Thursday, May 01, 2008
Hard Enough: Madonna Kills At The Roseland Ballroom
Woot! Madonna turned the muthaeffin' house out last night as she took to the stage at the Roseland Ballroom here in NYC for her Hard Candy Promo Show last night. David and I were *extremely fortunate* to be invited to this intimate show and had the time of our lives. To be honest, I was expecting Madonna, perhaps her guitar, a few dancers and maybe a laser or two ... I was totally blown away by the actual production value of the show. She had a full stage, a few incredible video screens, a full troop of dancers, a full band AND a special guest star performer. It had to be the coolest 30 minute concert I think I've ever seen ... and I'm pretty sure that every single person in that venue would have to agree:
Madonna's career may span more than 25 years, but during an exclusive performance on Wednesday to celebrate the release of her 11th studio album the U.S. superstar told fans it still feels "like the first time." The athletic 49-year-old performed six songs for around 2,000 people at New York City's Roseland Ballroom, including four from "Hard Candy," her final album for long-term label Warner Bros. released internationally this week. "Even though I have made what seems like 100 records, every time I put one out it's like the first time and the best time," said Madonna, dressed in knee-high black boots, black satin sweatpants with glittery side stripes and a corset. "Hard Candy" scored solidly among critics, although much of the credit, or blame, they said, should go to the established hit-makers with whom she collaborated -- the likes of Justin Timberlake, Timbaland, Kanye West and Pharrell Williams. Timberlake joined her on stage at the Roseland to perform the single "Four Minutes," which went to No. 1 in the British singles charts and peaked at No. 3 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 listing. "I feel like the luckiest girl in the world to have been able to make a record with him, Timbaland, Pharrell, Kanye," she told the crowd.
At first, I expected a small show ... once I saw how much she was bringing it on stage, I was very surprised that Timbaland, Pharrell and Kanye didn't come out to perform with her like JT did -- it was really a spectacular show. Despite a technical malfunction or two, the show was very well produced ... it was an impressive sight to see. All in all, Madge performed Candy Shop, Miles Away, 4 Minutes (with Justin Timberlake), Hung Up, Give It 2 Me and Music. I loved it when Madonna brought out a bottle of Moët & Chandon White Star champagne and took a big ol' swig of it right on stage :) Again, I was so taken in by the production that I sort of forgot it was just a small showcase concert ... I was shocked when it was already over after the 6th song. If this is what a 30 min. set looks like, I can't wait to see what a full concert will look like. [Source]
The show was peppered with a small group of celebs ... I ran into Chris Kattan from SNL on the way to the bathroom and I saw Josh Duhamel and the Heatherette boys in the crowd ... as well as Andy Cohen, the big cheese at Bravo programming, jumping up and down having a ball -- lookin' about 2 secs. from ripping his shirt off and twirling it around in the air. I hear Rosie O'Donnell, Fran Drescher, Michelle Trachtenberg and Zac Posen were there as well. David and I got to hang out with Dave Mace, the big cheese at Logo programming, for the whole concert up in the VIP balcony -- it was so much fun.
Here are a few pics of Lady M and JT making their way out of the Roseland after the show:
Photo credit: Splash News
I heard that Maddy was on her way to The Box to perform a super intimate show for Steven Klein's birthday party ... but, who knows if that actually was the case.
Here are a bunch of the photos that I took at the show:
I had a hard time not taking photos ... I wanted to watch the show but I also wanted to shoot every second of it to share. It was just an absolute blast ... I feel very lucky that I was able to see it live and in person with David.
Additionally, my good friend Marc Malkin from E! was also in the hiz and he posted his report on last night's concert HERE and the New York Times has a slideshow of photos from the show HERE.
In case you missed the MSN webcast of this show the first time around, you can watch it again online HERE.
Much love goes out to my absolute favorite Semtex Girl EVER, Denise, for taking such amazing care of David and me and for allowing us the VIP treatment at last night's show. Thank you, thank you, thank you so much :)
[Permalink]
Madonna's career may span more than 25 years, but during an exclusive performance on Wednesday to celebrate the release of her 11th studio album the U.S. superstar told fans it still feels "like the first time." The athletic 49-year-old performed six songs for around 2,000 people at New York City's Roseland Ballroom, including four from "Hard Candy," her final album for long-term label Warner Bros. released internationally this week. "Even though I have made what seems like 100 records, every time I put one out it's like the first time and the best time," said Madonna, dressed in knee-high black boots, black satin sweatpants with glittery side stripes and a corset. "Hard Candy" scored solidly among critics, although much of the credit, or blame, they said, should go to the established hit-makers with whom she collaborated -- the likes of Justin Timberlake, Timbaland, Kanye West and Pharrell Williams. Timberlake joined her on stage at the Roseland to perform the single "Four Minutes," which went to No. 1 in the British singles charts and peaked at No. 3 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 listing. "I feel like the luckiest girl in the world to have been able to make a record with him, Timbaland, Pharrell, Kanye," she told the crowd.
At first, I expected a small show ... once I saw how much she was bringing it on stage, I was very surprised that Timbaland, Pharrell and Kanye didn't come out to perform with her like JT did -- it was really a spectacular show. Despite a technical malfunction or two, the show was very well produced ... it was an impressive sight to see. All in all, Madge performed Candy Shop, Miles Away, 4 Minutes (with Justin Timberlake), Hung Up, Give It 2 Me and Music. I loved it when Madonna brought out a bottle of Moët & Chandon White Star champagne and took a big ol' swig of it right on stage :) Again, I was so taken in by the production that I sort of forgot it was just a small showcase concert ... I was shocked when it was already over after the 6th song. If this is what a 30 min. set looks like, I can't wait to see what a full concert will look like. [Source]
The show was peppered with a small group of celebs ... I ran into Chris Kattan from SNL on the way to the bathroom and I saw Josh Duhamel and the Heatherette boys in the crowd ... as well as Andy Cohen, the big cheese at Bravo programming, jumping up and down having a ball -- lookin' about 2 secs. from ripping his shirt off and twirling it around in the air. I hear Rosie O'Donnell, Fran Drescher, Michelle Trachtenberg and Zac Posen were there as well. David and I got to hang out with Dave Mace, the big cheese at Logo programming, for the whole concert up in the VIP balcony -- it was so much fun.
Here are a few pics of Lady M and JT making their way out of the Roseland after the show:
Photo credit: Splash News
I heard that Maddy was on her way to The Box to perform a super intimate show for Steven Klein's birthday party ... but, who knows if that actually was the case.
Here are a bunch of the photos that I took at the show:
I had a hard time not taking photos ... I wanted to watch the show but I also wanted to shoot every second of it to share. It was just an absolute blast ... I feel very lucky that I was able to see it live and in person with David.
Additionally, my good friend Marc Malkin from E! was also in the hiz and he posted his report on last night's concert HERE and the New York Times has a slideshow of photos from the show HERE.
In case you missed the MSN webcast of this show the first time around, you can watch it again online HERE.
Much love goes out to my absolute favorite Semtex Girl EVER, Denise, for taking such amazing care of David and me and for allowing us the VIP treatment at last night's show. Thank you, thank you, thank you so much :)
[Permalink]
Advertisement
search this site
