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Madonna Time

By Jeralyn, Section Media
Posted on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 06:58:53 PM EST
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Update: Superbowl video here. Better quality here or here (but 15 second commercial.)

I'm tuning into the Superbowl but just for the halftime show with Madonna which is about to start. She'll sing 4 songs, 3 old and "Give Me All Your Luvin'" her new song with Nikki Manaj. She told Anderson Cooper she's nervous:

"First of all, it's the Super Bowl. I mean the Super Bowl is kind of like the holy of holies in America right? ... I have to put on the greatest show on earth, in the middle of the greatest show on earth. I have eight minutes to set it up and seven minutes to take it down and 12 minutes to put on the greatest show on earth. That's a lot of pressure."

How do you think she did?

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    Madonna Time | 35 comments (35 topical)

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    the visuals were great (5.00 / 1) (#5)
    by Jeralyn on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 07:41:06 PM EST
    and she's in terrific shape. I also loved the short black dress. I think her vocals could have been stronger though. Maybe it was the sound engineers that should have turned her volume up more. She was technically very good, she just didn't "pop" -- by which I mean she wasn't riveting or mesmerizing. Nikki Minaj sure "popped" though.

    The new song was the best one(or maybe the others are just dated.)

    All in all, well done Madonna.

    I wonder how much of the music (none / 0) (#11)
    by DFLer on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 09:57:14 PM EST
    was "live", including the singing

    Parent
    I see what you mean about the vocals (none / 0) (#15)
    by sj on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 10:50:33 PM EST
    It must be a fine line to walk, though, to get the volume in a setting like that without getting distortion and losing clarity.  Can always turn up the volume on the TV.  

    I don't think she was riveting at first but she got there.  For me, anyway.

    Agree.  Well done, Madonna.

    Parent

    Impressive. (5.00 / 2) (#6)
    by EL seattle on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 07:42:33 PM EST
    There was an amazing stage/video display, that had to be assembled and disassembled in only a few minutes. Some champion roadies were definitely involved.

    The Cleopatra opening (w/ Nicki Minaj) was definitely epic.

    Thought it was great. (5.00 / 2) (#7)
    by Tony on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 07:45:24 PM EST
    IMO the gold standard for Super Bowl halftime shows is Prince in 2007, but I thought Madonna did very well.

    Yes (none / 0) (#18)
    by Makarov on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 11:39:50 PM EST
    I thought this was the best halftime show since Prince. Easily.

    Parent
    I thought the game was a little boring (5.00 / 1) (#12)
    by lilburro on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 10:33:30 PM EST
    at times, but I loved Madonna.  Thought it was a great performance, no awkward or slow moments and was thrilled to see M.I.A.  I didn't know anything about it going into it in terms of song choice or theme.  So when "Vogue" came on my friends and I watching just about died.  A fun night to be a Madonna fan!
    No awkward moments? (none / 0) (#23)
    by MileHi Hawkeye on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 08:00:30 AM EST
    Did I just imagine MIA giving the finger to the camera?  

    Parent
    Yes (none / 0) (#24)
    by jbindc on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 08:03:35 AM EST
    A shame there is no class anymore

    Parent
    You expect class (none / 0) (#26)
    by lilburro on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 09:20:25 AM EST
    from a Superbowl halftime show?

    Parent
    I know I'm unhip (none / 0) (#28)
    by jbindc on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 10:15:48 AM EST
    But a) who is this "MIA" person anyways? b) is she a performer that is going to be relevant or even recognized by 2013? and c) does anyone older than a 6th grader think ir's cool or edgy to flip the bird?

    Parent
    she's a rapper (5.00 / 1) (#29)
    by CST on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 10:44:44 AM EST
    from the UK/Sri Lanka.

    Yes.    "She is the only artist in history to be nominated for an Academy Award, Grammy Award, Brit Award, Mercury Prize and Alternative Turner Prize, and the first artist of Asian descent to be nominated for an Academy and Grammy Award in the same year. M.I.A. is named as one of the defining artists of the 2000s decade by Rolling Stone in its "Best of the Decade" list. Esquire magazine ranked M.I.A. on its list of the 75 most influential people of the 21st century and Time magazine named her one of the world's most influential people."

    No, but given that there are half-naked people in a lot of the commercials, athletes swearing all over the field, not to mention beating the living pulp out of each other, I have a hard time being that offended.

    Parent

    Yeah, I agree (none / 0) (#30)
    by lilburro on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 11:16:36 AM EST
    No, but given that there are half-naked people in a lot of the commercials, athletes swearing all over the field, not to mention beating the living pulp out of each other, I have a hard time being that offended.

    It's been pointed out in some places that the UK is a little more liberal in terms of what they allow in obscene language/gestures on TV, I don't know how true that is ...I dunno, I didn't even catch the gesture and the flap doesn't matter too much to me.  

    MIA is an interesting performer if you like the genre.  I imagine she'll be making art and music for the rest of her life.  She's not a corporate creation.  I was really surprised to see her in the show.  Her new song is Bad Girls (youtube link).

    Parent

    Yep (none / 0) (#31)
    by jbindc on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 12:41:50 PM EST
    You srill hear a lot of hits still coming from Kool Moe Dee, Ton Loc, Salt n Pepa, and let's not forget Sisqo.

    Even the award winning rappers you still hear about - it isn't for their music.  Think Will Smith, LL Cool J, or Jay-Z.

    I'll mske you a bet that by the end of 2013, everyone will. Be saying "MIA who?"  "Oh yeah - thsy chick who flipped off the camera at the Super Bowl becsuse she thought it mafe her a bad a$$."

    That is all she might be remembered for.

    Parent

    what? (5.00 / 1) (#33)
    by CST on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 12:54:53 PM EST
    This post just strikes me as odd.  It seems like you are saying she will disappear because she is a rapper.

    Just because you don't listen to or like rap doesn't mean there isn't a wide audience for it.

    And btw, for people who do listen to it, you absolutely still hear about Jay-Z for his music.  That's just not all you hear because he's bigger than that now.

    Don't judge a genre you know nothing about.  I bet Kanye was supposed to disappear after that Grammy mishap too.

    For what it's worth, I have no idea if MIA is gonna make it in the long haul, I just don't think the answer to that question has anything to do with the superbowl "finger".

    Parent

    Sorry for the typos (none / 0) (#32)
    by jbindc on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 12:42:38 PM EST
    I hate touch screens.

    Parent
    I don't think anybody will be saying much about (none / 0) (#35)
    by lilburro on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 01:52:46 PM EST
    her in the mass media, period, as she is sort of an indie-rapper.  I doubt she'll ever really be mainstream.  Her music isn't conventional rap.  I suppose she is the "edgy talent" for Madonna's album.  

    She's worth checking out.

    Parent

    well if she is of Brit kulture (none / 0) (#38)
    by DFLer on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 04:49:21 PM EST
    the single finger salute would'nt be rude, would it? Wouldn't she have given the two finger salute?

    Parent
    why don't you google her (5.00 / 2) (#34)
    by Jeralyn on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 01:43:17 PM EST
    and learn a little about her before labeling her?

    Parent
    Ha, I guess I meant in terms of pacing (none / 0) (#25)
    by lilburro on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 09:19:19 AM EST
    I did miss that watching it live though.

    Parent
    Worth watching (5.00 / 1) (#14)
    by Sweet Sue on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 10:49:17 PM EST
    Best half time show I've ever seen.
    What a showwoman Madonna is: in the age of Tebow, she sang "Like a Prayer" that nearly got her burnt at the stake back in the day.
    And how cool to do "Vogue" at the macho fest we call "Superball" er, I mean "Bowl."
    Wasn't that LMFAO as her backup?
    My Queen, you rule the world.
    LOL (none / 0) (#16)
    by sj on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 10:56:26 PM EST
    I don't remember what review I was reading a few years ago where some commenters were saying she was washed up and [insert current artist] had it all over her.  Someone responded with "Madonna is over when she says she's over".

    Sounds about right to me.

    Parent

    Eh... (none / 0) (#36)
    by ks on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 02:42:05 PM EST
    I don't think performing Vogue at the Superbowl was any sort of ironic moment.  After all, the much more overtly "gay themed" song, YMCA by the Village People, has been performed, sung, used at so many sporting events that it's practically a sports anthem almost to the point of Queen's "We are the Champions".  

    Overall, I thought Madonna was boss and did the best SB show since the gold standard of recent SB shows, Prince, a few years ago.

    Parent

    Well... (none / 0) (#1)
    by MileHi Hawkeye on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 07:18:15 PM EST
    she didn't wear any NFL gear like a certain someone wagered she would.  

    And, I sure wish I was in that kind of shape!  Maybe then I wouldn't have pulled something in my tailbone (how is that even possible?!) pushing a stuck truck in the parking lot.  

    No Madonna fan here (none / 0) (#2)
    by Peter G on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 07:21:48 PM EST
    But I have to admit, great show.  Doesn't doing a cheerleader-themed number, with a sort of a marching band drum section, count as "close enough" to win that wager?

    Somehow... (none / 0) (#3)
    by MileHi Hawkeye on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 07:30:29 PM EST
    I don't think the boys in Vegas are that liberal in their interpretation of what counts as "close enough".  

    Parent
    I was never much of a Madonna fan (none / 0) (#4)
    by TeresaInPa on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 07:37:49 PM EST
    not that I didn't like a few of her songs.  I just didn't think she merited the endless hype.  Now she is in her 50s, she kind of comes off as the Disney adventure version of herself.
    One of the great things about being a singer is that you get to age and refine what you do, gain soul, nuance, depth.  Instead Madonna just seems to be a less energetic more eager to please, more bubble gum version of herself.
    But don't mind me, I am an admitted music snob.

    I'm a reluctant Madonna fan (5.00 / 1) (#13)
    by sj on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 10:46:58 PM EST
    ::sigh:: just like I'm a reluctant Gaga fan, and a reluctant Ke$ha fan.  

    Starting buying her stuff with "Ray of Light" and will probably get her latest album.  I remember playing that while working on some project with my brother and kind of apologizing for it.  He just looked up and said "Madonna's always entertained me.  What's not to like?"

    I've always liked "Like a Prayer" though.  It's up there with other "turn up the volume and try to sing along" songs.

    Parent

    Lady Gaga revisited (5.00 / 1) (#37)
    by BackFromOhio on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 03:33:18 PM EST
    I was a reluctant fan as well until I watched her do a duet with Tony Bennett on PBS - Great Performances.  She was extraordinary, and TB has her number -- and divulges it!

    Parent
    Madonna (none / 0) (#8)
    by jharp on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 07:48:25 PM EST
    Some of it I liked and some I thought was weak. I would rate it a 5 and 1/2.

    Also never a huge Madonna fan (none / 0) (#9)
    by brodie on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 08:25:38 PM EST
    Always preferred Maradona.

    Except for that set she put on at the 1985 Live Aid concert which was pretty cool.

    Missed her today though at least it appears from the above reviews that she wasn't lip-syncing it and probably sang better than what Roseanne Barr would have done.

    Madona was great (none / 0) (#10)
    by fishcamp on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 09:29:33 PM EST
    and that was a very fast wardrobe change but the brown and black outfit was strange.  The Giants were the best...

    Went to my sister's just after halftime (none / 0) (#17)
    by ZtoA on Sun Feb 05, 2012 at 10:59:00 PM EST
    and asked how they liked it. Loud chorus! My sister loved it. My brother in law and my 16 year old nephew (who I adore) were equally loud about how much they hated it. Then in the din the dog started barking and would not stop. And the phone rang. It was lovely.

    I thought she did a good job. The visuals and computer projections were, of course, really excellent. The Roman stuff and the religious stuff was a bit opportunistic, but then again, it is an opportunity. She is a good performer, but I thought she did not actually sing her stuff - and who could blame her, dancing in those heals (hey, could you football guys do that??). I questioned it when the other soloists seemed to really sing. So maybe she did. In that case it seemed nervous and a bit timid and canned. My only personal critique would be that I did not like the color work. The values were good tho, especially the ending.

    "Holy of holies"? (none / 0) (#22)
    by lentinel on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 04:47:29 AM EST
    To paraphrase Alfred Hitchcock;

    It's only a football game.

    The consensus (none / 0) (#27)
    by CST on Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 09:58:19 AM EST
    where I was on Madonna: better than expected.

    I thought the sets were pretty awesome, especially Like A Prayer.  The world peace thing was a bit awkward - not that there's anything wrong with world peace it just seemed random and a bit out of place.  I'm a big fan of Nikki Minaj though, who always "pops".

    Madonna Time | 35 comments (35 topical)

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