It’s 40 years since Madonna released Material Girl as a single. The song would become one of the singer’s biggest hits and also become her nickname in the press.
The song was the second single from Madonna’s second album Like a Virgin. The title track was a huge hit, and Material Girl was a global smash too.
Despite being one of her biggest hits, we’re pretty sure Madonna does not have a lot of love for the tune.
For her second album Madonna worked with producer Nile Rogers who was also having success with David Bowie, INXS and Duran Duran around the same time.
The former Chic songwriter, guitarist and producer guided the project which was a mix of songs Madonna brought to the table, and some suggestions by the record company that came from external writing teams. Material Girl was written by Peter Brown and writing partner Robert Rans. Brown also wrote the disco era hits Do Ya Wanna Get Funky With Me and Dance With Me.
Madonna has said that she liked the song at the time because it seemed very provocative, but years later she told interviewers she wished she’d never recorded it because she hates being called The Material Girl in the press, arguing that she’s not materialistic at all.
“I can’t completely disdain the song and the video, because they certainly were important to my career. But talk about the media hanging on a phrase and misinterpreting the damn thing as well. I didn’t write that song, you know, and the video was about how the girl rejected diamonds and money. But God forbid irony should be understood. So when I’m ninety, I’ll still be the Material Girl. I guess it’s not so bad. Lana Turner was the Sweater Girl until the day she died.” Madonna is quoted as saying in a book by celebrity biographer Randy J Taraborrelli.
The song’s iconic music video pays homage to Marilyn Monroe’s performance of Diamonds are a Girls Best Friend from the movie Gentleman Prefer Blondes. It was directed by Mary Lambert who was also behind Madonna’s videos for Borderline and Like a Virgin. Lambert would go on to create more videos for the singer including clips for La Isla Bonita and Like a Prayer.
Actor Keith Carradine plays Madonna’s wealthy love interest, while Robert Wuhl appears in the opening sequence. It was one the set of the video that Madonna met her future husband actor Sean Penn when he dropped by the shoot.
The song was a big hit, reaching number 4 in the Australian charts, number 3 in the UK, number 2 in the US Billboard Hot 100.
When Madonna’s included the track in her live shows, she’s generally made fun of the song. For the Virgin tour it was the closing number of the set and featured an extra pretending to be Madonna’s father sending her home.
On the Who’s That Girl World Tour a few years later Madonna performed the tune as party of a medley, while dressed like Dame Edna Everage. For the Blong Ambition tour in 1990 Madonna and backing singers Niki Harris and Donna De Lory dressed up as old ladies for the song.
The song was included on Madonna’s first greatest hits compilation The Immaculate Collection but was left off her Celebration compilation in 2009. It made the cut for the extended version of 2022’s Finally Enough Love 50 Number Ones offering.
In 2022 Madonna released a new version of the tune renamed Material Gworrlllll! which saw her team up with Saucy Santana.
