Biography:
Madonna was born on the 16th of August, 1958 in Rochester, Michigan, USA. Her family lived in Pontiac, Michigan at the time. She was christened Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone, but her family used to call her 'Little Nonni'. When she was only five years old the mother she loved died of breast cancer. Madonna persuaded her father to let her take dance lessons when she was 8 years old, instead of taking piano lessons, like he wanted her to.

Madonna was 12 years old, when she entered the local Catholic high school. It was oppressive and she recalls "they would hit you across the back with a stapler if you were disobedient". In school she learnt a great deal from classes in tap, jazz dancing, baton twirling and gymnastics. It was here that she started to display the extrovert Madonna that hitherto only her family had experienced. She drew attention by wearing odd socks, appearing in a friend's home movie with a fried egg on her stomach. She also appeared in a local talent contest where she danced to a record by 'The Who' wearing only a bikini and body paint. She wanted to do everything she was told she shouldn't or couldn't. She'd roll up her uniform skirt. She'd go into the bathroom and put make-up and nylon stockings on. She was incredibly flirtatious. But Madonna was also very good at her schoolwork. Not so surprisingly Madonna shone in the school's theatre department, where she was given the lead role in several of their productions. After Madonna left school she attended the University of Michigan on a dance scholarship, where she studied under ballet school owner, Chris Flynn.

Pretty soon after studying some time in the University of Michigan Madonna wanted to go to New York to chase her dreams. Everyone was against the idea but her dance teacher said, "Go for it!" - and she did! This was the start of hard times for Madonna. She lived in terrible house, crawling with cockroaches. There were winos in the hallways, and the entire place smelled like stale beer.

Then she won a scholarship at the Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre, where she spent two years working hard at her classes during the day and even harder at night, holding down a succession of part-time jobs in fast food restaurants to make a little extra money. After a while Madonna realized that the way to the top for her was not going to be through pure modern dance. She started auditioning for theatre and musical parts, and joined a band called The Breakfast Band as the drummer. She then persuaded them to write some songs for her to sing as the group's lead singer. After she had been with them a few months she realized that they were getting nowhere and so went off alone to form her own band with herself as the lead singer. During the following few months they played a succession of dodgy New York clubs to establish a name for themselves on the music circuit. It wasn't easy. The band changed members and names many times.

Madonna finally got a deal with Gotham Records, worth one hundred dollars a week. Steve Bray went with her as drummer and songwriter. She kept at it and eventually got a record deal with 'Sire Records' for only $5000 and released her first single 'Everybody'. When it was first played on the radio and in clubs, many fans mistook Madonna for an Afro-American disco diva. Record company also didn't put Madonna's picture on this single's cover, they wanted people think that she was Afro-American, to sell more records. 'Everybody' sold over 250 000 copies and went to No.3 in the dance charts. John 'Jellybean' Benitez found Madonna the song 'Holiday', and that was an instant hit. But Madonna first hit the top ten with "Borderline". It's rumored that her vocals were mechanically altered to make her sound more girlie. Her first album 'Madonna', released in 1983 won her wide acclaim and millions of fans, plus invitations to move into films. Not only was Madonna setting the tone music wise, she was also creating a whole new fashion. In "Lucky Star" music video, she showcased her Boy Toy image. Madonna's style was so popular that world famous lingerie store 'Fredericks of Hollywood' reported a 40 % increase in sales, which they put down to the Material Girl's image.

Never letting an opportunity to make a fast buck pass her by, Madonna set up her own "Wazoo" clothing label. Among other things, "Wazoo" manufactured rubber bracelets and Boy Toy belt buckles. It wasn't long before millions of girl fans the world over took on the raggy clothes of their number 1 pop heroine. But it wasn't just the clothes that were developing Madonna's raunchy reputation. Her music was about to take a new and controversial turn. The new album 'Like A Virgin' (1984) established Madonna as a popular artist and soon nearly everyone had a copy of this album. It gained 3X platinum status in the US charts immediately! The year 1985 was VERY busy for Madonna. The music video 'Material Girl' came out on the 1st of February, the movie "Vision Quest" on February 15th and the movie "Desperately Seeking Susan" on March 29th. Her role in "Desperately Seeking Susan" added a significant facet to her image. Madonna's singles: "Material Girl" and "Crazy For You "(from 'Vision Quest' movie soundtrack) were both top five hits. "Crazy for you" gave Madonna her first Grammy nomination. Madonna's first big tour was named after her album- "The Virgin Tour"(1985). It went from smaller venues to sold-out arenas in a matter of months. During "Material Girl" video shooting she met Sean Penn. On the 16th of August, 1985 they were married in Malibu. Their marriage officially ended on 10th of January,1989 when Madonna filed for divorce on the grounds of irreconcilable differences.

In the 1990’s Madonna managed to keep both her music and acting careers going. She gave a number of strong performances in supporting roles. In 1990 she played femme fatale Breathless Mahoney in Dick Tracy; she also had a highly publicized fling with director and star, Warren Beatty. Her work in A League of Their Own (1992), which starred Tom Hanks and Geena Davis, was also relaxed and amusing. In 1996 she gave an excellent performance as the star and title character in the musical Evita. In 1992 she put the album "Erotica". In 1994 Madonna her album "Bedtime Stories" came out, and in 1995 the softer “Something to Remember” was released. In 1995 Madonna also gave birth to her daughter Lourdes Leon was born, the father was her personal trainer, Carlos Leon.

In 1998 Madonna established a strong following in the next generation with her album “Ray of Light,” and in 2000 she released “Music.” In 2000 she also gave birth to her son Rocco Ritchie, with her boyfriend, English director Guy Ritchie. The couple was married in December of that year. This year Madonna recorded the title single for the James Bond film Die Another Day. She is also starring in the remake of 1974’s Swept Away, which is directed by her hubbie Guy Ritchie.