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Billboard: 5 Things We Want From Madonna's Next Album


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https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/8472699/madonna-new-album-five-suggestions

5 Things We Want From Madonna's Next Album

8/29/2018 by Robbie Daw

Hark! Celestial trumpets are sounding from the clouds hovering near the heavens! It can only mean one thing: Her Madgesty, the Queen Of Pop, has new material on the way.

Let’s reign it in a bit, though. With all due respect, we’re still waiting for Madonna to release a great album this decade. But the good news is that her 14th LP is on its way, and she’s absolutely got it in her to give us a batch of tunes to be reckoned with. After all, you don’t become the queen without capturing lightning in a bottle multiple times over.

Her unrivaled string of hit releases in the 1980s seemed to all be building toward the golden -- actually, make that quadruple-Platinum -- Like A Prayer in 1989, an album that would have been an enviable career best for any other artist if they’d simply stopped there. But this is Madonna! She proceeded to triumphantly march forward by eschewing the big, glossy sound that helped make her famous and stripping down -- both the music and, um, herself -- and giving us 1992’s brilliant, confessional house-pop hybrid Erotica. The Queen of Pop would end the second decade of her reign with her pièce de résistance, 1998's reflective Ray of Light. Her seventh studio album, it saw her pick up a staggering 10 statues between the Grammys and the MTV Video Music Awards alone.

Subsequent years have seen tireless Madge raise her kids, direct films, open schools, launch a chain of gyms and launch clothing and skincare lines. Those cosnistently fantastic full length releases, meanwhile, tapered off after 2005’s Confessions on a Dance Floor, a bumping, peak-hour trek through clubland that earned the singer yet another Grammy. That’s not to say Madonna’s post-Confessions studio albums are all bad by any means -- the urban thump of 2008's Hard Candy remains a mostly satisfying experience, thanks to the focus of collaborators Timbaland, Justin Timberlake and Pharrell Williams; while 2015's Rebel Heart, though spotty, contains about seven playlist-worthy tracks throughout.

Looking on the bright side, the best could very well still be to come with Madonna’s 14th studio release. What do we want from it? Nothing short of everything, of course. But we’d settle for any (or all!) of the following.

Let Madonna Sing

You know what needs to be hung up? Auto-Tune. At least in the Queen of Pop's case. This is Madonna, and she’s amassed a loyal army of fans, sold hundreds of millions of records and inspired countless Gwens, Britneys, Katys and Gagas by simply being herself.

Cuts from the last decade like “Ghosttown” and “Messiah” off Rebel Heart, MDNA’s “Masterpiece” and Hard Candy single “Miles Away” seem, for the most part, to be devoid of too much technical wizardry affecting her voice. And she sounds great on each one! Alas, for every one of those, there’s been a “Bitch I’m Madonna,” “Girl Gone Wild” or “Give It 2 Me” -- performances that find the singer coming off like she downed a vocoder smoothie before stepping to the mic.

Madonna, voice included, is a national treasure. Also, she kicked ass performing live at the Met Gala in New York three months ago. Just give it to us plain and simple going forward.

Stick With One or Two Producers, Rather Than Ten

This is something we all want, including Madonna! In February, upon her manager Guy Oseary commemorating the 20-year anniversary of Ray of Light on Instagram, the pop legend lamented the following in the comments: “Can you help me now please! Remember when i made records with other artists from beginning to end and I was allowed to be a visionary and not to have to go to song writing camps where No one can sit still for more than 15 minutes…”

Well, damn. That’s quite to the point. Think of Madonna’s work with Patrick Leonard and Stephen Bray on Like a Prayer; Shep Pettibone and Andre Betts on Erotica; William Orbit on Ray of Light; or Stuart Price on Confessions on a Dance Floor. They were cohesive, ahead-of-the-curve albums, one and all. Now try to count the writers and producers she was thrown together with for her two most recent LPs, MDNA and Rebel Heart. There aren’t enough fingers and toes.

What’s promising is the fact that Madonna appears to be collaborating once more with French “Disco God” Mirwais Ahmadzai, the lone producer behind her 2003 fan-favorite release American Life. Like the above-mentioned albums, American Life is noteworthy for its singular sound and vision.

A European Influence

Who doesn’t love hip-hop, right? But okay, let’s try this: Who wants to hear Madonna rapping? Exactly.

From the role Spanish music has played in classic cuts like “La Isla Bonita,” “Who’s That Girl” and “Deeper And Deeper” to her work with European collaborators like Orbit, Ahmadzai and Price, Madonna has typically been strongest with she aims for a more global vibe. Let’s hope her current status as a resident of Lisbon -- and, again, her hitting the studio with Ahmadzai -- has the superstar singer brewing some cutting edge beats once more, a la when she cranked out Confessions during her years spent living in London.

No Features Necessary

When was the last time you shot up out of bed and said, “I really can’t imagine how hollow ‘Give Me All Your Luvin’’ might have been if LMFAO hadn’t lent their angelic pipes to the ‘Party Rock Remix’”? Never, that’s when. Likewise, who in the world was asking for Mike Tyson to pop up on Rebel Heart track “Iconic”? Madonna probably doesn’t even remember the fact that M.I.A. appears on ridiculously unnecessary MDNA bonus cut “B-Day Song.”

One of Madonna’s impressive feats is that for the first 25 years of her career, she largely managed to avoid recording a duet with another artist. When the Justin Timberlake-featuring “4 Minutes” came along as Hard Candy’s lead single in 2008, sure, it went on to become one of her biggest hits in the digital era. But it played, vocally, like Timberlake had hijacked Madonna’s own song from her.   

Fans have shown up to the Madonna party for four decades now. They’ll likely keep doing so even if Nicki Minaj isn’t in the credits.

A Return to Upbeat, Escapist Pop

Remember “Borderline”? “Open Your Heart”? “Express Yourself”? “Vogue”? “Deeper And Deeper”? “Ray Of Light”? “Beautiful Stranger”? “Jump”? Irresistible and hooky, one and all. More of that, please.

Yes, artists evolve and mature. But you know what would be revolutionary 35 years into the Queen of Pop’s truly remarkable story? Getting back to her roots! We don’t need her to save the planet. Nor are we looking to her to fix the political system. Upon the release of Confessions on a Dance Floor 14 years ago, Madonna stated, “I feel that I just want to have fun; I want to dance; I want to feel buoyant. And I want to give other people the same feeling. There's a lot of madness in the world around us, and I want people to be happy.” That’s a distraction we’ll still gladly accept from her.

In the end, all we really want from Madonna is to put the current state of the world on a shelf for a bit, and get into her groove as we have so many times before.

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It’s incredible that even Billboard articles see what’s wrong with MDNA and Rebel Heart (although it is an album with good amount of great tracks, but lacking a clear vision and consistency) and what worked for Like a Prayer, Ray of Light and Confessions... If everyone is talking about it, there is no way M is not aware. I loved the main points this article made: no rap collabs, no duets, and only one or two producers. 

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57 minutes ago, badboydrunkby6 said:

couldnt have said it better myself.  although I do believe there will be raps, political agnst and 1 too many cooks in the kitchen on this new LP.

Maybe. Still RH is one of my favs, it was all over the place.

Let’s see what happens! 

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2 hours ago, dcbyebyebaby said:

Stopped reading after they said RH only had 7 good songs.

There was too many songs it could of been an absolutely brilliant pop album with 10 tracks but they filled it with loads of filler.

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I agree wholeheartedly with the majority of that article minus the bullshit notion that Rebel Heart only had 7 strong songs. Bitch, please......

I especially love how the writer highlights Madonna's voice as a 'national treasure'. So great to hear appreciation for her singing.

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18 minutes ago, Flip The Switch said:

Maybe. Still RH is one of my favs, it was all over the place.

Let’s see what happens! 

Rebel Heart doesn't even seem like a real album to me. the biggest collection of new M songs thanks to the leaks was wonderful but the album as a package didnt have the punch it needed to stand out. perhaps BIM as lead single would have set the album up better... the leaks took the original concept of double album linking the 'heart' with the rebel' and made a mess of things.   also so many great songs  can fit into tv comercials, tv, movies...she needs exposure the kind you cant escape. like that halsey song or one republic song now...

 

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Wow, national treasure? That’s very generous coming from Billboard, didn’t expect anything remotely as nice. 

She is a global treasure tho. 

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4 hours ago, FreeMySoul said:

A Return to Upbeat, Escapist Pop

Remember “Borderline”? “Open Your Heart”? “Express Yourself”? “Vogue”? “Deeper And Deeper”? “Ray Of Light”? “Beautiful Stranger”? “Jump”? Irresistible and hooky, one and all. More of that, please.

Yes, artists evolve and mature. But you know what would be revolutionary 35 years into the Queen of Pop’s truly remarkable story? Getting back to her roots! We don’t need her to save the planet. Nor are we looking to her to fix the political system. Upon the release of Confessions on a Dance Floor 14 years ago, Madonna stated, “I feel that I just want to have fun; I want to dance; I want to feel buoyant. And I want to give other people the same feeling. There's a lot of madness in the world around us, and I want people to be happy.” That’s a distraction we’ll still gladly accept from her.

In the end, all we really want from Madonna is to put the current state of the world on a shelf for a bit, and get into her groove as we have so many times before.

And really. This. Every last word of this. And the examples this writer used are perfect. Especially throwing in Deeper and Deeper, Beautiful Stranger, and Jump (!). Realistically she hasn't put out a euphoric lead single that's TRUE POP since Hung Up. 

And don't you dare say Give Me All Your Luvin'. 

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4 minutes ago, KalamazooJay said:

And really. This. Every last word of this. And the examples this writer used are perfect. Especially throwing in Deeper and Deeper, Beautiful Stranger, and Jump (!). Realistically she hasn't put out a euphoric lead single that's TRUE POP since Hung Up. 

And don't you dare say Give Me All Your Luvin'. 

I agree.

But Madonna & Mirwais ? Perfection!

I have high hopes for a killer catchy full on dance/pop anthem as the lead single.

Im ready for Music 2018 stylee!!!

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31 minutes ago, tuckeye said:

I AGREE TOO just i like the collobs haha

she needs to go back to dance!!! not these played out trends today.

Played out trends?  You must have meant MASTERPIECES!  Why must we always try to rewrite history.  

4 Minutes

Give It 2 Me

Heartbeat

Miles Away

Beat Goes On

Devil Wouldn't Recognize You

Voices

Gang Bang

I'm Addicted

Some Girls

I Don't Give A

I'm a Sinner

Love Spent

Masterpiece

Falling Free

Beautiful Killer

I Fucked Up

Devil Pray

Ghosttown

Unapologetic Bitch

Hold Tight

Joan of Arc 

HEARTBREAKCITY

Holy Water

Inside Out

Wash All Over Me

Messiah

Rebel Heart

Beautiful Scars 

Borrowed Time

Addicted

Graffiti Heart

And I should have added Bitch I' Madonna as that song rocks.

 

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I agree with most of the article as well.

He made some very good points regarding Madonna’s recent albums & what many of us hope for from her in the future.

I’m just very excited for a new album & tour! Wish the wait wouldn’t have to feel so long.

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Just now, Jazzy Jan said:

I Loved Rebel Heart so don't remotely agree with the view of only being 7 worthy songs.  

Thank you! Amen!

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11 minutes ago, Jazzy Jan said:

I Loved Rebel Heart so don't remotely agree with the view of it having only  7 worthy songs.  

Same! For me this is an excellent album. Much much better than HC and MDNA... A bit too long, maybe, and some of the best songs are on the deluxe version, but that’s my only complaint...

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Its a very positive article overall and I think it’s onpoint with the need for an all out pop song . We need her voice to be heard and clear in the song , living for love wasn’t distinguished enough , I know it wasn’t vocoder but it wasn’t classic M. While music is not a favourite of mine , it was so different and weird and special and wtf when you first heard it , that’s what I hope for . Something to stop people on their tracks and for haters to go “hate her but that sounds cool” . Dreaming now but maybe it will happen

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