Madonna has been getting tons of plastic surgery for years. Which is her business, and she can do whatever she wants with her body. But of course people are going to judge the quality of the work and the intentions behind it. And all of it is a whole ass mess, in every sense. Madonna doesn’t make many public appearances these days, preferring to spread her particular Madge gospel through social media. So I do think there were a lot of stunned people when Madonna walked out onto the MTV VMA stage last night. Stunned because people couldn’t believe that MTV actually got Madonna to come out for the 40th anniversary of MTV, and stunned because of the way Madonna looks now.
So… yeah, it looks like she’s gotten a Kardashian-style makeover. That’s how much work Madonna’s gotten on her face at this point. Everything is smooth, taut and creepy. I think she’s gotten a chin implant and cheek implants and everything is pulled too tight. But maybe the biggest surprise is that Madge has gotten butt implants too? I think that was her purpose in coming out for the VMAs: to show off her ass of lies. She’s 63 years old and she’s still shocking people. Which was always her shtick. Shock and awe.
madonna at the vmas was like "chill, lemme leave now" #vmas pic.twitter.com/qIsxbMiZct
— Susie Ho-maker (@johnnygnecc0) September 13, 2021
Photos courtesy of Getty, Instagram.
Madonna cannot just let her legacy speak for itself, which is too bad. But even in her heyday she was glomming onto trends – she just used to be ahead of the curve. I feel like BBLs are kinda over.
It’s telling that we are still making women’s body parts into trends, right? Trends that sometimes turn bodies into outright caricatures – and then you are still damned if you do, and damned if you don’t.
Bbl often turn women’s bodies into corpses as well as caricatures. It’s the deadliest cosmetic surgery.
Oceans rise, empires fall, and Madge is gonna Madge.
Aang’s right the mortality rate on BBLs is insane, i think it’s considered the riskiest cosmetic procedure?
Madonna is a music legend. It’s too bad she feels she had to embark in the plastic bandewagon because she could’ve been the one accepting and leading a non-plastic lifestyle when we all get to that age. Anyway, I am surprised I was kinda offended by the title of this post, it made me sad for her to read “Madonna came with her implants”. I think we will hurt her feelings.
I agree with all you said. And Since I was a Madonna-looney back in the day, I find this entire look sad. I wonder if JLo is taking notes on what NOT to do.
Madonna was the first album I bought as a 12 year old. I saw the Erotica tour in Paris at the height of her fame. I am just so sad for her now. Such insecurity.
Leanne, YES. I remember years and years ago reading (correct me if I have it wrong) that she was working with Alanis Morissette and I thought: WOW, what a true icon to now use her expertise to help other women get into the game. That is empowerment. And now I see this sad display from her. And what is sadder still is that she continues to show support in objectifying women. I know it’s not easy to age; especially when in this business and a LEGEND. But this is disappointing.
That BBL reminds me of the movie Beaches, where Bette Midler does Oh Industry and the creepy mask automatons do their robotic dance. It’s like the cheeks on those masks but on her butt. And also kind of her face. She looks sculpted out of clay.
If this trend dies I hope heroin chic doesn’t come back to replace it.
Omg! Lol!!!!!!
I agree about her legacy. I’m such a huge fan of hers and the mark she has made on the not just the music industry but the world. She doesn’t need to lift damn finger ever again, no one is ever gonna f*ck with her, her legacy is set in stone.
She’s more famous not being seen, that way she can maintain a certain amount of mystery to her. doesn’t need to turn up to these things anymore, it only cheapens her.
I’ve had an up and down view of Madonna over the years, but over all, I kind of like her and largely agree with your take on her. I like the fact that she’s saved her outrageousness for the stage when she was performing. Her personal life wasn’t filled w/ drug or alcohol abuse and so she demonstrated a fair amount of self-control. She was also tolerant and inclusive of many people long before it was politically convenient to be.
So, I know that her on-stage costumes have been revealing sometimes over the years, but there was also an artistic factor to them. At times, she was also confident enough not to reveal anything, like the creamy white pantsuit during the vogue days. Maybe what we’re seeing in those images above is her undying rebellion in dressing like she wants, but also getting surgery in order to “look presentable” in such skin-baring outfits. Either way, I wish she’d find a way to channel that rebellious spirit w/ the realities of time and still be Madonna.
I’m a little surprised that people just now noticed her butt.
She’s had a BBL since that weird circus themed tour she did a few years ago. First time I saw it was some short clip online where she made a surprise appearance at a gay club alongside, IIRC, Ariana Grande.
I am trying so hard not to judge Madonna’s surgeries. She’s an icon. But she’s making it very hard for me….
Yeah she has had those for years.
That’s what I was going to say when I was reading this: she had butt implants YEARS ago, that’s no biggie. Her breasts though….WOAH. Step away from the surgeon’s table, Madge…
Yes, she had those butt implants for years. They look incredible odd on women with a toned/lean physique like Madonna’s. However her boobs look different now. Sad what she has done to herself, she had such an incredible look
I always knew Madonna would be like this at this point in her career. She is and always has been one of those artists that craves constant attention. And now that she is older in an industry that is so youth-oriented, especially against female artists, she is kind of lost in terms of being able to garner the sort of attention she did before so you see more and more over-the-top behavior. Some acts like Tina Turner or The Rolling Stones were/ are quite happy being able to sell out huge international tours year after year later in their careers, even if they didn’t get the sort of mainstream attention and chart success they had during their commercial peaks. That ain’t enough for Ms. Ciccone.
Good on her, she looks fabulous. But, my word I’m glad I don’t have to wear that outfit!
seriously? Fabulous? In which scary world is this fabulous?
I dont know if fabulous is the right word. Her face looks painful and so do those implants. Its a damn shame. It looks like her cheeks are ready to pop if she smiled.
My god, she looks like a blow up doll. I know part of the blame is on our patriarchal society, but she could have done better plastic surgeries, instead of going for painful implants.
She could barely talk!!! Her face is too tight. I love her but no more surgery!!
I hope you’re joking. She looks like a blow up doll.
She looks like an alien. The work on her face is *awful*. And those butt implants are a hilarious ly bad.
What? She looks puffy and scary. Madame The Puppet is NOT a good look.
She makes me so sad now.
Those breasts look like they are about to pop. I’m wincing…
If that’s your idea of fabulous you need your eyes checked. She looks like a pathetic old hooker.
I guess I mean fabulous insofar as she’s chosen to have all this work done to achieve a certain look and is now Owning that. I don’t think it’s for me to police what Madonna chooses to do with her own body. I would be terrified to look like that, but if she is happy and content with herself, however stretched and strangely smooth, then who am I to judge, I guess.
Uh, yeah…no. If this is “fabulous” in your world, honey you oughtta get out more 🙂
Terrible she looks like an ANT !
Haha! She totally does.
the best part of this entire lewk is how beat up her shoe soles are.
Haha, I thought that too.
So good to see a pair of Louboutin’s that are actually worn in – just like all my regular shoes.
You do you Madonna. She was a huge part of MTV for a long time and her performance at the first VMAs was epic.
I just hope she’s not giving interviews about how its just olive oil, lol.
What else is there to say, except for: bless her heart!
I defy you to find her heart under those life-preserver bOObs.
She never had a heart.
I nearly choked on my smoothie! lol
I wonder if it’s ever weird to them that they have a completely different face than they used to, or because it’s done in dribs and drabs they don’t notice anymore.
I tend to think they don’t notice.
She has lost all definition in her jaw muscles, and she has filled out her cheek bones a lot so her face has turned from a beautiful square face, like Angelina Jolie, to this heart shaped long looking face. Maybe her plan was to look younger. If so my opinion is that she has not succeeded. Maybe her plan was to get this exact look. If so, she has succeeded, lol. Her skin looks great. Her eyes are beautiful. Everything else looks morphed and a bit off. That ass, is it even real plastic surgery, or just a prop a$$?
I also wonder why Cher (10+ years her senior) can get away with doing the exact same thing without as many people bashing her. My personal belief is that Cher always had this natural secure, calm aura around her whilst Madonna seems more insecure.
I could be totally wrong, but it seemed as though Cher’s plastic surgeries kind of happened over time so we had time to get used to it. Same with Dolly Parton mentioned above.
The new reconstruction Madonna has seems so sudden.
I don’t like what Cher has done to herself, either, but she’s both more honest and less in our faces about it.
I find it weird that people get insane amounts of plastic surgery just to Photoshop their photos to hell and back for the ‘gram. Like…my surgery alone with a bare face should be enough, but if I’m wearing makeup, I better not need to photoshop myself afterward.
Those are some enthusiastically ‘shopped photos she posted, looks like a teenager
Those breasts are crying for release from that latex playsuit.
I don’t know man. I used to really respect Madonna because she was so shocking and didn’t give an f really, but this is just so… Idk, the opposite. It looks painful. There’s little dignity behind it. Sure, anyone can and should do as they please with their own body, but I somehow thought madonna did not care about fitting into the patriarchy at 60 anymore. I know I am sure looking forward to that.
It looks like a drag prosthetic to me – especially with the high collar & necklaces
I was also thinking drag body prosthesis and padding, for both t*its and a**.
Drag prosthetics! Gosh I hope so! However- there are red marks where her zipper digs into them in the lower left ?
Point is, I hope this is the feeling she’s going for vs just the look.
I truly hope she feels good. The look is edgy- a sex madge. I get it- who else is doing granny dom?
I agree Sandy; Madonna used to lead the pack. To see her follow someone as unworthy as the Kardashians feels sad.
it was bad enough when she was copying Lady Miss Kier back in the ’90s. you can see it in Truth or Dare (still a great movie).
I agree. She just seems sad and trying to keep up with the younger women when she was leading the pack years ago. Madonna seems to lack the confidence that other women like Cher and Dolly Parton have acquired over time. And it’s not like those two shied away from sexy outfits and plastic surgery. They just don’t seem so pathetic about aging.
Tina Turner should be her role model, not Kim Kardashian.
Yeah! Tina aged so cool! Sexy but strong and embraced her awesome age!
@ Dilettante, yes but Tina Turner is black and you know the saying, black doesn’t crack, and it’s true!! Look at older white female singers and I can only think of Alanis Morissette, Shania Twain, Faith Hill who have aged well, but I just saw that they are all 10+ years younger. Cher and Dolly have had major plastic surgery and Dolly isn’t shy about it either. So Madonna apparently doesn’t want to age gracefully, which she isn’t. Her boobs and a$$ have different time zones there are so enormous!! I just hope she eases back away from the knife for a while.
I’m so torn about her. Like, on the one hand maybe she is happy and just loves the shock of it all. She’s always pushed this kind of look as empowering. So, maybe it really is for her and that’s awesome. I want her to feel good about herself.
On the other hand, it all comes across as insecure and chasing youth to me. Like she’s doing it because she feels she needs to look young and is fighting the idea of aging. Aging can be difficult, especially when part of your job is to “look good.” It just makes me a little sad to think that she may feel insecure and that she’s sort of loosing herself. thinking she has less to offer because she doesn’t look as young as she used to. I wish she was embracing this new stage in her life. I would hate to think she has no idea of self beyond Madonna the super star. She has reinvented herself so many times and has always seemed so confident. I just don’t see the same confidence she used to have.
Ainsley.. I agree.
Also, on a purely selfish level, I would like to see what she would have presented like if she didn’t go this route. She is serving up Madonna 1992 here, and I would love to see what Madonna 2021 would be if she continued to change with the times. She is 63 and it’s not like I expect her to dress like a Golden Girl. But with her coolness/innovation and money she could be so cool and interesting. And still quite beautiful I am sure.
She looked absolutely great around the Ray of Light album period. She looked amazing for her age, had obviously had work done but had kept it natural and low key. If only she had kept going down that route and accepted that the aim is to look good for your age, not to try and ape a completely different, decades younger look.
Here she is aged 40 singing live on Oprah. Terrifying to see her now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZXx513U-A8
@ The Hench, wow!! Thanks fir the link. It’s amazing how different she looks now!! She looked fabulous for 40!!
Thank you for wording that better than I once did. She was such a doesn’t give an eff trailblazer but here she’s gone full stepford wife. I would like to have seen her age like a human.
It would be revolutionary if she let herself age with some grace and then still wore this. Like, why are we afraid of aging bodies? Why not show them off?? People should wear what they want at any age. The problem is, she’s still trying to look 25. And no one is fooled. She looks weird and uncanny, not young. That’s what makes it sad. The obsession with youth. Embracing your sexuality and body at any age is cool. But she isn’t doing that. She’s masquerading as a young person. It’s just sad and desperate. The body dysmorphia is real. And the thing is, Dolly and Cher at least admit to it and laugh at themselves a bit. Madonna takes it so seriously and pretends it isn’t the case. I don’t know… I just feel sad looking at these. And I actually think she was aging beautifully. She has great bone structure, she is extremely fit, she looked good! And then she just dove into the plastics pool and now she looks awful.
I mentioned Cher and Dolly Parton above before I saw your comment, but I guess that is the difference with them. They don’t take themselves as seriously as Madonna and it just comes off way better.
I think she always had good style and looked great, but since she hit her 60s, she’s started dressing like an emo teenage. I do love when people embrace their quirkinesses without giving af, but I do also think Madonna is going to the extreme where she maybe acting out of insecurity. Like dating guys in their 20s, it’s like she’s determined to fight getting older at all costs. She doesn’t need to go to this extreme, because if anything it makes her look even older. She looked great as she was.
@ Ainsley7, I agree with you Turtle Dove. We would love to see Madonna for how she would actually look like. But she probably feels immense pressure to still be enough with her incredible voice, writing and dancing abilities. She is an ICON!!!! And will always be one.
“fighting the idea of aging….”
That phrase really has me thinking.
Maybe it’s not empowering to fight “aging”, as it is an inevitable part of life.
Maybe it’s more empowering to fight stereotypes about aging.
I wish she was doing the latter instead of the former.
Yep, INSECURITY. Exactly that. A woman who is secure in herself does not go to such extremes. Look at Angela Bassett. Look at Meryl Streep. Look at Frances McDormand. Look at Sophia Loren or Lauren Bacall.
Wow, Mae West is looking amaaaaaaazing these days!
Madonna had it all. Looks, brains, and talent. Brains and talent only improve with age. But the world will tell you that your looks are gone. I’m sure that sucks for someone like her. She’s been getting tweaked forever.
Her hair and face giving me a Bette Davis in Whatever Happened To Baby Jane vibe. Yikes.
What is her deal with the grill? Why is she insisting on that?
The face, boobs and butt are giving her a bloated appearance. Fillers can look great if done well, so my question is why do they look so obvious when she has the money for a top notch plastic surgeon?
All the money and fame she means that doctors aren’t going to say “No” to her umpteenth tweak. This is the unfortunate result.
Yeah, too bad plastic surgeons don’t have more ethics. She’s taken care of herself for so long, with exercise, healthy eating and staying out of the sun. She probably would have looked fine without the fillers.
Is it possible the bloat is because the work, or fillers haven’t settled yet? I don’t know if some stars get work when they know they have a big upcoming event and will be photographed, but it should be timed well.
I think her new face is confused. That’s what these pictures are saying to me. “I’m confused, where am I and how did I get here?” – thank god she didn’t burst in to the Talking Heads song.
She’s had those ridiculous butt implants for a while. They made headlines a while back when she appeared at a club on NYE Dec2018.
I really wonder if butt implants doesn’t mess up your back. Like having that extra weight at Madonnas age seems just medically ill advised
They aren’t butt implants. No one gets butt implants. It’s called a Brazilian Butt lift. That’s why KK was able to “x-ray” her butt all those years ago and nothing came up because it’s a BBL aka a fat transfer.
Is it strange that a 63 year old Madonna looks like a 24 year old Kylie Jenner in the face, especially in the 6th picture, or is it more concerning that a 24 year old Kylie looks like a 63 year old Madonna?
I guess good for Madonna. If she is happy with the outcome, that is all that matters.
Kylie doesn’t look like that (at all) without pounds of makeup. Kylie got plastic surgery to completely change her body. She is 24 though.
Kylie’s face is puffy as hell.
Well, there are alot of filters in her pictures — the same ones the Kardashians like to use.
Why Madonna? Why have you done this to yourself?
I’ve been a Madonna fan since she first came out – I’m that old, and seeing her do this to herself is just saddening and disappointing. Why can’t she age gracefully? That doesn’t mean not getting any work done, it means getting work done well. It doesn’t mean being 63 and trying to look 23, It means trying to look like a ‘good’ 63. I feel like she’s veered into Michael Jackson territory with the bad surgery and procedures.
I think it would have been cool (and very Madonna!) to age ungracefully. She could have kept breaking boundaries and leading the way for our aging generations.
Instead she chased youth. Blah.
yes JEEZ, it would have been soooo Madonna and such a power statement for her to NOT DO ANY plastic and just been out there -Im 63 I take care of myself and I am a powerful aging woman!- it would have sealed her always trail blazing ways LEGEND status…Every woman fan or not would have been there for her- but now…to see the icon has a victim of these trends and having truly lost her way in her insecurity is so sad… Not that it was on her to be that person to point out this MADNESS…but it should have been her…
SAD
Yes. Like Marianne Faithful or Joni Mitchell. How I wish she’d had the guts to do that.
Adding my + 1 to this thread of comments.
Seeing her like this is what we of the 80s would call a bummer.
((See what I did there?)
Madonna always wanted to set the trends and be the center of attention. Her outer image was always a glamorous sexy in charge woman. And she is definitely trying to stay with that. I’m going to just focus on how much I love her music. Because I’m getting older too and it’s hard.
Looking at Madonna and thinking about what a healthy eating/ moving/ living proponent she is… I can’t help but wonder what her concerns about microplastics are??? And if she thinks about the idea that she’s willingly putting them into her body.
her body her choice, but I just hope she realizes that a metric shit ton of youth-chasing plastic surgery will always be completely obvious and radiate insecurity. I see work like this and photoshop like that, and I feel pity, not admiration.
Her implants are merging into a pillow chest. Yikes.
Damn. That looks like a drag queen breast plate. Oh Madge…for why?
I thought the same. Like they’re actually not her boobs, just a breastplate.
That first photo could be someone else entirely – the face and body shapes are so different from the other photos. Plus, the head looks like it’s been pasted on.
I wonder about so much plastic surgery and Botox and fillers, etc. Doesn’t it hurt, isn’t there a lot of down time? I had relatively minor kidney surgery last year and I wasn’t allowed to do anything strenuous for 2 months after. So what happens after butt implants? It seems like owning a fussy vintage car, always in the shop and only going out for special occasions.
Idk what is so empowering about being defined by your looks in exactly the same way that society has always defined women by their looks, but okay. I do think there’s freedom in aging exactly how we want to age, but people need to subject elective plastic surgery to a bit more scrutiny. It’s a bit like vaginoplasty or “sex work is about women exercising their agency”….rather oblivious to context.
I’m not surprised she’d get plastic surgery on her face.
But I am shocked she’d get implants (plastic surgery to her body). I don’t know why. Her body seems to be an instrument she was determined to hone through exercise and wouldn’t mess with through other means.
I used to be in awe of her physicality–her dance ability was astonishing to me. And now this? Sad, just really sad.
Totally agree! She was such a badass in keeping her body in shape. This is surprising.
I’m old enough to remember Mae West during the filming of Myra Breckenridge and my Lord she was so much older than Madonna. Maybe Madonna thinks of this as body art or something.
She’s even verging into Sextette territory here. It’s baffling.
oh wow we’re still judging women? what happened to stop policing women on their attire, on their looks? is she hurting anyone? committed a crime? seriously stop with this shit. i see you rarely comment on how Beyonce’s skin colour and face have changed since she first popped up during destiny child’s time. or how even the mighty jlo’s looks have changed. IT DOESNT MATTER! to each their own. this is such bs. she’s happy, she’s still doing her thing. they all are. jeez.
I think with celebrities, how they look ties in with what they say. If a celebrity says that she looks 30 years younger just from doing a lot of exercise, that’s just not credible. If she invites people to, “see how great I look” and then photoshops herself to where it could be anybody’s face, then people will have something to say.
I don’t follow celebrities in detail, but from what I’ve read about Beyonce, she talks about health, mental and physical, about how strict diets and exercise regiments don’t necessarily lead to good health, and how she needs to change things as she gets older. Of course, she’s 20+ years younger than Madonna, but it doesn’t seem like she’ll try to freeze time as she gets older.
Totally agree
She doesn’t look happy. She looks insecure and desperate.
Jeez. This white woman is not a victim. You think she’s not doing any harm? Really? When she is in fact perpetuating this impossible standards of physical beauty? Yes, this is something to aspire for – women should look 24 at 63. Before, when she used to have an image of celebrating female sexuality, revolutionising the image of being overtly sexy in the music industry her influence was decried by close-minded conservatives. Now, when she’s perpetuating the same values as the patriarchy she’s harmless? For good or for bad, Madonna has a platform, she knows it and used it well enough in the past. Madonna is not a consumer of these images she’s projecting. She’s a producer and feeding this crap to her consumers. No, she is not harmless and she is not a victim. She’s a white woman and a multi-millionaire with a big platform.
This white woman.
Good grief. Grow up.
No, you grow up. Madonna is a white woman – entitled and privileged. When Lil’ Nas X had kissed his back-up dancer in the BET Awards she actually had the audacity to post she did it first. Just like a white woman to hijack and diminish a pivotal black queer moment. If you think Madonna’s being white had nothing to contribute to the heights her popularity has reached, you need to read more than gossip sites. Good grief!
@kif you do know Lil’ Nas X and Madonna are friends, and Lil’ Nas X laughed as he understood the joke. His comments are readily available with a google search. Not sure why that would be significant though, as Madonna has always been a supporter of minorities and LGBTQ. This included hiring them in positions of authority, which I wish more people of power would do.
Not a huge Madonna fan, but I just don’t get this mish mosh of comments on this post. I’m always upset when I see any celebrity feel they have to partake to in what society’s “ideal” beauty definition is and they drastically change their looks. It’s generally women, although it has been the occasional male, i.e. Michael Jackson, Kenny Rogers, etc. I don’t think I blame the celebrities that much for it, as they seem to do it for work or self esteem issues and both scenarios are just sad. Maybe if we all didn’t harp on it though it wouldn’t be as much of an issue in society. It’s just a butt, let her and all the others who alter their appearance be.
I wish people on the internet would stop spreading this lie about Beyonce’s skin and face changing. The pictures are there, other than getting older, she looks remarkably the same.
No, Beyonce’ has had plenty of work done too. It is just better work than this obvious nightmare.
I know, right, MsIam. Also, instead of comparing apples to apples and oranges to oranges in terms of plastic surgery by comparing Cher and Dolly Parton’s faces to Madonna’s face. They go after Beyonce and Jennifer Lopez to throw under the aging/surgery bus while praising Cher & Dolly’s faces to the heavens. Odd that.
I don’t think she’s happy.
No, Madonna is “judging women” with her incessant surgeries and desperate need to stay young. She judges by using her obsessive youth-chasing to remain relevant, to have all eyeballs on her, to ridicule and shame those who choose to age naturally. She chooses some slack-jawed 25 year old dancer for a boy-toy instead of having a meaningful relationship with someone her own age because of her bottomless pit of greed to be seen as young and relevant. This shows how afraid she is of aging, how afraid she is of someone who’s an intellectual equal and not afraid of grey hair and wrinkles. She’s all surface, no depth.
THIS!
She’s hurting women everywhere by being a celeb and person in power, and putting out unrealistic and unhealthy messages about how women should look. And what makes you think she’s happy? Anyone who tweaks their face and body to this extreme is clearly not happy with themselves. Superficial thinking leads to blindly supporting this, you’re part of the problem.
Madonna is an entitled, privileged white woman. So is Britney (probably minus the entitlement). That doesn’t mean there’s no misogyny in the way they’ve been treated. And I’m not sure why Beyonce and JLo were mentioned as if they have it so much easier. WOC don’t just have to deal with “As a woman, you’re a pos and to blame for society’s problems if you make x choice with your physical appearance.” There’s the added burden of ‘you’re the reason why women of your race are treated like crap if you make that choice.” It’s not just a Madonna issue.
I reserve the right to judge what people do with what the good lord gave them.
She’s starting to look like Amanda Lepore. Ick. Also her boobs are enormous!
Her face kind of reminds me of Amanda Bynes now.
I felt so embarrassed for her kids. This woman is just…I don’t know the words. The amount of work she’s had done…and that big fake ass…yikes !
The butt implants are the worst. She needs to hang it up. She’s 63, come off it.
Are we SURE those boobs are implants? Many drag queens wear fake prosthetics like that.
I really dont understand the disdain and vitriol against Madonna on this site. She’s made great music for so many years. I just listened to her songs throughout the years on spotify – so great! She is a legend and has made so many songs, that are a significant part of pop culture. Also, bodywise, she can do what she wants, its her body, her choice.
I agree. She is a legend.
It is a Catch-22 because our society is so full of pressure on women to look like a basically impossible ideal while also be “natural.”
I also agree with the commentators above who are pointing out it’s a drag look.
Justifying cosmetic surgery with “her body, her choice” is more akin to anti-vaxxers saying the same. Cosmetic surgery is not on par with reproductive choice. Cosmetic surgery is not only a tool of the patriarchy and capitalists – its the tool of white supremacists as well. Do we get cosmetic surgery to achieve flat, wide noses? No, because it’s western (white) standards of beauty that is the aspiration of cosmetic surgery. The fact that the Kardashian’s have popularised imitating black bodies (i.e. ample breasts, wide hips, large lips) to caricature proportions is all the more disgusting. It’s 2021 and we are still just paying lip service when we tell young folks to accept yourselves and love yourselves as you are. You are only acceptable until you can afford to reconstruct yourself to western standards of physical beauty. It’s your only choice.
Thank you kif, I’ve enjoyed your posts this morning!
You make a good point. I also said that it was her body, her choice but I didn’t think to take that into account before commenting. That’s something crucial that we often overlook in our quest to support other women. We’re not simply supporting the person and their right to decide how they present themselves, we’re contributing to the upholding of a specific, ever-narrowing ideal.
The issue of personal choice is part of it—what Madonna does to her body has zero impact on me, personally, but her actions do not occur in a vacuum. These aren’t neutral decisions, even if they appear that way.
Way to cheapen the struggle for reproductive rights.
Loving this conversation.
Honestly my first thought when I see someone with this much and this type of work done is omg that is so PAINFUL. Like literally painful. Uf
Yeah, that’s why this stuff looks weird to me.
I love Madonna but whatever happened to aging gracefully, she would be so beautiful if she just left it alone
If anyone watched lorry hills videos analyzing celebrity plastic surgery, she did one on Madonna and it seems like Madonna keeps getting facelifts to tighten her face but then stuffs her face with fillers trying to create plump voluptuous cheeks, undoing the tightening effect of the facelifts, so she gets another one and the cycle continues. I think she’s on her third or fourth face lift at this point.
I feel like she thinks her legacy is “Madonna is still sexy and controversial at any age!” But it’s actually “how grotesque and sad has Madonna become attempting to stay sexy and controversial at any age”
She looks like a blonde, geriatric Jessica Rabbit
Her body, her choice, yes.
But can we talk about how she, using her massive platform, normalizes plastic surgery and regardless of her intent, her surgeries fall in line with what is deemed attractive, sexy and therefore ‘valuable’ in women.
When all of your choices align with patriarchal ideals are they truly choices?
On one hand, it’s her body and her money, so she can do what she wants with it. On another hand, I wish someone would take her gently aside and tell her not to bother so much. She’s a legendary artist who set the bar for artists today, she should rest easy on those laurels and stop feeling like she needs to keep up.
I agree that her extensive plastic surgery is problematic. But none the less, the intense ridicule on this site minimizes and disregards Madonnas great achivements as an artist.
@Marie – If you’re a great artist, a couple of comments on a celebrity site isn’t going to change that. Madonna was enormously influential in her time, she brought so much to the mainstream, she’ll always be historically relevant, but I think she stopped being actively relevant a while ago. It was a disappointment to me, but I get that an artist can be brilliant and still run out of things to say. And, for me, these images of her show that she has nothing more to say.
I think she’s definitely accomplished. But it is a little difficult not to notice when someone looks like a completely different person. I can see why it would elicit….feedback.
Madonna’s gradual morphing into a Kardashian styled caricature is really sad to watch. Besides the fact that her face looks incredibly painful, I’m shocked at what she’s done to her body. She was a dancer and the butt implants and whatever she’s done to her breasts must seriously impact her ability to dance. It’s not ageist to notice when someone is drastically altering their body. You’d think that all of her accomplishments over the years would have led to better self esteem.
I say this as a fan and with love: she’s already shown us what her t*ts and a** look like many, many times before. We know how old she is. There’s no need for her to do this to herself.
I think this is the saddest part. It’s not about the plastic surgery but that she feels this is the way to stay relevant. Why not new music? Looking like a kardashian isn’t going to make her relevant to gen Z.
I can’t tell if that outfit is leather or vinyl but 1. It looks painfully tight, and 2. I bet it’s hot.
I’m 50, and at this point I have to be comfortable and temperature regulated.🤣
Her figure still rocks. I applaud her commitment. But me? I’m going to have that 2nd ice cream sandwich.
If she loves the implants and such then fabulous girl, do your thing. I don’t need it, I’m ok with a droop and a wrinkle or two. Part of my story. Don’t like it? Don’t look. I’ll still keep being me.😁
Looks painful.
Are celebrities the new Marie Antoinettes? The amount of money one has to spend to look like this is huge. The recovery time must be huge. No one outside of the 1% and the celeb realm in their right minds has either time or money to do this. Sócio-economically this is such a weird line to draw between the happy few and the peasants. It’s like privilege became a hallucinatory drug.
I’m saying this because I get that it is for show. But when showbizz is detrimental to your body (her poor spine), your cycle of life, the acceptance that comes with ageing – accepting time, accepting the changes in hormones, brain plasticity, memory, sexuality, I just don’t get what artistic message is being formulated here. Plus she has young kids. How can she move when she heals?
All this is very wealthy-celebs-gone-nuts to me. I just can’t see this as self acceptance and comfort.
I’m reminded of a scene of grotesquerie in the film Brazil, in which he visits his mother and she is having another procedure done.
I have visions of Madonna at the VMA’s 2035. She’ll be in a black leather dominatrix outfit that barely restrains her giant boobs. Her face will look frozen in time. Her attendants will be jocks wearing their oiled up muscles and jeweled jock straps to match her fabulous wheelchair. No one does old age like Madonna.
BUT WHY!?😭 She was perfect the way she was 😞
I agree! She really did have a lovely look when she was younger and honestly, I bet she would have aged pretty nicely if she left herself (mostly) alone and just took care of her physical health generally. This is just kind of sad.
I don’t quite understand why her extreme surgeries are “shocking.” Madonna has always sacrificed everything for fame, and was a very good trend spotter and marketed her “reinventions” masterfully, but it was always effortful and calculated to get the most eyes on her. I think it looked empowered to a lot of people, but how empowering is it really to jump on every trend, even if you jump so early you’re considered innovative? I’ve always liked a lot of her music, but never really considered myself a fan for this reason. It would be wonderful if she led the pack with aging gracefully and redefining what it means to be an older female artist, but that was never in the cards by her way of thinking.
I don’t think it’s the surgeries in and of themselves that are necessarily shocking. But I think it might be the fact she’s getting such bad plastic surgery. With all that money, one would hope or think think the surgeries would be better. (I didn’t even notice Beyonce had done anything until it was pointed out here, because I guess she still looks human).
I assume almost everyone in Hollywood has done something. But I don’t think too much about it when the surgeries are good (i.e Blake Lively’s nose job? Maybe that doesn’t even count as plastic surgery anymore, but as an enhancement like lipstick. The fact that plastic surgery is considered trendy now is so odd to me, but whatever floats people’s boats. If people looked better, I would get it. But when they look, I don’t.)
I really, really don’t get the BBL. But after even Beyonce did it (I can send you the before/after, I was shocked myself), nothing surprises me anymore. Yes, she gained weight after delivering twins, but it’s not how she used to carry her weight before. Now she magically has thin legs (for her) and bubble butt with very unnatural curve
Eh. I never found her shocking. Anyone with a decent sex life was like, “ honey, you didn’t invent this”. I just find her….thirsty. She was always thirsty.
So sad! Exactly what one expects from her. Holding on to the past. I would have been impressed with a Madonna ageing maturely and with grace. Reaching out to more noble values and being a role model for younger artists. This is just so – pathetic and sad. 😑
“Ass of lies”…omg, that alone made it worth getting up today. Kaiser, even after all these years you can still make me spit my coffee. xxoo
I think it’s ironic how she built her life’s career on unpredictability, change, shock and distinction. She’s become the antithesis of herself.
I always thought Madonna was problematic. Even when I loved her as I did in my youth. She seemed to be so needy. Still is. But it is her life.
I think the reason she doesn’t come out often is because her social media pics don’t match reality. She obviously facetunes/photoshops her pics. Her face doesn’t look nearly as flawless and taut as it does in her pictures. It’s sad to see the desperation and fear she has of aging.
Her choice to get plastic surgery is hers alone. HOWEVER, she has, for years, preached authenticity and individuality. And over the years, she has slowly but surely become a caricature of herself. Her words do not match up with her actions, and I know we’re all walking contradictions in our own ways, but it seems especially hypocritical of her to go this route.
This does not look like someone who isn’t afraid of ageing. It looks like someone who is desperate to avoid it. And if “she’s Madonna!” she should be able to forego these extremes and say, “Hey, fuck you. I’m [whatever age], and this is what I look like. If you don’t like it, deal with it.” If I had been looking ahead in the 80s, that’s what I would’ve expected her to do.
I’m not even a fan, so this isn’t coming from a place of personal disappointment.
Patti Smith she isn’t.
Madge’s facial expression looks like Bette Davis,, in WHT Baby Jane… good grief 🙄
All of these implants, fillers, Botox, alterations, etc. – they are not improving anything! I love makeup and its transformative power. But when I see Madonna, the Kardashians, etc., all I see is fake, fake, and did I mention…fake. They don’t look better unless one’s definition of “better” is “I look like a blow up doll or cartoon figure.” And to speak slightly off topic, someone I adore, Sandra Bullock, was so good acting-wise in The Proposal but also so painful to watch because her face had no natural lines. This isn’t patriarchy or industry pressure anymore, women, this is women influencing other women. Just say NO!
Yes I love your comment. So much fakery, asses and faces of lies.
I am turning 51, still feeling myself, and just saying NO!
I hear you. And yet I love my makeup and I still dye my hair. I use good (read: not super expensive) skin care products and avoid the sun. A good lipstick, a smile and most importantly, confidence, will make anyone look younger. Also, I dress well and don’t look frumpy, ever. Oh, and I’m 60 and still feel great! I make an entrance when I walk into a room.
Meh, she’s Madonna. I assume she owns a mirror and looks the way she looks by choice, of her own agency. I don’t find that sad at all. It’s not a look I personally would take on for myself, but it’s hers and she’s doing what she wants to do. I have no problem with that. I find it a shame that she’s being mocked so mercilessly for how she looks.
Is she actually being mocked or are people just noticing that she looks like a completely different person now?
The most polite alternative is to not say anything at all. If she’s expecting compliments for looking good (which to some degree I could see her or anyone else who gets this kind of work done expects), well, I don’t think that’s going to happen.
How do these plastic surgeons convince people that getting these unnatural cheek/chin implants will make them look better? It’s mind boggling. It’s sad/embarrassing/upsetting that she would do this to herself. And dangerous regarding the butt surgery at her age. She has so many kid’s. She needs to safeguard her health and her life.
What happens to all the various plastic surgeries and fat transfers and injections and such as a person ages? Are they tied to always having more procedures to correct the deterioration of the old work?
She looks like Kylie Jenner. And that is not a compliment. Ribbit.
She’s lost the plot.
Of course there’s overlap here between women who slut-shame and /or victim-blame, and women who scream “that woman over there is judging and hurting ALL women just with the choices she makes with her own body. Of course they don’t see their hypocrisy either.
That argument is not the radical or accountability flex people think it is. It’s essentially saying other members of your group owe it to you to mirror your own choices and boundaries when it comes to their bodies, and making them to blame for god knows what problem if they don’t comply. It’s easy to love this argument when it’s time to point the finger at someone else. But none of us as women would like it if this same argument was used as a weapon against us, or other women in our lives, when making personal decisions that make us look ‘classy’, ‘moral’, and ‘not fast’ in a patriarchal society.
But I’m not a member of her group and I can’t imagine she would ever think so. The only thing Madonna and I have in common is similar biology, and that’s hardly enough for either of us to owe anything to one another.
Madonna’s made pantloads of money creating spectacle and inviting comment – so people are commenting. Mission accomplished.
So does one go to the plastic surgeon and ask to look like Kim K.?
🙄
Yeah, why does everyone have the same features now?
I never really thought of her as beautiful (maybe other stars seemed to eclipse her in that particular category) , but after all the stuff she’s done, I now realize she was quite good-looking and am wondering now why she’d mess with that. The plastic surgery is making me realize what she had. When unattractive people get plastic surgery, it’s understandable to me. When actual good-looking people do it and look worse afterwards, one can’t help but ask “why.”
Face close-ups are terrifying. Poor thing, once she was face of women empowerment and now is just… well… this.
😻
(Not) sexy SS officer (Nazi) Halloween costume.