NEWS - JUNE 2003 « June (part I) - News index - July (part I) »

30 June - Billboard on Hollywood chart chances Dear Fred: I just returned from London and was surprised how I heard Madonna's Hollywood and American Life about every two minutes on the radio. I can't ask about American Life's future performance, as it has already peaked at No. 37. However, Hollywood has yet to make an appearance on any Billboard chart. Why is radio turning its back on Madonna and do you think Hollywood has any future potential of hitting at least the top-40? Thank you, Eduardo Sanchez, Brooklyn, N.Y.£ Dear Eduardo, At this point, I'm not even sure that Hollywood will debut on the Hot 100, although remixes of the Madonna track have just gone out to radio and the video premiered on June 23. We'll have to see if that helps improve the airplay picture on this second release from the American Life album. Checking the latest airplay figures as reported in Billboard's sister magazine, Airplay Monitor, Hollywood isn't even close to appearing on the Mainstream Top 40 chart. Another bad sign is that KIIS-FM in Los Angeles played the song 19 times last week, down from 35 the week before. On the Adult Top 40 chart, Hollywood declines 35-38, with 240 spins this week, compared to 272 last week. With American Life considered a disappointment in chart terms, radio is not rushing to play the follow-up. (source: Billboard's Q&A) 30 June - M in the hat parade Hollywood style and glitz have come to town. Hats and costumes worn by film stars are on show in Stockport's Hat Works Museum. One of the star exhibits is the Chinese headdress worn by Madonna in Shanghai Surprise. It was painstakingly created using turquoise feathers and red pom poms with long beaded tassles. Among the beautiful costumes on display is the one worn by Kate Winslet in the film Sense and Sensibility. The pale silk green dress is complemented by a stunning swirled straw bonnet and black net veil. The museum - recently voted silver award winners of Best Small Visitor Attraction in England - also includes a hat worn by Elizabeth Taylor in Toscani. For this film the Hollywood icon wore a dark green silk hat trimmed with beads. Lisa Hill, the museum's publicity and events officer, said: "This exhibition is one not to be missed. The attention to detail which has gone in to making the hats and costumes is really amazing. "We are delighted to be able to house this tremendous selection of hats and costumes worn by some of the finest actors." The costumes and hats have all been made by the London-based company Cosprop. They are on display to the public until September 22 (source: Manchester Online) . 30 June - AL album in European charts Nine weeks after its worldwide release Madonna's American Life album is still doing well in Europe! The album spent 3 weeks at #1 of the Eurochart Albums chart late April and early May and still remains at #11 of this same chart this week! Here is its full chart history in Europe to date : 1-1-1-2-3-7-13-11-11 Even better, American Life seems to be as successful in Europe as was Madonna's previous album Music after 9 weeks of sales: 47-1-1-1-1-3-4-7-10 (source: Madonna.com) 30 June - More Hollywood sketches and Guy Bordin info Check fansite Madonnapower for more pre-production drawings from the Hollywood video and more information on the Guy Bordin connection. 27 June - Madonna in brow fight Pop icon Madonna is locked in a bitter battle - with an eyebrow specialist. The 44-year-old Material Girl is reportedly angry with Damone Roberts who is accused of "capitalizing on her fame and exaggerating" that he sculpts her eyebrows when "he only did them once three years ago". A source close to Madonna tells American magazine Us Weekly that the Beverly Hills-based star-plucker continues to publicly declare Madonna as his client - even though her lawyer has reportedly told him to stop. And the June issue of Allure magazine even states, "For Madonna, Roberts will make house calls." The source notes, "If Roberts keeps saying he does her brows, some action will have to be taken." Madonna's actual eyebrow plucker is Anastacia of Beverly Hills, who also plucks Jennifer Lopez. (source: IOL) 27 June - Access Hollywood on Hollywood Hollywood's "40 and fabulous" ladies are still taking charge and holding their own on-screen opposite their younger co-stars. Now Madonna pokes fun at Hollywood's obsession with looking good in her latest music video. "Everybody comes to Hollywood. They want to make it in the neighborhood. They like the smell of it in Hollywood. How could it hurt you when it looks so good," sings Madonna on her new single. Bearing the pain all in the name of 'Hollywood Beauty', Madonna took a Botox injection while dripping in $20 million worth of vintage jewels and wearing gorgeous gowns in the video for Hollywood. "It's a tough job but somebody's got to do it," said Madonna. VH1's Making the Video captured Madonna's every move while on set during filming. During the special, Madonna gives her advice for conquering Hollywood today. "Be multi-talented, be flexible and never take it personally." While glorifying the glitz and glamour of Hollywood, Madonna admitted fame and fortune does not always equate happiness. "Is this something that you feel you learned yourself from the progress of becoming a celebrity, seeing all the material things that you can gain?" asked Access Hollywood's Nancy O'Dell. "Yes, having all those material things that everybody wants and longs for, strives for, and dreams about and then realizing that none of those things bring you happiness. They don't solve the problems. They don't eliminate chaos in your life," said Madonna. Madonna: Making the Video: Hollywood debuts June 23 on VH1. (source: Access Hollywood) 26 June - Guy Bordin influence On several Madonna forums there's a discussion whether Madonna was inspired by photographer Guy Bordin for the Hollywood video. Judge yourself (click on the images to enlarge). (thanx to Josh) 25 June - No Israel video for Nothing Fails Madonna cleared up the Nothing Fails Israel rumour in an interview on San Francisco radio station Alice 97.3. Here are a few of the highlights of the interview (thanks to DerrickD): Madonna is NOT going to Israel with Michael Douglas and is NOT shooting a video there. She has no idea where the rumour started but she would love to go to Israel anyway. Rocco's favorite movie is The Wizard Of Oz. Lourdes' is The Secret Garden. She said that Rocco watches The Wizard Of Oz repeatedly... but then she clarified that she only allows them each one movie a week. Madonna confirms that she is friends with Demi Moore... and they share the same Kabbalah teacher. Madonna says that the Harry Potter books are 'good'. Her favorite cocktail is a 'lemon drop'. Her kids are the only ones in the house who play her records, and they usually play remixes up in their rooms and have mini dance parties... they are both dancers in the making. Madonna says she had a blast touring with the Beastie Boys way back when! They asked Madonna if she can think of any one who is a bigger star than her, and she said 'God'. They asked what she'll be doing to overtake him, and she said 'nothing... we're teaming up'. (source: Madonnalicious) 25 June - Video pre-production Click on the images on the right to view pre-production styling images for the Hollywood video by Martin Grissen. Courtesy of MadonnaInter.net. 25 June - Hollywood on MTV MTV adds Hollywood into rotation with spins starting next week! The "Making the Video" of Hollywood debuts this Friday night at 7pm on MTV. Also look for Madonna on the Carson Daly roast airing early July! (source: Madonna.com) 24 June - Hollywood video The Hollywood video has premiered online. Watch it on our Hollywood page. 23 June - More on ditched AL tracks "As it seems the highly anticipated American Life album turned out to be a bit disappointing for some of us, a true Madonna fan would love to hear about the missing tracks from it. Confirmed by 'Maverick', unreleased track titles includes: "Mind Trapper", "Bad Nature", "Ejector(or My Ejector)"," Adverse Youth" and much more. Apparently more then 7(!) songs never made it and it seems like no one knows why. Also the track Hollywood is an early track Madonna wrote and was never pleased with the work till its final version in her current album. The song Nothing Fails from the last album has a couple versions as well as the tired, acoustic X-Static Process. When we questioned M's spokesmen all they could say is that the album could have been more dance then acoustic and those unpublished tracks were ditched for a reason. Yet the balladic "Adverse Youth" track is not even close to dance when "My Ejector" reminds American Life.The real reason will probably never be known but there's a Madonna box set coming up and more singles to come so all of you addicted out there can calm down. Even if the tracks won't be on a B-side nor on the box set they will eventually get online somehow & all fans will be pleased." (source: Record Collector magazine, thanx to Felcon) 23 June - Madonna on the cover of Uitkomst Belgian gay magazine 'Uitkomst' has put Madonna on the cover of their most recent issue. It's a theme number, giving an overview of Madonna's career and an article about the Belgian release party of American Life in the Atomium in Brussels. More info at Homoliga.be. The magazine can be ordered by mail and is available in Belgian book stores as well. Meanwhile, another Belgian gay magazine, GUS, features one page on Madonna's 'American File', illustrating her 20 year career in several phases. Their next issue will also contain a Madonna interview. 22 June - Hollywood in Belgian chart Hollywood jumps from no. 22 to no. 13 in its second week in the Prima Donna Top 50. Based on airplay only, this is quite exceptional for a Belgian chart. American Life is on its way out, down from 28 to no. 49. 22 June - Mondino directed most M videos With Hollywood, Jean-Baptiste Mondino moves ahead of Mary Lambert to become Madonna's most-used video director. - Jean-Baptiste Mondino: 6 (Open Your Heart, Justify My Love, Human Nature, Love Don't Live Here Anymore, Don't Tell Me, Hollywood) - Mary Lambert: 5 (Borderline, Like A Virgin, Material Girl, La Isla Bonita, Like A Prayer) Other frequent collaborators (excluding movie and concert videos): - David Fincher: 4 (Express Yourself, Oh Father, Vogue, Bad Girl) - Jonas Akerlund: 3 (Ray Of Light, Music, American Life) - James Foley: 3 (Live To Tell, Papa Don't Preach, True Blue) (source: Zheng Wang, thanx to MIR) 22 June - UK & Australian tracklist for Hollywood UK HOLLYWOOD SINGLE - Released 7 July Track Listing: CD1 1. Hollywood [Radio Edit] 2. Hollywood [Oakenfold Full Remix] 3. Hollywood [Deepsky HSH Vocal Mix] Catalogue Number: W614CD1 CD2 1. Hollywood [Radio Edit] 2. Hollywood [Jacques Lu Cont's This White Duck Mix] 3. Hollywood [Micronauts Remix] Catalogue Number: W614CD2 12" 1. Hollywood [Radio Edit] 2. Hollywood [Micronauts Remix] 3. Hollywood [Oakenfold Full Remix] Catalogue Number: W614T AUSTRALIAN HOLLYWOOD SINGLE - Released 11 July Track Listing: 1. Hollywood (Album Edit) 2. Hollywood (Jacques Lu Cont's Thin White Duck Mix) 3. Hollywood (Micronauts Remix) 4. Hollywood (Oakenfold 12" Full Remix) 5. Hollywood (Deepsky Home Sweet Home Vocal Mix) 6. Hollywood (Calderone & Quayle Glam Mix) (source: Madonna Information Report) 21 June - Hollywood video preview Watch an 26 second preview of the Hollywood video from CD:UK. It doesn't just look like a glamourous video, but a fun one as well. (thanx to Darth Sidious). There's also the preview of Entertainment Tonight, which can be downloaded at MadonnaInter.net. 21 June - Immaculate is best Greatest Hits album Ten Great Greatest Hits Albums 2003 1. The Immaculate Collection - Madonna 2. 30 Greatest Hits - Aretha Franklin 3. 1962-1966/1967-1970 - The Beatles 4. Decade - Neil Young 5. The Hits 1 & 2 - Prince 6. Discography: The Complete Singles Collection -Pet Shop Boys 7. Singles Going Steady - Buzzcocks 8. Good Boys When They're Asleep - The Faces 9. A Man Like Curtis - Curtis Mayfield 10. Snap - The Jam (source: NME, thanx to Madonna.com) 20 June - Hollywood is no. 1 in European Radio Airplay Eurochart Radio Top 50 TW LW WO Title - Artist 01 05 03 Hollywood - Madonna 02 02 10 Rise & Fall - Craig David & Sting or Fallacy 03 01 10 Rock Your Body - Justin Timberlake 04 07 07 Fighter - Christina Aguilera 05 03 15 Come Undone - Robbie Williams 06 04 13 American Life - Madonna 07 09 05 I'm Glad - Jennifer Lopez 08 15 03 Crazy In Love - Beyonce Knowles feat. Jay-Z 09 14 06 On The Horizon - Melanie C. 10 06 14 U Make Me Wanna - Blue (source: Absolute Madonna) 20 June - Madonna multimedia roundup Madonna on TV: tune in Monday, June 23rd at 11:00pm to VH1's Making Of The Video to watch behind-the-scenes footage from the set of her new video, Hollywood, then catch the world premiere immediately following. If you miss it, it re-airs on the following dates and times: VH1: June 24th at 3:30pm and 7:00pm June 25th at 5:00pm, 11:30pm June 26th at 5:30pm MTV: June 27th at 7:00pm Madonna on the radio: This Thursday, June 19, Madonna will be giving radio interviews to a few lucky stations that will air in the immediate days following. Stay tuned! WHYI - Miami WPYM - Miami WSTR - Atlanta KLLC - San Francisco KIIS - Los Angeles Madonna on the Internet: Watch for the online debut of Hollywood on Launch/Yahoo! on Tuesday, June 24th. And head over to the Warner Bros. Records eBay store to get Madonna's albums including the limited edition of American Life. (source: Madonna.com) 19 June - Hollywood video premiere times Mon 23 11:00 PM Making the Video: Madonna VH1 Tue 24 12:00 PM Making the Video: Madonna VH1 Tue 24 7:00 PM Making the Video: Madonna VH1 Wed 25 5:00 PM Making the Video: Madonna VH1 Wed 25 11:30 PM Making the Video: Madonna VH1 Thu 26 5:30 PM Making the Video: Madonna VH1 Fri 27 6:30 PM Making the Video: Madonna MTV (source: Absolute Madonna) It's rumoured that the video will also premiere on the German channel VIVA, at 5pm CET Meanwhile, Warner has confirmed the single cover that we posted two days ago. 18 June - European Hollywood maxi singles Release date July 7th 9362-42638-2 1. Hollywood (Album Edit) 2. Hollywood (Jacques Lu Cont's Thin White Duck Mix) 3. Hollywood (Micronauts Remix) 4. Hollywood (Oakenfold 12" Full Remix) 5. Hollywood (Deepsky Home Sweet Home Vocal Mix) 6. Hollywood (Calderone + Quayle Glam Mix) 9362-42637-2 1. Hollywood (Album Edit) 2. Hollywood (Jacques Lu Cont's Thin White Duck Mix) 3. Hollywood (Micronauts Remix) 5439-16578-2 1. Hollywood (Album Edit) 2. Hollywood (Micronauts Remix) 18 June - Pre-order The English Roses You can now pre-order your copy of The English Roses at Amazon. 18 June - Hollywood remixes Check Dotmusic to stream Hollywood remixes by Paul Oakenfold, Deep Sky and Jacques Lu Cont. The article states: "Madonna's latest album American Life might have divided fans and critics alike, but there's no denying the quality of her next single. Listen here to remixes of Hollywood, out July 7. The A-List team of remixers drafted in this time include Paul Oakenfold, Deep Sky and Jacques Lu Cont. Hollywood is the third single from American Life and was one of the few tracks that Madonna performed live during her in-store shows and recent TV appearances. Watch out for the single's glamorous video that reunites Madonna with director Jean Baptiste Mondino (Justify My Love, Don't Tell Me) which premieres in the US next week. According to reports, Madonna wore over $20 million worth of antique jewellery including pieces owned by actress Mae West. American Life debuted at No. 1 in 14 countries, including the US and UK, and has already sold over 3 million copies." ~ Naturally, Hollywood is only the second album single, but they probably considered Die Another Day as the first single. 18 June - Madonna surprises left-out Tower Records fans Fans who queued for over twenty hours to meet Madonna at New York's Tower Records but were then left disappointed when Madonna left early before they could meet her at the record signing have just received a surprise package in the post. Fans who missed out were advised to contact Tower Records and leave their contact details - and those who did could never have expected what was to drop through their letterboxes today. A personally dedicated autographed copy of the rare (and very pricy) Madonna Steven Klein X-STaTIC PRO=CeSS book was in the Maverick/Boy Toy care package. (source: Madonnalicious) 18 June - Radio interviews If you live in one of the larger radio markets in the US and have a station that's currently supporting Hollywood, chances are good that Madonna will do a call-in interview with your local morning show next week on Tuesday the 24th, to coincide with the release of the Hollywood video. Call your local station to find out the exact time! (source: Absolute Madonna) 18 June - Hollywood preview on ET According to Rock on TV, Entertainment Tonight will show preview clips of the Hollywood video on the episode airing this Friday, June 20th. (source: Absolute Madonna) 18 June - Madonna agrees with Vasquez remix... for Donnatella Madonna must really like Donatella Versace. The 42-year-old singer has allowed a sworn enemy to remix her latest single, Hollywood, just to make Donatella happy. Junior Vasquez was given the OK to carry out the remix, even though Madge has refused to speak to him since he recorded a song featuring her voice whining into his answering machine seven years ago. According to New York magazine, she gave her blessing only when she realised Versace wanted it to accompany her spring/summer 2004 menswear show in Milan this month. But, says Madonna's rep, Liz Rosenberg, this doesn't mean all is forgotten. "[She] did it as a personal favour," she said. "I can assure you that Madonna will never work with Junior again." The Material Girl has revived the days of serious Hollywood glamour in the video for the song, meanwhile. Paying tribute to the likes of Ginger Rogers, Jean Harlow and Mae West, she is seen swathed in £13 million-worth of gems, including the original 25-carat ring and bracelet that was worn by West in the 1933 film, She Done Him Wrong. The video is directed by French photographer Jean-Baptiste Mondino, who also directed the controversial Justify My Love video and played official photographer at Madonna's wedding to Guy Ritchie. (source: British Vogue) 17 June - Hollywood single cover According to the Swiss shopping website cede.ch, this is the single cover for Hollywood. The picture is by Steven Klein, from the photo shoot for W Magazine and the X-Static Process exhibition. (thanx to Darth Sidious for directing our attention to this) 17 June - Madonna fans are vain ;-) Do you sometimes put on one of Beethoven's symphonies? Then you're tolerable and you find yourself quite intelligent. Do you prefer a REM record? Then you like trying something new, but you have to watch out for a depression. Psychologists at the Texas university want to know what our record collection tells us about our personality. So they interrogated 3.500 people about their musical taste and had them fill in a personality test. And according to the researchers our musical choice is a reflection of our inner self. For example, fans of Jennifer Lopez seem to be very vain. For a good conversation you have to find a fan of Bob Dylan or the Rolling Stones. Our records also illustrate which image we like to show of ourselves. "Men who have loud heavy metal music playing with the car window open, want to look tough", report the researchers. In other words: show me your CD collection and I'll tell you who you are. Madonna fans are extravert, progressive, friendly, accessible and conscious. Not too keen for new experiences, but they make good conversation. They consider themselves as the most attractive person of the gang. Rolling Stones: friendly, hungry for new experiences. Sportsmanlike, intelligent and elocative. Often quite dominant in their relationships. REM fans are curious, intelligent, sportsmanlike and not afraid of risks. But sensitive for depression. [...] Jennifer Lopez: Fans of the Latin diva are a bit conventional, but happy, reliable and always ready to help someone out. At the same time they find themselves quite attractive. (source: De Standaard, translation by Mad-Eyes) 17 June - Madonna supporting questionable animal organisation? Will Madonna lock horns with PETA? The singer is either supporting a group whose past has been called into question or her name is being used without her permission. And if it's the former, the star can expect to come under fire from the group that makes life miserable for animal-unfriendly celebs. Madonna is being billed as a host of a June 22 benefit for a Malibu animal reserve and children’s camp called Bony Pony. "You may be unaware that this operation is not an animal sanctuary — it is an exotic-animal rental business with several names and a troubling history," People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals wrote to Madonna. "Bony Pony has been trying to use a lot of big celebrities’ names, including Pamela Anderson," PETA spokesman Dan Mathews told The Scoop. "They invited her down, and she did some investigative work and sleuthing. She did not like what she was seeing." PETA has yet to hear from Madonna's people, who also didn’t return The Scoop’s calls. A Bony Pony spokeswoman insists that Madonna has given the group her support, and says that Bony Pony's troubles are in its past. "The animals are well cared for,"says the spokeswoman. "[We're] distraught that a negative spin is being put on all this." (source: MSNBC) 16 June - Another Hollywood video still This latest picture from the Hollywood video was featured in tonight's Evening Standard. The paper claims this is Madonna portraying Ginger Rogers in this picture. Click on the image to enlarge. (source: Madonnalicious) 16 June - Madonna defies the bombers Whatever Madonna wants, she must have. Even if it means putting her life at risk... The 44-year-old queen of pop is insisting her next video - Nothing Fails - is shot in Israel. The song makes references to the Kaballah - based on Jewish mysticism. Despite concern from her record company, Warner's, Madge has put her foot down. My spies tell me: "Her record bosses are really worried about it. They are trying to talk her around, but she's having none of it. She has told them it makes sense to shoot it in Israel as the Kaballah originates from there. "Madonna is not particularly bothered about her safety and potential risks. She doesn't think it's as bad as it seems." Her decision to shoot her video in Israel should come as no big surprise to her bosses. Madge is so fanatical about her faith that she's also planning to make a one-hour TV special on the joys of her Kaballah religious cult. Oh dear. (source: Sunday Mirror, thanx to MIR) 16 June - Madonna's style guru Arianne Phillips is one of Madonna's best-kept secrets; the chic, personal stylist who for six years, has cooked up some of the star's most glamorous, trend-setting looks. These days, Phillips and her contemporaries, like Los Angeles-based stylist Philip Bloch and Sex and the City's Patricia Fields, are celebrities in their own right, and among a privileged few permitted to gather close in the court of movie stars and music artists, consulting on matters of fashion. Phillips began styling in New York in the late '80s, originally as a cash job to get through college. But she became hooked, ditched college and took it on full-time. Now she divides her talents between costume design for film, editorial work for the world's fashion bibles (Italian Vogue, Dazed and Confused, V, The Face, et al), and styling for some of the world's biggest celebrities, such as Madonna. She has influenced many of Lady M's most jaw-dropping outfits including, for her role in David Williamson's play Up for Grabs, a dazzling pair of tuxedo trousers by Clements Ribeiro. In a moment of spontaneity, it was also Phillips who used a delicate Hermes scarf, wrapped as a blouse, for Madonna's character in the film Swept Away, directed by her husband, Guy Ritchie. Predictably, sales of both the Clements Ribeiro and Hermes pieces skyrocketed. Explaining her choice of outfits for one of the world's most photographed women, Phillips describes her role as that of an "editor". "We conceptualise the photograph, video or CD cover, and then I gather clothes. I look for mood, story and character — what will photograph interestingly," she says. Phillips met Madonna on a cover shoot for Rolling Stone. She was visiting with another client, Courtney Love. Since then, Madonna and Phillips have been inseparable partners in style. "Madonna is as modern a person as I have ever met. I would describe (her) style as ever-changing." Phillips presents her clients with a range of suggestions and then discusses different combinations and ideas with Polaroid photographs and — often multiple — fittings before arriving at a final outfit. It's a flexible process. When something's not working, says Phillips, "It's important to be open to change." She is a seasoned fashion expert, scouring the globe not only for Madonna, but for stars such as Justin Timberlake and Love. She sifts through flea markets and bargain bins, avant-garde designer shops and haute-couture salons. "I love shopping in London," she says, "The little boutiques around Portobello market, the Rose Bowl flea market in Los Angeles, the flea markets in Paris, the Corso Como in Milan ..." Phillips has an encyclopaedic knowledge of fashion and tapping her list of favourite clothing outlets and brands around the world can be like a word association test: "Shoes?" "Diavolina and Sportie LA," she says without hesitation. "Casual wear? "H&M and the Gap." "Vintage?" "Decades in Los Angeles." Her favourite brand is Rick Owens and, although many of her clients are dressed in true rock-star garb (read: extroverted from top to toe), Phillips's own style is whimsical; a quirky mix of rough edges and unexpected combinations. "I like to mix up and down, high and low," she says. (source: The Age)

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