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Bitch I'm Madonna

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I suppose when you haven't had a hit in three years, you try to win over the young audience with what might be described as the pop music version of agitprop, bringing in Nicki Minaj and a host of other celebs to give the video some bling.  Nicki gets co-writing credits.  For a woman who wants the music world to take her seriously, this isn't the way to go about it, but bitch this is Madonna!

Granted, Madonna has tried her hand at respectability in the past with mixed results.  Probably her shining moment was as Evita, in the cinematic version of Andrew Lloyd Weber's pop opera.  But, she is best remembered for masturbating on stage at MTV's video music awards in 1984, which launched her prodigious career.  It's a mixed bag to say the least.

There is no doubt Madonna has changed the way we look at pop music.  She has been the role model for the young talent featured in Bitch I'm Madonna.  Miley Cyrus, took her ' 84 VMA performance and did it one better in 2013, giving Sean Hannity a hard on.  No one has been able to look at Miley the same way since.  But, Madonna would tell us that singers like Miley have it soft in this day of social media, saying how easy it is to be distracted or consumed with fame, not that this was the case on her part.

It is tough growing old, especially when your calling card has always been the way you flaunt your body.  Madonna still looks good in her videos, thanks to a physical conditioning program that would leave us mere mortals gasping for air.  But, her catchy song from her Rebel Heart album only managed to peak at #84 in the Billboard Hot 100, making one wonder if she is any longer relevant in today's pop world.  She's become a relic like Paul McCartney, someone today's pop divas work with out of respect.  Kind of like helping your grandparents around the house.

The sad part about the song is she lifted the title from Dave Chappelle's great sketch, I'm Rick James Bitch.  Add to that she looks suspiciously like Kylie Minogue in the video, and these "artists" might have grounds to sue her for plagiarism.

Madonna has never been afraid to borrow from others, whether it was the in-your-face attitude of Wendy O. Williams or the sultry qualities of Debbie Harry, not to particularly great effect.  This was especially true of her tepid rendition of American Pie.  The music world was hers for the taking and she took it by storm in the mid 80s.  I guess you might call this artistic license, but artistry would be quite a stretch.  However, it is hard to argue with the slough of pop hits and film credits to her name.


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