Confessions on a Dance Floor: Part II, is the sequel to her hit 2005 album, and the veteran is proving to be as wily as ever
What’s all this about a new album from Madonna?
Madonna’s new album, Confessions on a Dance Floor: Part II, is released on July 3rd, and is a sequel to her 2005 album, Confessions on a Dance Floor. The album is her first collection of new music since 2019’s Madame X.
Isn’t she too old for this pop music lark?
The revered music icon is 68 on August 16th, and, honestly, wash your potty mouth out with soap. Madonna has been an easy target for ageists and misogynists since she was, say, 40. At the release of Madame X, when she was 60, she told Vogue magazine that people have always tried to silence her, “whether it’s that I’m not pretty enough, I don’t sing well enough, I’m not talented enough, I’m not married enough. And now it’s that I’m not young enough … now I’m being punished for turning 60″.
She’s a true survivor, isn’t she?
She is certainly one of the most resilient. Ever wily, Madonna made a surprise appearance last weekend at Coachella, one of the largest, trendsetting, and best-attended music festivals in the world. She performed as a surprise guest of US pop singer Sabrina Carpenter, duetting with her on her 1990 dance-pop song Vogue and her 1989 hit Like a Prayer. Madonna also debuted two new tracks: I Feel So Free, and Bring Your Love. Across two weekends (April 10th-12th and April 17th-19th), an estimated 750,000 people were in attendance. Between those numbers and the festival’s high-definition live streams that attract multimillion views, Madonna’s appearance was a promo plug par excellence.
Are people really interested in the sequel album?
How about millions? The 2005 album sold more than 10 million physical copies, making it one of the bestselling albums of the past 20 years. The reaction to 2019’s Madame X, however, ranged from critical enthusiasm (“natural-feeling, progressive and original”, wrote The Guardian) to fan base ennui. The new album continues her exploration of dance and electropop and, mirroring the 2005 album, will be released as a seamless mix of pop/dance songs. “People think that dance music is superficial,” Madonna said in the advance press release, “but they’ve got it all wrong. The dance floor is not just a place, it’s a threshold: a ritualistic space where movement replaces language.”
