14 DAY TRIAL // Madonna has a new album coming out this year, “Rebel Heart,” and she’s already promoting it aggressively on social media. Considering that over a dozen of demo tracks from it leaked last month, sending her into a fit of rage, and that reactions to the songs weren’t entirely positive, she has no other choice but to be aggressive in her campaign.
Apparently, that also includes ruffling some feathers for attention. Strike that and replace with “a lot of” feathers, because the Queen of Pop is under a lot of fire right now for comparing herself to Nelson Mandela and Dr. Martin Luther King.
And that’s just the beginning.
Madonna pays tribute to all the #RebelHearts
Madonna considers herself a pioneer, a revolutionary and anyone scrolling through her Twitter or Instagram feed can see that she’s marketing her album, “Rebel Heart,” as a revolution manifesto. She aims to be loud and unapologetic, and to leave her mark on the world again.
To make the rest of the world understand just how big her mark will be (or she aims it to be), she asked her fans to create for her art with famous political and historical figures and campaigners, mirroring the artwork on her album, showing a close-up of her face, tied closely with what looks like black cable. The words “Rebel Heart” are tattooed at the base of her neck.
She made sure to repost some of the fan-made photos that came her way, including a similar one with Mandela (with the caption, “This Rebel Heart fought for freedom”) and with Dr. Martin Luther King (“This Rebel Heart had a dream”), but also with Jesus and Bob Marley.
The implication is obvious: by paying tribute to these icons, she’s aligning herself with them, putting herself (and her accomplishments) on the same footing as they are.
And that’s just plain wrong, many voices are saying.
Madonna is shameless, despicable
Madonna usually has many supporters, but it seems that many of her Instagram posts on the topics have been taken over by people who find serious offense with her comparing herself to such important figures as MLK, Mandela or Jesus.
“Rebel Heart,” whatever she might say to sell it, is a pop album – and not a very good one, while we’re at it, if what we heard from it on those leaked songs.
So by releasing it, she’s not exactly writing history, not in the way Mandela and MLK have, that much is clear. By using their accomplishments to sell a pop album, by turning them into marketing devices, she is diminishing their worth because she creates the (false) impression that what she’s doing is just as important as what they did.
And no pop album has ever won wars or furthered social and political change, the same critics say. As of now, Madonna is yet to address the latest round of controversy, but she did say some hours before she started uploading the photos that haters should just be patient, because she had so much more for them to find offense with. This is just the beginning.
One of the first ❤️#rebelhearts !!! #iconic A photo posted by Madonna (@madonna) on Dec 12, 2014 at 4:57pm PST
This ❤️#rebelheart had a dream! A photo posted by Madonna (@madonna) on Jan 1, 2015 at 8:05am PST
This❤️#rebelheart fought for freedom! A photo posted by Madonna (@madonna) on Jan 1, 2015 at 8:07am PST
This❤️#rebelheart sang about ONE LOVE! Uma foto publicada por Madonna (@madonna) em Jan 1, 2015 at 8:08 PST
I would like to thank all my fans for recreating my album cover with the ❤️Rebel Heart ribbon on the faces of so many Great Hero's. It shows that you are also celebrating and in admiration of these great freedom fighters! When I repost these images i am saying YES! These people are all Rebel Hearts in one way or another from Martin Luther King to Jesus to Nelson Mandela to John Lennon. YES! Lets celebrate them! The world needs more people like them. I hope to one day accomplish. 1 100th of what these Rebel Hearts have accomplished. As I Said in a previous post "I walk in the footsteps of Giants" and i will continue to do so G*D willing. They are my guiding light. ❤️#rebelheart ❤️#livingforlove Ett foto publicerat av Madonna (@madonna) Jan 1, 2015 at 6:50 PST