Madonna chatted with USA TODAY about the recording, as well as her children and art and Instagram.
USA Today: You took quite a tumble the other day. How are you feeling?
Madonna: Iām fine. I had a tiny bit of whiplash. My head hit the floor and snapped my neck a little bit. But I didnāt hurt any other part of my body, strangely enough ā I sustained no bruises or cuts.
USA Today: Youāve been keeping busy, certainly. You worked with an eclectic group of collaborators for Rebel Heart.
Madonna: Lots of people Iād never met before, though certainly people whose work I knew. Usually, with an album, I choose a producer and it takes us a few weeks to get to know each other, and then the chemistry starts to percolate. In this circumstance I kind of got thrown into lots of groups of songwriters. Some people I had direct synergy withā¦I felt so rejuvenated just in the simple act of writing music. I felt like I was back in New York, in Queens, where I picked up a guitar and wrote my first song. Ideas flowed simply out of me.
USA Today: Thereās been talk about how sexually graphic some of the songs are, but theyāre also pretty emotionally raw. Weāre reminded that love and sex can work in tandem.
Madonna: Or work against each other. I think love resides in all of the songs, even when they are overtly sexual. Songs like Holy Water and Sex have humor. Theyāre layered. Weāre dealing with different ideas that Iām constantly exploring ā spirituality, sexuality, different aspects of love, whether itās romantic love or the love you have for your children. And love can be as devastating and destructive as it can be rejuvenating and life-giving. I guess I try to capture all of that.
USA Today: Are you satisfied with the result?
Madonna: Iām a perfectionist. I would say I could have used another month to go nit-picking through things, put on finishing touches and connect the dots. But everybody knows the boring story about the hacker, why I had to put my record out much sooner than I had intended to. But Iām OK with it. Iām proud of it. Maybe the universe was telling me that it was ready ā to get it out there.
USA Today: When early recordings of the songs were leaked online, it got me to thinking about how much media and how we use it have changed since you first became famous. Do you feel like youāre under even more scrutiny now?
Madonna: Iāve always been under scrutiny. But I used to just not really pay attention to what people said. Now I read peopleās comments on Instagram. I never had that kind of access ā and people didnāt have that kind of access to me. Itās interesting, reading arguments people are having on my account that Iām no longer even a part of ā whether itās people arguing about Islam versus Israel, or the shooting in Paris, or homophobia or sexism. The one thing I donāt understand is when people make comments who are clearly not fans of mine. I think, why are you here? Why are you wasting your time? Itās fascinating.
USA Today: Your eldest child, Lourdes, is studying performing arts at college (the University of Michiganās School of Music, Theatre and Dance). Do you talk with her about being a performer?
Madonna: We talk about it non-stop ā about being an artist, being creative, where to put energy. Sheās home for spring break now, in fact. Sheās very talented in many areas. She doesnāt know if she wants to be an actress, or produce music ā and sheās an incredible singer and dancer.
USA Today: Are your other children musically inclined?
Madonna: Absolutely. My son Rocco is a fantastic dancer. Heās also into producing music. David plays guitar and sings and dances, and my daughter Mercy plays piano beautifully. So theyāre all musical in one way or another. Some are more uninhibited than others, but this is a very musical house.
USA Today: You apparently have a pretty fabulous art collection too.
Madonna: I think all the arts feed off each other. My kids know who Picasso is, and they also know who Andy Warhol is and who Keith Haring is. I think thatās important.
USA Today: For years, people have analyzed your influence on female artists, but youāve had a more general impact on music as well ā the incorporation of dance-music textures into pop, for instance.
Madonna: For sure ā bringing dance music into the arena of pop culture, bringing different kids of dance styles out into the public. Also, being outspoken, envelope-pushing, provocative ā I think you could say someone like Kanye is walking on that razorās edge as well, and heās a man, not a woman. And I would say Truth Or Dare was the first reality show.
USA Today: Youāve also been a champion of gay rights. Have we made progress in that arena in recent years?
Madonna: I think weāve made huge progress, definitely. Is there still a lot of discriminatory behavior out there, against the gay community? Yeah. Against the African-American community? Yeah. Weāve made a lot of advances, but weāre still very narrow-minded and judgmental. Itās a contradiction.
USA Today: So now that the album is out, you must be focusing on the tour. What can we expect ā besides a lot of energy and spectacle?
Madonna: I want it to be spectacular, definitely. But I also want to have more intimacy in my show. So you can expect more of that.
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