Madonna Reveals Difficult Road to Stardom in Harper's Bazaar Essay

Bridgehampton’s favorite resident pop superstar Madonna is well known for her ability to pen a song, but her writing chops don’t stop there, as can be seen in the essay she wrote for the current (November, 2013) issue of Harper’s Bazaar magazine.

In the essay, Madge shares her experiences living in New York as a young artist, between the time she left Michigan in 1978 and when she finally signed a record deal and jumped on a rocket to super-stardom in 1982. Said the icon, “New York wasn’t everything I thought it would be…It did not welcome me with open arms…I had my apartment broken into three times. I don’t know why; I had nothing of value after they took my radio the first time.”

But burglaries were just the beginning of her troubles. Madonna’s 2,100-word essay tells of her struggles in high school, being held up at gunpoint and of being raped by a knife wielding assailant on the roof of a building, soon after she arrived in, what was at the time, the slums of downtown New York with “the smell of piss and vomit everywhere, especially in the entryway of my third-floor walkup.”

The essay goes on to explain Madonna’s drive to succeed, despite doubts, incredible odds and an overwhelming desire to give up. “I would pull myself together and look at a postcard of Frida Kahlo taped to my wall, and the sight of her mustache consoled me,” she writes. “Because she was an artist who didn’t care what people thought. I admired her. She was daring. People gave her a hard time. Life gave her a hard time. If she could do it, then so could I.”The pop star later shares about her marriage and divorce, the origin of her “truth or dare” catch phrase (all of this is part of Harper’s “Daring Issue”), the development of her iconic look, sex and her growth spiritually and as a mother, eventually leading her to become the woman she is today.The story runs along with a daring fashion spread shot by edgy photographer Terry Richardson.

Buy the issue or visit harpersbazaar.com to read the essay and see all the racy photos.