all about Madonna

Albums :
2 (1) Madonna - Hard Candy (Warner Bros)

Singles :
1 (1) Madonna Ft Justin Timberlake - 4 Minutes (Warner Bros)

New York, Paris, Maidstone. For the last of three, short shows to plug her current album, Hard Candy, Madonna arrived by helicopter in the Kent countryside to headline Radio 1's Big Weekend. Clearly, the plan was to prove that a pop star about to turn 50 in August can remain relevant to the kids.

Instead, a sterile, soulless performance made Madonna resemble an embarrassing auntie desperately trying to be hip.

A crowd with camera phones at the ready, crammed into a Big Top-style tent, had almost an hour to wait for pop's greatest grande dame to arrive. The PA blasted out sweet-themed songs and the backdrop was girlie, pink swirls.

When Madonna finally appeared, however, there was nothing sweet about her. Legs splayed over a black and gold throne at the top of stairs that doubled as one of various, inventive video screens, she wore an all-black outfit of silk coat, tracksuit trousers tucked into knee-length, lace-up boots and leather, fingerless gloves.

Brandishing a silver cane like an S&M tool was meant to make her look tough. But with her trousers billowing above her boots like jodhpurs, she was less the raunchy temptress than the well-heeled woman in search of a horse.

Like much of the six-song, half-hour set, the opener Candy Shop suffered from muffled sound. Madonna has always valued spectacle over singing, but the bassy beats almost drowned her out and the tune, reasonably catchy on record, became a bland dirge.

Four male dancers removed her coat, revealing a lacy top, and a three-piece band was hidden to the side of the stage. For "Miles Away", an ode to her husband, the film directer Guy Ritchie, Madonna strapped on a guitar, but neither looked as if she was genuinely strumming, or played anything audible. With her dancers briefly dispatched, the song left fans with little to watch through their phones.

The chart-topping single 4 Minutes was a vast improvement, even with Justin Timberlake - rumoured to be appearing in person - merely an image on rectangular screens across the stage, which Madonna spun round to release her dancers hidden behind.

Supremely fit and with bulging biceps, the singer fared best when she joined her troupe in tightly choreographed routines. While her singing occasionally strayed off key, her fancy footwork never faltered.

Two old tracks got the best reception, although as Madonna made clear, she refuses to travel too far back in time. The Abba-sampling hit Hung Up, from 2005, began with a steal from the Rolling Stones' Satisfaction and was a given a grungey rework that felt as fake as Madonna's overblown guitar-thrashing.

A magnificent Music, meanwhile, closed the set and just about saved the show. Part of the stage spun round and out jumped dancers in Day-Glo attire. Madonna performed part of the song on her knees and fans finally got to sing along.

On the way out, the kids complained that she hadn't sung "Holiday", while the Mayor of Maidstone, Richard Ash, grumbled at the shortness of the set. Still, for one night only, it put Maidstone on the pop map.

Rating : 2 out of 5 stars

Twenty-five years after the release of her eponymous debut album, Madonna proved she has still got what it takes to wow audiences with an energetic set at Radio 1's Big Weekend.

The queen of pop - who turns 50 on August 16 - closed the event at Mote Park in Maidstone, Kent, following acts including Duffy, Usher and The Feeling.

Those who had been waiting all day to see Madonna were not disappointed when she appeared on stage in the main tent dressed in a tight black outfit and black knee high boots and opened her set with song Candy Shop, from her number one album Hard Candy.

She dedicated her next song, Miles Away, to "anybody who's afraid of falling in love".

Madonna then launched into her number one single Four Minutes while screens on stage showed images of Justin Timberlake who sings on the track with her.

There was a surprise in store for fans when Madonna picked up an electric guitar, said she planned to sing an old song and launched into the opening lines of the Rolling Stones hit (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction.

After only a few bars, she stopped and called out to the audience: "How many of you are drunk?" When they responded with a collective cheer, she replied: "That's so worrying."

After teasing the audience with the Stones cover, she then planned to sing "a song from the past, but not too far back from the past" and played her former number one Hung Up.

After finishing it with an impressive guitar solo, she changed into a pair of trainers and showed off some energetic dance moves during another song from her latest album, Give It 2 Me.

The style icon also donned a pair of black rimmed glasses and joked she was having problems with her sight. The spectacle ended with 2000 hit Music which provoked a mass singalong from the crowd.

source : pa

Madonna performing live at BBC Radio One's Big Weekend Festival in Kent (May 10 2008)

Madonna has played her first UK show of the year, closing the opening night of Radio 1's Big Weekend.

Dressed all in black, the Queen of Pop performed a 40 minute set at Mote Park in Maidstone, pleasing fans with number one single 4 Minutes.

She also played a number of songs from her recent studio album Hard Candy, including Candy Shop and Miles Away.

The show came as part of a trio of live performances to launch the album, the other two being in New York and Paris.

Later in the set, Madonna reworked Hung Up for electric guitar, ending the song with a wall of noise. The show ended with another single, Music.

However, the singer didn't play any of her well known hits from the 80s and 90s.

Speaking to Radio 1 DJ Jo Whiley before her performance, Madonna explained why she wanted to play the songs she picked.

She said: "Obviously, I want to do new stuff because I'm very excited about it.

"I feel that's what people come to hear but I also want to do a few of my oldies but goodies.

"I chose Hung Up because that was the biggest hit from my last record and I chose Music because it's a crowd pleaser, it's anthemic and it brings people together."

The tent was full to capacity for the show. Extra monitors played the set to fans outside.

As Madonna disappeared behind a stage prop made to look like a tube train at the end of the show, most fans left happy.

31 year old Gerard Sutton told Newsbeat: "It was great for Maidstone, she looked like she loved being here and everyone loved it."

19 year old Georgina Finch from Hastings added: "She was good but she should have sung some older stuff and should have been on for longer. She was awesome though."

Radio 1's Big Weekend is the biggest free ticketed music festival in Europe and has previously been held in Dundee and Preston.

30,000 people are expected over the two days, and more than half a million people applied for tickets.

source : bbc

1. Candy Shop :

2. Miles Away :

3. 4 Minutes

4. Satisfaction / Hung Up

5. Give It 2 Me

6. Music

Madonna going to / leaving her gym in London (May 10 2008)

TV Broadcast at BBC Three

Madonna Live
10 May 2008 - 21:15-21:55 - BBC Three

Madonna headlines BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend, which takes place at Mote Park in Maidstone, Kent. Features an exclusive performance of her No. 1 single, 4 Minutes, as well as songs from her new album, Hard Candy.

Live Stream at BBC.co.uk

Thousands of music fans are to flock to see Madonna and a host of other stars perform at Radio 1's Big Weekend.
Around 30,000 revellers are due to attend the free event in Maidstone, Kent, where they can expect to see a range of pop, indie and dance acts including Usher, Duffy, Fatboy Slim and Adele across four main stages.

This year for the first time, Radio 1 has added the BBC Introducing Stage to the bill, where new and upcoming bands can be showcased.

Demand for tickets this year was the greatest in the history of the event, which has been taking place in its present format at venues across the country for the past three years.

More than 500,000 people applied for the 30,000 tickets on offer, with tickets being allocated through a lottery system, although a large proportion were given to residents of Maidstone and the wider area.

Those who were not lucky enough to get a ticket will not miss out completely as they will be able to catch live coverage of the event on TV and radio throughout the weekend.

Preparations for the event have been going on for months.

Extra train services have been laid on by Southeastern trains between Maidstone and London, while a park and ride service has been put in place in the town.

Kent Police have warned that anyone involved in anti-social behaviour or without a ticket will be made to leave the area under a dispersal order they have obtained specially for the event.

source : pa

* stream is available only in UK