Madonna



"Bella Ciao" is a famous antifascist song. As a mass movement, fascism preys on the fears and hopelessness of people to turn them into supporters of extreme-right political projects centered around the violent subordination and extermination of people considered "enemies" or "inferior".

As the closer of Madame X, an album thematically centered around domination and oppression – and also rebellion – the free-flowing vibe of this song feels like a breath of fresh air, a moment of overcoming despair and feeling hope again.

The singer is Kimi Djabaté and the language sung is African Creole. I was able to find an Italian translation of his parts which I translated into English. Certainly something is lost on translation but it seems to deal with the history of imperialism and colonialism in Africa.

Sometimes...
It fills up day by day
What do you say?
He was bored
To collect
German man
They use man
And stunned
I'm not careful
God fired
What do you say?
What guys
--
And I read it well
And your every mother
And I read it well
And your every mother
And your every mother
And your every mother
Your mother reads
I don't hesitate
And there she said
And your every mother
And that's not all
--
And that's not all
And your every mother
And that's not all
And your every mother
Or as she wanted as she wanted Allah
And just like me
Pretty
The bad guys hurt
Or move there Allah
How and how
As before Allah
And your every mother
And every ray
And your every mother
--
Or mom read
I don't hesitate
And every mulatto life
Made in the prison bathroom
And everyone is like mom
Everyone gives tomorrow
And everyone is like mom
Leave your girlfriend
And mom reads

Ooooh oooh
How is your girlfriend
She could die later
He might die later

Oooh how
Like lightning
--
With my mom and many
It hurts my mom
That's my wall
It came as it did
In battle Africa
In battle
She knew each other


You’re a god for this, thank you so much.
 
Watching the 40 Moments video it's interesting to think about how she was able to turn things around following the intense backlash in 1992. Talk about a comeback. I never saw that Julia Louis-Dreyfus clip before either and as a fan I'm disappointed to see she partook in the demonization.
 
I'm ashamed to admit I hadn't heard the little breakdown of Hung Up her and Stuart did but I just did and... Madonna talking about music is my favorite thing in the world. She is so particular and detail oriented but there's also such an instinctual side to her where she just knows what works. I wish she did 15 minutes of talking about every single she ever released.

https://songexploder.net/madonna
Yeah I feel that, when she’s talking about music in detail, she’s at her most authentic and grounded, and speaking from a place of real mastery. She truly is a musician and not just a vocalist and lyricist.
 
I would say the American Life single / MV being cancelled is a bit more iconic than some of these choices

I agree but this video is based on a poll that happened on Madonna-Infinty (I believe) so it is not hard to guess why anything American Life is not here, it is such a divisive era between fans.
That's also the reason why things like Bitch I'm Madonna and God Control are not in it.

Nonetheless the video is incredibly edited and sums up really well what Madonna is as an artist, a popstar and the true value of her work.
 
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