November 6, 1990 - "Justify My Love" was released as Madonna's first Single from her first compilation album "The Immaculate Collection"

"Justify My Love" is a song by Madonna from her first compilation The Immaculate Collection (1990). It was released on November 6, 1990 by Sire Records, as the first single. The song later appeared on the greatest hits compilation album Celebration (2009). The song was written by Lenny Kravitz and Ingrid Chavez, with additional lyrics by Madonna. Chavez was not credited on the song, which led to a lawsuit against Kravitz. Chavez settled out-of-court, the terms of which included a songwriting credit. Madonna's vocals are primarily spoken and whispered, but almost never sung, a style which she again employed on her following album Erotica (1992).

 Musically, "Justify My Love" is a trip hop inspired song, with mid-tempo settings and instrumentation. The lyrics of the song are primarily about sex and romance. "Justify My Love" received mixed reviews from older critics, but was critically appreciated from many contemporary critics, noting it as one of Madonna's best songs to date. The song became Madonna's ninth number one on the Billboard Hot 100, while reaching the top ten in countries including Australia, Canada, Finland, New Zealand, Italy, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, including more other countries.

The accompanying music video portrayed Madonna as a woman walking in a hotel hallway, looking distressed and tired from work, until being seduced into having sex with a mysterious man and woman. It caused controversy worldwide, due to its explicit sexual images, and was subsequently banned from MTV and other TV networks. The video, which contained imagery of sadomasochism,voyeurism, and bisexuality, made its U.S. television debut December 3, 1990 on ABC during its late-night news program Nightline. The song has been performed on three of her concert tours, most recently being on her MDNA Tour in 2012.

"Justify My Love" has a legacy as one of the most, if not the most, controversial songs and videos of Madonna's career. It has been covered multiple times by other artists and also frequently parodied.