Madonna's Career and Controversies

Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone left home at the age of twenty to pursue her dreams of fame. Her early days in the entertainment industry were tough. However, her determination eventually brought her mainstream pop success with the hit "Holiday" in 1984. Along with performing as a singer, Madonna ha...

Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone left home at the age of twenty to pursue her dreams of fame. Her early days in the entertainment industry were tough. However, her determination eventually brought her mainstream pop success with the hit "Holiday" in 1984. Along with performing as a singer, Madonna has expanded her talents in different areas, such as acting and writing. Over her career, she has released eighteen albums, including three collections of greatest hits. Madonna has continued to work hard for her success, redefining herself and her music with every album. As Madonna says, "Every time I reach a new peak, I see a new one I want to climb." In recent years, Madonna has used her outspoken manner to try to curb online piracy. Mixes of the title track of her 2000 album, *Music,* appeared on several file-sharing sites before the album was launched. Then in 2003, Madonna was set to release her new album, *American Life*. However, in an effort to prevent further piracy, Madonna and her record company decided to try a new approach. Decoy MP3 tracks from *American Life* were uploaded on file-sharing sites. These decoys were meant to discourage illegal downloading. People downloading the files thought they were getting tracks from *American Life* for free. However, when the files were played, all that people could hear was Madonna swearing. Soon after the decoy tracks were discovered, hackers retaliated by hijacking the madonna.com website. They used the website to distribute free MP3 copies of her new album. Perhaps this artist's plan did not work quite as expected. However, as Madonna knows well, controversy draws attention to her material. Whether or not such controversy has had any impact over the years, one thing is for sure: Madonna continues to have something to say.