Originally published 12/14/2018
In the world of pop music, women are enjoying a moment of dominance.
Beyoncé, with her towering album and short film “Lemonade,” rewrote the playbook (again) in April. Adele’s album “25” has soared since its release about a year ago, selling more than 10 million copies in the United States alone.
But in a lacerating speech on Friday, Madonna — the highest-grossing female touring artist of all time, who in March wrapped up a tour that took in $170 million — resisted the notion that all was well and fair for women entertainers, particularly as they get older.
Accepting a Woman of the Year award at the Billboard Women in Music 2016 event, the 58-year-old musician brought a hush over the crowd as she spoke in deeply personal terms.
She took pride in her ability to persevere in an industry that she said did not look kindly on older women singers. “People say that I’m so controversial,” she said to the crowd. “But I think the most controversial thing that I’ve done is to stick around.”
In the world of music, she said, “to age is a sin.”
“You will be criticized, you will be vilified, and you will definitely not be played on the radio,” she added. (Beyoncé is 35 years old; Adele is 28.)
Candor has always been one of Madonna’s hallmarks. In recent years, she has become something of a warrior against age discrimination, publicly rebelling, with few subtleties, against the notion that age should slow her down.
Toward the end of her speech, she mentioned other groundbreaking musicians, including Prince and David Bowie, both of whom died this year. “But I’m still standing,” she said. “I’m one of the lucky ones.”
The 2023 Grammy Awards
Reacting to negative social media comments about her Feb. 2023 appearance at the Grammy Awards, the pop superstar said that she believes criticism of her look is rooted far less in her appearance than longstanding historical resistance to her brazen attitude — combined with a desire to push back at women just for refusing to step outside of the limelight as they age.
“A world that refuses to celebrate women past the age of 45 and feels the need to punish her If she continues to be strong willed, hard-working and adventurous,” she wrote.
Unbowed and far from bloody after being the talk of Twitter for two days, Madonna ended her missive with a command:
“Bow down, bitches!”
She also borrowed the words of the ceremony’s leading winner, Beyonce, writing: “You won’t break my soul.”