MADONNA NEWS - MARCH 2010 « March (part I) - News index - April (part I) »

31 March - Alison Goldfrapp on Madonna Q: Have you ever heard Madonna's Like It Or Not from Confessions On A Dance Floor? It was her attempt at making a Goldfrapp record. "Black Cherry" to be specific. Alison Goldfrapp: Never heard it, that song. I couldn't care less what she or whoever does. Madonna is always copying other people's work. yuck. Q: Well you guys are quite good at it yourself: "Ooh La La" was a T-Rex rip-off. "Cologne Cerrone Houdini" could have been any Gainsbourg song on "Historie de Melody Nelson". And those are just two examples Alison Goldfrapp: We have a perfectly legitimate post-modern explanation for that. Those songs are an Homage! We steal like magpies but we pay tribute to our heroes at any chance we get, in interviews etc. Everyone should know by now that Marc Bolan was my idol growing up. But we'll never be caught following the latest trend or collaborating with the hottest DJs and producers just to get their names on our record sleeves. That's not our style. (source: Humo via AllaboutMadonnna) Share 31 March - Madonna talks about her new fashion line When Madonna needed inspiration for her latest fashion collection, she didn’t have to look far. The pop icon teamed up with her 13-year-old daughter Lourdes to create Material Girl, an affordable juniors’ clothing line that debuts at Macy’s this fall. This is not Madonna’s first foray into designing. In 2007, she teamed up with H&M to create a limited edition collection, M by Madonna. This time around, her venture into fashion will be long-lasting: She has launched a new company called MG ICON which, in addition to producing the juniors’ line, will also put out other collections including eyewear. The Material Girl collection includes jeans, shoes, fingerless gloves, necklaces and other accessories. Many of the pieces are inspired by Madonna and her daughter’s dance roots. Madonna recently spoke about Material Girl, her relationship with Lourdes (nicknamed Lola) and her fashion risks and regrets. Why did you want to do a juniors’ line? Lola has been bothering me for ages about designing clothes. Stella McCartney is a good friend of mine and she got her mind thinking when Lola was a little girl, about 8 years old. She started giving Lola fabrics and inviting her into her showroom and asking her opinion on things, giving her sketch books and stuff like that. Stella always pushed her. I have a lot of friends who are clothing designers whether it is Gaultier or Dolce and Gabbana. (Lola) has been around all of the shoots I have done and all of the campaigns I have done. She is always hanging out backstage. The last two tours I have done, she has been working in the wardrobe department. On this last tour she dressed all of the dancers. What has Lola taught you about fashion? I am boring basically. She reminds me of me when I was younger. She just goes for it and tries different things. It doesn’t look like she thought too much about it. That is how I used to be, but after years and years of everybody commenting on the way I look and dress and being photographed, one starts to become self-conscious and starts to plan things more. You end up judging yourself more, what looks good and what doesn’t. What has it been like to work with your daughter? It is good because she does have good taste in fashion. I respect her taste and I rarely disagree with her. Was part of you hesitant about Lola designing this line as she would be thrust into the spotlight? That is why I am here talking about the line and she is not. Eventually I will let her. I feel like she needs to get into high school and focus on her studies, her lessons. She got into the high school of the performing arts. She has a lot of work to do. I don’t want her to be distracted. She will eventually be able to talk about it. I am going to be happy when she does because she can speak much more clearly in and in a more informed way than I can about a line she is ultimately designing. I just stand in the background and go, “That’s cool. That’s not cool.” The clothing is affordable. Why was it important to you to keep the price low? When I was 13 years old, I couldn’t afford designer clothes. I couldn’t afford expensive clothing. When I designed a line of clothes for H&M, that was one of the things I liked so much about it, that it was really affordable. I think that is one of the nice things about it, that you can make nice clothes at affordable prices. You are known as being a fashion risk taker. Do you ever look back and wonder, “What was I thinking?” Yeah. I would rather not point them out. I think I had a lot of bad hair moments. In the early 80’s just sometimes I wore purple lipstick or green lipstick. Clothing-wise, I am happy about the way I dressed. With your music career and with the girls’ school you are building in Malawi, was part of you hesitant about taking on another project with this clothing line? If Lola wasn’t so completely involved in the line, designing, consulting, whatever you want to call it, I wouldn’t do it. Really she does most of the work, honestly. Who are Lola’s fashion influences? Lola spent most of her childhood growing up in England. According to her, she thinks people have more style in London, especially the boys. French boys in particular have very good style, according to Lola. I think she has been very influenced by European fashion. She is very influenced by the music she listens to, different bands she is in to. She has favorite models. She takes all kinds of dance classes. She is inspired by different items people wear as dancers whether it is a hip- hop class or a jazz class or ballet class. … Of course she is inspired by my closet. My Christian Dior shoes will go missing and then some fabulous bag I won’t be able to find or my skinny jeans, the only pair that fit me are gone. Has working on this clothing line together bonded you in a different way? I see her more as a creative person, as an artist and less as my daughter as we are working, and then every once and a while I remembered she is my daughter. (source: AP via Yahoo) Share 27 March - Lola to star in Madonna's movie? Madonna is fixing for daughter Lourdes to make it in the movie business by giving her a role in her new film. Madge starts shooting the flick about Edward VIII in London this summer and a source said: "She's arranged a small role for Lourdes. It's not a significant part but it will give her a good taste of life in the movie business. Lourdes has made it clear she wants some kind of career in the entertainment industry and her mum is more than happy to help. She's already an incredible dancer, thanks to years of classes and she's also been having singing training." It's a change of ice-cold heart from Madge. In 2007 she refused to let Lourdes - nicknamed Lola - star in a Harry Potter film after she was offered a role. On Thursday the pair, left, popped to see the musical Fela in New York. If Madge was my mother I don't think I'd be up for a shift under her command. I hope she's giving Lourdes more than the £5-an-hour I got for cleaning my mum's shed as a nipper. (source: The Sun) Share 23 March - Jason Derulo to work with Madonna Jason Derulo, who is no stranger now to storming the charts and working with powerhouse pop divas, is about to work with another legendary artist who is certainly familiar with the Top 10. The rising R&B star, 21, just saw his first two singles off of his self-titled debut album hit the Billboard charts [including the #1 hit Watcha Say], has toured with fan Lady Gaga and this week nabbed the top spot in the Us Weekly Buzzometer. So what's next? He's on his way into the studio to work with Madonna! Derulo told our own Zach Johnson all about it plus other future plans (including his love life!) when he gave Us a ring the other day. Read on for more from Jason! Us: Are there any other artists you'd like to tour with or maybe collaborate with musically? JD: Yeah. I'm about to work with Madonna, and I've been watching her for years. I would love to be a part of another reinvention. She's been able to reinvent herself time and time again. I'll probably be part of that. ~ Continue the rest of the interview at US Magazine. For more on Jason Derulo's work, check out his Wikipedia entry. Share 22 March - Ewan McGregor to play Edward VIII in Madonna's W.E. Ewan McGregor has joined the cast of Madonna's upcoming project W.E. to play Edward VIII. McGregor, currently starring in Roman Polanski's The Ghost Writer, will portray the British Monarch who famously abdicated the throne in 1936 order to marry America divorcee Wallis Simpson. As previously announced Oscar nominee Vera Farmiga will portray Simpson. Abbie Cornish, most recently seen in Bright Star, will play a contemporary character in a parallel time line reminiscent of Julie & Julia. Shakespeare In Love producer David Parfitt is producing with former Miramax executive Colin Vaines. Madonna will direct and is writing the screenplay with Alec Keshishian. CAA is holds domestic rights and IM Global is handling international sales. (source: Screen Daily) UPDATE: According to GossipCop, a representative of McGregor denied his involvement in the movie. Share 18 March - Something to remember: Leaving logic and reason 15 years ago today, on March 18th 1995, Madonna did her most unique promotional appearance. To premiere her Bedtime Story video, she held a Pajama Party at NYC's Webster Hall, which was broadcast by MTV. At the party, she also gave an interview, grooved to Junior Vasquez's beats and interestingly she read the tale of Miss Spider's Tea Party to the cheerful crowd of fans. Of course the video itself remained the biggest event, which is not only one of the most expensive music videos ever produced with its $5 million budget, but is possibly her most ambitious and celebrated video effort. Directed by Mark Romanek, it's set in a dream-world staying true to the lyrics of the song, with the imagery mainly inspired by the works of female surrealist painters, the likes of Leonora Carrington, Remedios Varo and Frida Kahlo, featuring Madonna in several different incarnations. The video is filled with symbolism about birth, life and death, including Madonna's own desire to have children, along with visual effects that stood the test of time. It's no surprise the video was inducted to the Museum of Modern Arts. While the video remains an absolute fan favourite and a highlight of Madonna's videography (prominently featuring on both the Video Collection 93:99 and Celebration Video Collection DVDs), the single itself is a much more dividing piece in her career. Written and inspired by the style of Icelandic songress Björk (co-written and produced by Nellee Hooper, who helmed Björk's acclaimed 1993 Debut album), its unconventional song structure that strays away from Madonna's usual pop sensibilities didn't make it a wise single choice after big airplay hits Secret & Take A Bow, most radio stations around the world didn't bother at all. Its release dates were also staggered, in the UK it came out a full month before the video premiered (while it's one of her very few singles that don't feature Madonna's likeness on the cover, it immediately became one of her best collectibles, with a limited edition second CD single and a gorgeous 12" vinyl editions), but in the US a month after the video debut, shortly after Take A Bow began its descent from the top. Eventually it became the first Madonna single to miss the US top 40 and her smallest airplay hit up to that point by far (only Love Don't Live Here Anymore & Nothing Really Matters would do worse on radio until 2003). In the UK it did become a #4 hit, the highest peaking single from Bedtime Stories, thanks to the aforementioned collectible release and timed promotion. The single is still praised by fans for being the first European techno-electronica song in her canon which would open the gate for a lot more in the years to come. Surprisingly the song made its way to Madonna's second greatest hits compilation GHV2, being chosen over her actual ballad hits from the first half of the 90s. Naturally, the song hit big on the US Hot Dance chart, spending multiple weeks at #1, thanks to an array of remixes, mainly by Junior Vasquez. 9 years later, Madonna filmed another video for this single, as an interlude on the Re-Invention Tour. While a much simpler concept, visually just as stunning, Madonna is seen in the reinvented video in all white, set to the Orbital Mix of the song, along with a horse, with a lot of focus on the eyes and mirror images. This video was directed by longtime tour collaborator Dago Gonzales, and also makes a reference to another 1995 video, Human Nature. Unfortunately Bedtime Story has never been performed live on a Madonna tour, and its only live performance came a week after the UK single release at the 1995 Brit Awards (as her first UK tv promotional performance since the Like A Virgin era), where Madonna gave a rendition of the Junior Vasquez remix with a flowing dress, hair extensions and incredible lightning, joined by Girlie Show dancer Luca Tomassini and his lookalike-dancer. Let's hope it gets a well deserved tour treatment in the near future! Share 16 March - MDG: Madonna enters eyewear with Dolce & Gabbana Madonna isn't just a friend, muse and model to Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana; with new eyewear brand MDG she has become a fellow designer, ready to wow us with shades fit for a film noir screen siren, of which we exclusively reveal a few models. The Internet has been buzzing with rumours of the various design projects taken on by Madonna herself and details on what is perhaps the most exciting line yet were officially announced by WWD earlier today. Madonna caught in the act with a beautiful stranger - a familiar stranger who is none other than our dearest Tyson Ballou. The paparazzo for the occasion was Steven Klein no less, and lending him a hand was legendary art director Fabien Baron. Reading the words of happy Stefano Gabbana and Domenico Dolce one definitely understands why this was a match made in accessories heaven: "Designing an eyewear line with Madonna was a new experience for us. The oversized and wraparound designs are sexy and very feminine, like our clothes. Madonna's creative contribution and unique point of view were key, even in designing the MDG logo." Not just another celebrity collaboration - MDG is a whole new brand with Madonna, Domenico and Stefano as colleagues on the design team. Just imagine a day in *that* office... So far six models have been designed and here is an exclusive preview of two of them to keep you on your toes (but not too much) until the launch later this year in May. (source: Swide) Share

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