Madonna

Madonna Louise Ciccone (/tʃɪˈkoʊni/ chih-KOH-nee, .mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}Italian: ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Dubbed the "Queen of Pop", she is known for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, and visual presentation. Her works, which concern social, political, sexual, and religious themes, have drawn acclaim and controversy. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians in history, Madonna broke gender barriers in popular music and has had a significant socio-cultural impact across her career.

Born and raised in Michigan, Madonna moved to New York City in 1978 to pursue a career in dance. After performing as a drummer, guitarist, and vocalist in the rock bands Breakfast Club and Emmy, she rose to fame with her debut album, Madonna (1983). Her eighteen multi-platinum albums include Like a Virgin (1984), True Blue (1986), and The Immaculate Collection (1990)—among the best-selling albums of all time—and Confessions on a Dance Floor (2005), her 21st-century bestseller. Rolling Stone ranked Like a Prayer (1989), Ray of Light (1998), and Music (2000) among the greatest albums of all time. Madonna's top-charting singles include "Like a Virgin", "Papa Don't Preach", "La Isla Bonita", "Like a Prayer", "Vogue", "Take a Bow", "Frozen", "Music", "Hung Up", and "4 Minutes".

Madonna has starred in films such as Desperately Seeking Susan (1985), Dick Tracy (1990), A League of Their Own (1992), and Evita (1996). Although many of her films were not well-received, she won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress for portraying Eva Perón in Evita. Her business endeavors encompass the entertainment company Maverick (1992–2009), which included Maverick Records—one of the most successful artist-run labels. Madonna has also pursued fashion brands, written works, health clubs, and filmmaking. She contributes to various charities, having founded the Ray of Light Foundation in 1998 and Raising Malawi in 2006, and advocates for gender equality and LGBTQ rights.

Madonna is the best-selling female music artist of all time, and the first female performer to accumulate US$1 billion from her concerts. She has twelve number-one singles on the US Billboard Hot 100 and ten number-one albums on the US Billboard 200. Her accolades include seven Grammy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, 27 MTV Video Music Awards, and an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in her first year of eligibility. Madonna was the world's highest-paid female musician for a record eleven years across four decades (1980s–2010s). She has become the subject of various scholarly, literary, and artistic works, giving rise to an academic subfield known as Madonna studies.

Madonna Louise Ciccone was born in Bay City, Michigan, on August 16, 1958. Her father, Silvio "Tony" Ciccone, worked as an optical and military engineer, as well as a physicist, for Chrysler Defense and later General Dynamics Land Systems; her mother, Madonna Louise (née Fortin), was an X-ray technician. Tony's parents were Italian emigrants from Pacentro, while her mother was of French-Canadian descent. Since Madonna shared her name with her mother, family members referred to her as "Little Nonnie". Madonna was raised in the Detroit suburbs of Pontiac and Avon Township (now Rochester Hills), alongside her two older brothers, Anthony and Martin, and her three younger siblings, Paula, Christopher, and Melanie.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.