Dare I do what mother’s do? Brag? Well in this particular case I will, for the sake of illustration.
It was 1997 and the movie Evita was all the rage. Madonna’s classic performance of Don’t Cry for Me Argentina was playing for the hundredth time in my home living room. It was not the original soundtrack, I was listening to. It was my daughter, Kimberly, practicing the song on her Alto Sax for an upcoming audition. She became second chair by a force that I call fierce determination. That is a quality, so very powerful, that it can turn mediocrity into mastery.
When it comes to fierce determination and success, one woman stands out as having displayed an abundance of these assets, Madonna. She has been influenced by, Blondie, Marilyn Monroe, Nancy Sinatra, Carpenters, Donna Summer, Arthur Baker, ABBA, Village People and William Orbit.
One of Madonna’s greatest achievements is how she manipulated the media and the public with her music, her videos, her publicity, and her sexuality. She was the first female pop star to have complete control of her music and image. Madonna is deeply comfortable with her success. She thrives on meeting her goals, on producing the best, on using her fierce determination to be a winner.
“I stand for freedom of expression, doing what you believe in, and going after your dreams,” she says. She believes, “It’s better to live one year as a tiger, then a hundred as sheep.”
Beginning in 1995, after many years building her brand as a highly erotic and sexual sensation, Madonna began one of her most subtle image makeovers as she lobbied for the title role in the film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita. Backing away from the overt sexuality of Erotica and Bedtime Stories, Madonna recast herself as an upscale sophisticate so she could appeal to the mature audience of Evita. The movie was greeted with positive reviews that resulted in her winning the Golden Globe for Best Actress (Musical or Comedy).
And so Madonna lived out loud in her life and in my home as I grew an affinity for her ability to adapt and reinvent herself.
Here we are in 2016, another beginning, another year of possibilities, hopes, dreams, resolutions and wishes. What are you willing to to be fiercely determined about this year? Where will you reward yourself, acknowledge your achievements and the qualities that you will draw upon so you can say, a job well done!
Philosophically, Madonna says, “Consciousness is everything and that all things begin with a thought. That we are responsible for our own fate, we reap what we sow, we get what we give, we pull in what we put out. I know these things for sure.” She continues by sharing her thoughts on her music. “I’d like to think I am taking people on a journey; I am not just entertaining people, but giving them something to think about when they leave. I am my own experiment. I am my own work of art.”
She works diligently to make a deep and lasting impression. That’s fierce determination. Do you have that quality within you? It’s a New year folks….. let’s see how the power of intention and perseverance and focus and faith can mingle together to produce your award winning year!
Break a leg and let all the world be your stage. Happy New Year from The Happy Herald. “No matter who you are, no matter what you did, no matter where you’ve come from, You can always change, become a better version of yourself.” Madonna
I was cringing in anxiety reaching page 14 expecting a scathing, ageist, sexist report on Madonna. I was dumbfounded reading the article. As a fan of Madonna, I was thriled to read Ms. Sterling's report. Focusing on the positive, life-affirming, inspiring Madonna we fans love, literally blew my mind.
Thank you Ms. Sterling for reporting what is most revelant in a person's career: integrity, authenticity and the ability to break open doors not just for herself (Madonna) but also the truth of how we can do it for ourselves too.
Bill Tedesco