Skin Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 We have all heard it a BILLION times. "Madonna uses controversy to sell records, and that's why she has been around for so long...." Well if that is the case then how come her lowest selling records during the time of each release throughout her career have all had this attached to it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 Oh don't get me started on this. If that's true? Then, Prince, Led Zeppelin, The Who, The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd etc..the list is endless. All of the above would all do the same. Peeing on historical monuments -The Who. Singing graphic songs about anal sex- Led Zeppelin. Songs with lyrics, "cum all over me" - The Stones. A flower turning into a vagina with the stem turning into a penis and ramming it in - Pink Floyd. And I haven't even mentioned what Prince does!!! Back then they didn't even have Parental labels. They did whatever the fuck they wanted. Madonna can do what she wants. But she gets labeled as "controversial" and I think that's bullshit! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creepy Insane Person Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 I think it's good to be labelled as controversial. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pud Whacker Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 We have all heard it a BILLION times. "Madonna uses controversy to sell records, and that's why she has been around for so long...." Well if that is the case then how come her lowest selling records during the time of each release throughout her career have all had this attached to it? Theyre speaking of her videos and public personae. not lyrics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starman Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 While not all times She used her controversies to sell things like justify my love vhs and sexbook.... Like a prayer.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
palladium75 Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 Total bullshit. Her talent came first. So garbage haters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Medoner Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 Yes but she didnt do it just for that reason alone. And thats what makes madonna, Madonna. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skadi Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 I first fell in love with her music, not her "controversial persona". I don't think Madonna will get recognized for her talent in this life time. Probably because she is female. Maybe her controversial moments help make her famous, but I don't think anyone would buy her music based on that. Her music speaks for it self. I don't think she would make it to the top based on controversy alone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryan Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 This is a silly comparison We would have to put in all PA albums of hers in consideration for this, and it just doesn't play out Pud put it best. The controversy had to do with the visuals, not the lyrics. And Erotica only got the label because of the content in Did You Do It Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larkspur Posted October 20, 2015 Share Posted October 20, 2015 Look at the Beatles in the 60's just as one example. People thought their hair was controversial. John said they were bigger than Jesus which certainly caused controversy. They smoked in interviews which for the time was a bit controversial. They openly talked about drugs. Don't tell me they wouldn't have made some interesting videos for their later music. They spoke openly about their opposition to the Vietnam war. John posed naked on an album cover...I could on. Of course those guys were just speaking their minds and expressing themselves artistically unlike Madonna. Of course that IS what they were doing and it's also what Madonna has been doing. WeboGirl mentioned a couple. I like Skin have never bought Madonna's music because of some controversry people find in Madonna's work. Most of the time I didn't get what the controversy was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 21, 2015 Share Posted October 21, 2015 Look at the Beatles in the 60's just as one example. People thought their hair was controversial. John said they were bigger than Jesus which certainly caused controversy. They smoked in interviews which for the time was a bit controversial. They openly talked about drugs. Don't tell me they wouldn't have made some interesting videos for their later music. They spoke openly about their opposition to the Vietnam war. John posed naked on an album cover...I could on. Of course those guys were just speaking their minds and expressing themselves artistically unlike Madonna. Of course that IS what they were doing and it's also what Madonna has been doing. WeboGirl mentioned a couple. I like Skin have never bought Madonna's music because of some controversry people find in Madonna's work. Most of the time I didn't get what the controversy was. I've seen interviews with Paul McCartney, from the 60s, where he openly talks about his acid trips. John Lennon wrote songs about his heroin addition. Shit! Every band in the 60s and 70s wrote about sex, drugs and rock n roll. Probably the most famous is the "Mud Shark" incident with Led Zeppelin. And it's a true story! They got a groupie back to their hotel room; she was so high, that they got her to fuck a medium sized fish. It's not controversy she's seeking. These people are artists. And when you get famous and rich, yes, you can a little crazy sometimes. She's not doing anything on purpose just for publicity. It's just who she is. And if she does do it, it's tactically planned. Artistic people tend to be a little eccentric anyway - whether it's their music or their shenanigans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skin Posted October 21, 2015 Author Share Posted October 21, 2015 My point was Madonna by and large seems to sell the most when she isn't trying to push buttons which is the exact opposite of what her haters claim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nick00 Posted October 21, 2015 Share Posted October 21, 2015 Well M music does seem to get overshadowed in the media by her controversies or something she said or did which was polarizing. i don't like when M is in the news just for stupid reasons! Try to focus mostly her music, videos, and tours! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brooklyn88 Posted October 21, 2015 Share Posted October 21, 2015 If M uses controversy to sell records, than .....Sex Book, Erotica? It's proven wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 21, 2015 Share Posted October 21, 2015 My point was Madonna by and large seems to sell the most when she isn't trying to push buttons which is the exact opposite of what her haters claim. I guess I'm looking at her career and all her albums as a whole. But, the other thing I'm saying, is that it doesn't matter. She's an artist. She's not pushing buttons. People are letting their own buttons get pushed. As for the haters, who cares? They don't get it and they never will. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5iVe Elements Posted October 21, 2015 Share Posted October 21, 2015 Speaking as a fan from Hard Candy and beyond, her catalogue is fantastic. Diving into all those albums from years before was a fun experience, discovering a legend for the first time. And yes they have substance and deep meaning, which is why she's still able to convert new fans. If the rest of her work was just fluff, I think a new "fan" will just like a new album but wouldn't care for the rest. But no, she's everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erotica blu Posted October 21, 2015 Share Posted October 21, 2015 The Justify My Love video single is the only time in her career I believe controversy made her money. People were genuinely interested in what was being censored from them. Of course the Erotica and Sex era had curious purchasers but most who bought it are fans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocknrolla Posted October 21, 2015 Share Posted October 21, 2015 I always thought the Sex book was a flop, but I remember recently hearing how it sold a million copies in week. So she literally made a fortune from it. The never printed another edition, it could have sold a lot more. It's probably better they dropped it when they did, because of the enormous backlash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacket Posted October 21, 2015 Share Posted October 21, 2015 She dared to have a personality and point of view in pop. She didn't get society's memo that only 'rock stars', mainly of the male persuasion, were allowed that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pud Whacker Posted October 21, 2015 Share Posted October 21, 2015 My point was Madonna by and large seems to sell the most when she isn't trying to push buttons which is the exact opposite of what her haters claim. Not all together true. I get what you're saying though. Like A Virgin by nature was controversial. A woman named madonna singing about being Like a virgin. Hard to think that now but it was. Sold gazillions. Papa Don't Preach was EXTREMELY controversial. True Blue also sold gazillions. And so on.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
material_boy Posted October 21, 2015 Share Posted October 21, 2015 Not all together true. I get what you're saying though. Like A Virgin by nature was controversial. A woman named madonna singing about being Like a virgin. Hard to think that now but it was. Sold gazillions. Papa Don't Preach was EXTREMELY controversial. True Blue also sold gazillions. And so on.. For some reason it's really funny to me that you summed up that time she made out with black Jesus, got stigmata, burned crosses, and hit #1 in like 40 countries as "and so on ..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5iVe Elements Posted October 21, 2015 Share Posted October 21, 2015 Madonna has always been avantgarde, way too ahead of her time. She's the messiah! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 Madonna has always been avantgarde, way too ahead of her time. She's the messiah! THIS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerGirl Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 I hate when people say this. Her career would have been over a long time ago if controversy was the only (or the major) thing she offered. Artists that rely on schticks usually don't last that long (Doris), people get sick of it. You need to offer more than that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrueBlue Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 Yes, she has much more than that but it was a big part of the whole package especially in early days. She even admits it in Rebel Heart Come on, she is not an unknown indie artist and she never wanted to be that either. I think it's part of her personality as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrueBlue Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 Madonna has always been avantgarde, way too ahead of her time. She's the messiah! That's nice perhaps, but no. We wouldn't have known about her until after her death if this was the case, much like van Gogh. Her sheer scale of success contradicts this. What she has always seemed to master better than any others is to bring subcultures into mainstream culture. And what Jacket said! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waradula Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 (edited) She expressed herself as an artist while staying true to herself. Edited October 23, 2015 by waradula Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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