page_title: Cultural impact of Madonna
section_title: Music
hierarchical_section_title: Cultural impact of Madonna / Madonna as an icon / Music
caption_attribution_description: Español: Disco de platino concedido a Madona
context_page_description: Since the beginning of her career in the early 1980s, American singer and songwriter Madonna has had a social-cultural impact on the world through her recordings, attitude, clothing and lifestyle. Called the "Queen of Pop", Madonna is labeled by international authors as the greatest woman in music, as well as the most influential and iconic female recording artist of all time.
  A global cultural icon, Madonna has built a legacy that goes beyond music and has been studied by sociologists, historians and other social scientists. Her impact is often compared with that of the Beatles and Elvis Presley; they are the best selling acts of all time in the general, solo male and female category respectively. Madonna is a key figure in popular music; critics have retrospectively credited her presence, success and contributions with paving the way for every female artist and changing forever the music scene for women in the music history, as well as for today's pop stars. Even reviews of her work have served as a roadmap for scrutinizing women at each stage in their music career.
context_section_description: Rolling Stone described her as a musical icon without peer, while RTL Television Belgium said that "Madonna is a key figure in the music". Bill Wyman, editor of Chicago Reader, wrote that she is a "genuinely freakish figure in popular music". According to international media and critics, Madonna is the most influential female recording artist of all time, and the greatest woman in music history.
  Her contributions on music are generally praised by critics, which have also been known to induce controversy. Tony Sclafani from company MSNBC felt that her Madonna's impact and effect on the future direction of music bests The Beatles, even that quarter century after Madonna emerged, artists still use her ideas and seem modern and edgy doing so. Laura Barcella in her book Madonna and Me: Women Writers on the Queen of Pop (2012) wrote that "really, Madonna changed everything the musical landscape, the '80s look du jour, and most significantly, what a mainstream female pop star could (and couldn't) say, do, or accomplish in the public eye." Similar to Barcella, Joe Levy Blender editor in chief, "opened the door for what women could achieve and were permitted to do".
  In the music industry, Madonna was the first female to have complete control of her music and image. Authors noted that before Madonna, records labels determined every step of artists, but she introduced her style and conceptually directed every part of her career; the music industry was the foundation to permanently change the way the record companies treat artists. Journalist Carol Benson wrote that Madonna entered the music business with definite ideas about her image, but it was her track record that enabled her to increase her level of creative control over her music. Many years after, she founded Maverick Records became the most successful "vanity label" in the history of music. While under Madonna's control it generated well over $1 billion for Warner Bros. Records, more money than any other recording artist's record label.
  Critics felt in retrospect that Madonna's presence is defined for changing contemporary music history for women's, mainly rock, dance and pop scene. Also, she is cited that open the doors for the future hip-hop explosion and approach to sex to her music. Erin Vargo from online magazine in popular culture, felt that "Madonna has fought for freedom of expression by female artists. Her legacy has paved the way for today’s pop, hip-hop, and rock artists to get into their own groove". The Times stated: "Madonna, whether you like her or not, started a revolution amongst women in music ... Her attitudes and opinions on sex, nudity, style and sexuality forced the public to sit up and take notice". The New York Post writer Brian Niemietz, who found that Madonna revolutionized dance music much the same way Elvis Presley invented gospel and rock and roll.
caption: A platinum record for her album GHV2 under Maverick Records.
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