Madonna - Pop Artist, Icon, Woman of Change

The world of popular music has always been subjected to unattainable dreams, aspirations, goals and the occasional controversy. No other artist has had more of an impact or influence in this medium over the past twenty years than Madonna. To know the world of 'pop' one has to only look at the charts. Her name and stature has been a constant among the buying public, the video generation and the movie-goer. 

She has worn many hats: saint, sinner, diva, icon and on occasion, the straw that broke the camels back. In an industry that creates 'conveyerbelt' groups and music, she seems to have more lives than a cat. Possibly even challenging Cher on indestructibility. She has charted over a dozen singles to hit the number one position, at last count sold over 100,000,000 records worldwide, signed with Time/Warner for an unprecedented $60,000,000 (she was the first artist to do so) and owns her own label, Maverick. Not bad for someone who had a supposed 'limited' shelf life. But we all know this already. Madonna's accomplishments are nothing new. 

Madonna's story has been told many times over. So, I will give you the abridged version. She was born Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone in Bay City, Michigan in 1958. She was brought up with strict Catholic values, lost her mother to cancer at the age of 5, made her way to New York in the late 1970's to study ballet and become an 'overnight sensation.' Breaking into the world of 'pop' in 1982 with her club hit 'Everybody,' Madonna created one of her many alter-ego's, the "Boy Toy." She defined a look and style, rode the wave of the fledging MTV, and was inundated with adolescent Madonna wanna-be's. Her first single to hit number one was 1984's "Like A Virgin."