Ep.54: Madonna – Top 9 Songs
Intro
Hello and Welcome to this episode of the podcast, "The Mnemonic Tree", where we add a single mnemonic leaf to our Tree of Knowledge.
Today's episode is on a lady that is a “Jack of all trades” and dare I say “Master of all”. Madonna sings, dances, acts, writes songs, writes books and this is just to name a few of her talents.
She has also founded the entertainment company Maverick, has run health clubs, started fashion brands, built charities and all this whilst successfully marketing the juggernaut of Madonna through generations. Today’s mnemonic is on her top 9 songs
So, with no further ado, we will begin with a summary from Wikipedia.
Wikipedia Summary
Madonna Louise Ciccone[a] (/tʃɪˈkoʊni/; Italian: [tʃikˈkoːne]; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known as the "Queen of Pop", Madonna has been widely recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, and visual presentation. She has pushed the boundaries of artistic expression in mainstream music, while continuing to maintain control over every aspect of her career.[2] Her works, which incorporate social, political, sexual, and religious themes, have generated both controversy and critical acclaim. A prominent cultural figure crossing both the 20th and 21st centuries, Madonna remains one of the most "well-documented figures of the modern age",[3] with a broad amount of scholarly reviews, and literature and art works on her, as well as an academic mini subdiscipline devoted to her named Madonna studies.
Madonna moved to New York City in 1978 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing as a drummer, guitarist, and vocalist in the rock bands Breakfast Club and Emmy, she rose to solo stardom with her debut studio album, Madonna (1983). She followed it with a series of successful albums, including all-time bestsellers Like a Virgin (1984), True Blue (1986) and The Immaculate Collection (1990), as well as Grammy Award winners Ray of Light (1998) and Confessions on a Dance Floor (2005). Madonna has amassed many chart-topping singles throughout her career, including "Like a Virgin", "La Isla Bonita", "Like a Prayer", "Vogue", "Take a Bow", "Frozen", "Music", "Hung Up", and "4 Minutes".
Madonna's popularity was enhanced by roles in films such as Desperately Seeking Susan (1985), Dick Tracy (1990), A League of Their Own (1992), and Evita (1996). While the lattermost won her a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress, many of her other films were not as well received. As a businesswoman, Madonna founded the company Maverick in 1992. It included Maverick Records, one of the most successful artist-run labels in history. Her other ventures include fashion brands, written works, health clubs, and filmmaking. She contributes to various charities, having founded the Ray of Light Foundation in 1998 and Raising Malawi in 2006, and advocates for gender equality and LGBT rights.
With sales of over 300 million records worldwide, Madonna is the best-selling female recording artist of all time. She is the most successful solo artist in the history of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart and has achieved the most number-one singles by a woman in Australia, Canada, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. With a revenue of over US$1.5 billion from her concert tickets, she remains the highest-grossing female touring artist worldwide. Forbes has named Madonna the annual top-earning female musician a record 11 times across four decades (1980s–2010s). She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008, her first year of eligibility. Madonna was ranked as the greatest woman in music by VH1, and as the greatest music video artist ever by MTV and Billboard. Rolling Stone also listed her among its greatest artists and greatest songwriters of all time.
Extracted from: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madonna]
Mnemonic
Madonna – Top 9 Songs Mnemonic – CLuB TILL Vogue Plays
(Picture Madonna doing a promotion where you get to party with her at your favourite club, but only until they play the song Vogue)
1. Crazy for You
2. Like a Prayer
3. Borderline
4. True Love
5. Into the Groove
6. Like a Virgin
7. Lucky Star
8. Vogue
9. Papa Don’t Preach
Five Fun Facts
1. Madonna is one of six children born to Silvio Ciccone and Madonna Ciccone, whom she was named after. She was born in Bay City, Michigan and her father’s parents originated from Pacentro in Italy while her mother was of French-Canadian descent.
2. Madonna has acted in 22 films and beat out four acting legends, namely Glen Close, Francis McDormand, Debbie Reynolds and Meryl Streep to win a Golden Globe for her role in Evita.
3. Madonna has sold over 200 million records world-wide and is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most successful female artist of all time.
4. Madonna is also an author and has written 56 books. On this fact I had many varying answers so I am not one-hundred percent sure on this one. But Madonna if you’re listening, give us a call to clear it up.
5. Madonna is the only artist to perform at all the benefit concerts which included Live Aid (1985), Live 8 (2005) and Live Earth (2007)
6. Bonus Fact: Ironically Madonna has had a species of tardigrade named after her. These arthropod-type animals, are also known as water bears and make cockroaches look fragile surviving temperatures close to absolute zero, heat beyond boiling point, the vacuum of space and high doses of radiation.
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Three Question Quiz
Q.1. Name the two people Madonna has been married to?
Q.2. Does Madonna have a star on the Hollywood Walk of fame? Yes or No
Q.3. What is Madonna’s IQ? Options are 90, 115 or 140
Bonus Q. Which instrument did Madonna play for the New York group the “Breakfast Club” which she formed with Dan Gilroy? I am after the main instrument she played.
Mnemonic Recap
Madonna – Top 9 Songs Mnemonic – CLuB TILL Vogue Plays
(Picture Madonna doing a promotion where you get to party with her at your favourite club, but only until they play the song Vogue)
1. Crazy for You
2. Like a Prayer
3. Borderline
4. True Love
5. Into the Groove
6. Like a Virgin
7. Lucky Star
8. Vogue
9. Papa Don’t Preach
Three Question Quiz Answers
Q.1. Name the two people Madonna has been married to?
A. Sean Penn 1985 to 1989 & Guy Ritchie 2000 to 2008
Q.2. Does Madonna have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame? Yes or No
A. No. She was selected for the honour in 1990 but she showed no interest and the invitation has since expired
Q.3. What is Madonna’s IQ? Options are 90, 115 or 140
A. 140, so not just a pretty face, great dancer, great actor, great author, great philanthropist, great yogi, great fashionista, great cheerleader, great mother, great performer, great songwriter………
My dad accuses me of being obsessed with Madonna
I reply to him “Papa, don´t preach!”
Bonus Q. Which instrument did Madonna play for the New York group the “Breakfast Club” which she formed with Dan Gilroy? I am after the main instrument she played
A. Drums. She also played the guitar and keyboard
Word of the Week
doughty
[ dou-tee ]
adjective
steadfastly courageous and resolute; valiant.
Example
The doughty nature of Madonna along with her sagacious business acumen and massive talent, have made her one of the biggest names in music history.
Extracted from: [https://www.dictionary.com/]
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References
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madonna
https://www.imdb.com/news/ni0551887
https://www.musicinminnesota.com/35-interesting-facts-madonna/