Canadian Hot 100

madonnanation/billboard

Madonna’s “Girl Gone Wild” is nominated in the ‘Best Dance in a Music Video’ category at this year’s DanceOn Dance Video Awards. Vote in comments onYouTube

Madonna Rules Billboard Readers Poll 2012

Once Billboard.com readers weighed in on their favorite artists, songs and albums of the year, Madonna emerged as the 2012 MVP and came out on top in four other categories.

One year after pop divas like Britney Spears, Adele and Lady Gaga ruled the 2011 Billboard.com Readers’ Poll, Madonna dominated the competition in the 2012 edition of our year-end fan forum. Once Billboard.com readers weighed in on their favorite artists, songs and albums over the past 12 months, Madonna emerged as the 2012 MVP, and came out on top in four other categories.

Madonna’s achievements included earning the most votes for favorite Billboard 200 No. 1 album with her chart-topping “MDNA”; winning the Best Tour crown for her MDNA trek, which grossed more money than any other run this year, according to Billboard Boxscore; nabbing favorite TV performance for her Super Bowl halftime show extravaganza last February; and even winning most memorable feud for her war of words with Lady Gaga. For that incredible year, Madonna was handed the MVP crown from last year’s winner, Britney Spears; in doing so, she topped Frank Ocean, Taylor Swift and Nicki Minaj, who came in second, third and fourth in voting, respectively.

Billboard

St. Petersburg Activists Appeal Dismissal of Lawsuits Against Madonna

St. Petersburg activists have filed an appeal against the Moskovsky District Court’s ruling which dismissed their lawsuits against Madonna and the organizers of her concert, RIA Novosti reported on Tuesday.

In mid-August, the court agreed to hear the lawsuits against Madonna and the organizers of her concert in St. Petersburg. The plaintiffs sought 333 million rubles ($10.8million) for alleged offences related to her support for the LGBT community.

In November, the court dismissed all nine lawsuits and ruled to recover legal fees from the plaintiffs in favor of the concert organizers.

Darya Dedova, one of the plaintiffs, said that the claims remain the same and they are determined to seek the cancellation of the defendants’ recovery of the legal fees.
The plaintiffs believe that the Moskovsky District Court’s ruling showed the entire world that the law prohibiting the promotion of homosexuality among under-aged does not work, and that “Russian laws can be violated with no consequences.”

The St. Petersburg law on prohibiting the propaganda of homosexuality and pedophilia among minors, which gathered a host of both supporters and opponents, came into effect on March 30.

Under the amended law, public actions intended to promote homosexual and bisexual relations and transgender issues among minors are to be punished by administrative fines amounting to 5,000 rubles ($162.3) for individuals, 50,000 rubles ($1,623) for officials and from 250,000 to 500,000 rubles ($8,115 to 16,230) for legal entities.

RAPSI

Madonna Has The Year's Top Grossing Tour: Nearly 300 Mil

The power of Madonna shows little sign of waning, at least at the cashbox. According to Pollstar, the Material Girl was the runaway leader in concert grosses for calendar year 2012, taking in $296.1 million. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band took the number two spot with $210.2 million. Like Madonna, Springsteen played to more than two million fans this year.

--Rolling Stone

[Edited 12/30/12 13:19pm]

MDNA is Russia's Best-selling Album of 2012

Madonna's MDNA has been named number one in the Russian end-of-year album chart compiled by 2M with Lenta, marking the first time an international singer tops the list, which tracks legal music sales in the country combining physical and digital formats and online streaming.

MDNA is followed by albums by local acts Ivan Dorn with his "Co'n'Dorm" and Tree with "Points Apart", while two more female international starts fill the Top 5 - Adele with "21" and Lana Del Rey with "Born To Die".

Madonna visited Russia last summer with her MDNA Tour, and included special moments in her shows to support members of punk band Pussy Riot and supporting the GLBT community in St. Petersburg.

The Show is Over: MDNA Tour Says Goodbye

The MDNA tour has ended last night. Madonna's latest tour, her ninth mega show, visited cities in Europe, the middle east, United States, Central Americaand South America and whether you like the show or not you can't deny the fact it was a big production that tried hard to show what is the M-DNA or best the DNA of Madonna. And according to us it succeded.

All the elements of Madonna career were there, remixed and revisited for 2012: Controversy linked to sex and religion and enactment of violence but also the fight for the rights of minorities and the invitation to be conscious about what happens in the world around us. Madonna was also very political on this tour, she openly supportedObama and was not afraid to stand for freedom of speech (Pussy Riot) when she visited countries that are not very willing to have around people expressing themselves. And finally her eternal themes of "believing in yourself" and that "if you work hard for dreams they can eventually come true" were there too! All mixed together in a kaleidoscope of music and dance that comprised the best of her new songs and some of her immortal anthems.

This is also the tour in which Madonna was really closer to her fans. She chatted and joked with them during soundchecks, she was surprised and flattered by the things they were saying to her and looked as if she genuinely enjoyed the time she spent with them.

This was really a great show and even if at first it looked a bit rushed, with time things were tweaked and eventually it made a lot of sense. But above all Madonna's professionalism was evident, she danced intricate choreograpy in pouring rain, she played Turn Up The Radio in full costume in countries or venues where it was so hot that you could see her literally covered in sweat! She was resourceful when the inevitable technical problems came around (a missing hotel prop and music programming that didn't work properly to name just a few).

Of course there were also frantic moments, one for all, MDNA a l'Olympia. Probably if Live Nation France cared a bit more to explain it was going to be a mini show (it was indeed clear since the start to us, the die-hard fans) Madonna could have maybe avoided some bad press, but still the fortunate fans who attended that show (and the ones watching it live on Youtube) not only saw unique performances of Beautiful Killerand Je T'aime Moi Non Plus, but can proudly, or laughingly, say they are somehow part of Madonna history as all the world's papers reprised the news about that mini gig.

To cut a story short, MDNA Tour once again proved that there's only one Queen and that's Madonna (I know it hurts!)

Power Outage On MDNA Final Show

For the first time ever, Madonna's final MDNA show in Cordoba last night suffered a major power outage that left the entire Kempes stadium in the dark for about one hour.

The night started with a crowd-packed, energetic sound-check, but power went off at the end of "Open Your Heat" but Madonna didn't it let her down and ended the song singing in a megaphone. Then the entire venue remained in the darkness with the exception of emergency lighting, and after technicians managed to get power back the show continued with "Vogue".

"Lost electricity at the show. First time that's happened but we made the best of it!

#MDNAcordoba", Monte Pittman said on his Twitter, then later on during the long night posted great pictures from "Like a Prayer" ans "Celebration".

"Crazy final show. 2 generators went down in the middle of the show. Challenges to the very end. But we did it so proud of the whole team", dancer Stephanie Nguyencommented.

"WOW..and thats a wrap for the MDNA tour!!...What a journey...My heart is full right now!!... Thanks Cordoba for making our last show a memorable one!! .. =0)) Love and Light xoxox", dancer Derrell Bullock also said.

Madonna's manager Guy Oseary also added a rather different picture to his collection of sound-check shots from the concert. "Thank you Madonna and fans for an experience of a lifetime!" he said.

More Troubles As Madonna Wraps MDNA Tour! FINAL Concert Delayed Due To Power Outage!

re the power failure at the last gig:

i know its fashionable to bash Madonna, but you have to give props, a star that is as huge as Madonna didnt need to sing and dance on stage with no power, she could have just cancelled the show.

But watching this video, its really good to see her out there entertaining with no power and lights and special effects etc.,

How many other stars would have done that? Beyonce? Mariah Carey? Gaga? Heck even Prince would just sit in his dressing room until it was fixed.

+ 1 respect to you M.

SoulAlive said:

poor Elton, beaten again by Madonna.