Madonna: Quotes about people

“I laugh at myself.
I don't take myself completely seriously.
I think that's another quality that people have to hold on to… you have to laugh, especially at yourself.”

Madonna

People , Thinking

“A lot of people are afraid to say what they want. That's why they don't get what they want.”

Madonna

From Sex book
Variant: A lot of people are afraid to say what they want. That's why they don't get what they want.

Inspirational , People

“We learn our lessons; we get hurt; we want revenge. Then we realize that actually, happiness and forgiving people is the best revenge.”

Madonna

People , Forgiveness , Revenge , Learning

“I went to New York. I had a dream. I wanted to be a big star. I didn’t know anybody. I wanted to dance. I wanted to sing. I wanted to do all those things. I wanted to make people happy. I wanted to be famous. I wanted everybody to love me. I wanted to be a star. I worked really hard and my dream came true.”

Madonna

(Spoken at the beginning of the Virgin Tour concert video).

Love , People , Dreams , Star

“I've always been kind of obsessed with Frida Kahlo, so I was really into the idea of getting something that belonged to her. And then from Frida Kahlo I found out about Tina Modotti and then I started collecting her stuff and Edward Weston, and one person always leads to another person with me, because for me it started with Diego Rivera, then it went to Frida Kahlo, then it went to Tina, and Edward and… Also, if you're into Picasso, and you want to find out about him and that whole area of art and European culture, then you start reading about Man Ray and the surrealists and Andre Breton, and all of a sudden you're in that whole world and you start having interests in other people. It's like a disease.”

Madonna

Aperture Magazine 1999 http://allaboutmadonna.com/madonna-interviews-articles/aperture-magazine-summer-1999

People , World , Disease , Art

“I hate polite conversation. I hate it when people stand around and go, 'Hi, how are you?' I hate words that don't have any reason or meaning. Also I hate it when people smoke in elevators and closed in places. It's just so rude.”

Madonna

http://womenshistory.about.com/od/quotes/a/madonna_2.htm.

Hate , People

“Be strong, believe in freedom and in God, love yourself, understand your sexuality, have a sense of humor, masturbate, don't judge people by their religion, color or sexual habits, love life and your family.”

Madonna

From The Great Rock 'N' Roll Quote Book http://womenshistory.about.com/od/quotes/a/madonna_2.htm.

Love , Life , God , People

“When I experienced what was going on first hand, I just got sucked into the whole thing. Thank God I did. I met some amazing people and, hopefully, I’ve changed the lives of a lot of children. Just as important, I think it’s been an incredible growing and learning experience for me.”

Madonna

About her work in Malawi
Celebrity Parade With Jeanne Wolf, ABC, 2008-06-27 http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/Story?id=5251905,

God , Children , People , Thinking

“The cross is a very powerful symbol and it symbolizes suffering, but it also is connected to a person who was loving and sharing and his message was about unconditional love. I tried to take a powerful image and use it to draw attention to a situation that needs attention. For me, we all need to be Jesus in our time. Jesus' message was to love your neighbor as yourself and these are people in need.”

Madonna

Explaining the controversial crucifixion scene in her Confessions tour http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/showbiz/2007-02/17/content_811558.htm

Love , People , Suffering , Time

“Fame is a by-product. Fame is something that should happen because you do work that speaks to people and people want to know about your work. Unfortunately the personality of people has taken over from the work and the artistry and it's this thing now that stands on its own. I don't think one should ever aspire to being famous.”

Madonna

Madonna Interview : Q Magazine (May 2008), Q, 2008-05-01 http://allaboutmadonna.com/madonna-library/madonna-interview-q-magazine-may-2008,

People , Thinking , Personality

“I think that life is a paradox and you have to embrace that in your work and your belief systems… you can't be a literalist, and that's the trouble that people always find themselves in. That's why people always hit a wall with any of my stuff, because you can't take it literally.”

Madonna

Dazed & Confused magazine 29 February 2008 http://dazeddigital.com/article/388/1/madonna_worldwide_exclusive_in_dazed_and_confused

Life , People , Thinking

“I pay attention to what’s going on around me. I’m always looking for new energy, new talent, new voices. When you do that I think it’s easier to come up with fresh ideas. It's not that my career has been based on surprising people, but it’s been about challenging myself — to constantly do new things that are going to broaden my own mind and in the process, hopefully, connect with other people.”

Madonna

Parade magazine 24 June 2008 http://www.parade.com/celebrity/celebrity-parade/archive/pc_0179.html

People , Idea , Thinking

“One is that we are all responsible for our actions, our behavior, and our words, and we must take responsibility for everything we say and do. When you get your head wrapped around that, you can no longer think of life as a series of random events - you participate in life in a way you didn't previously. I am the architect of my destiny. I am in charge. I bring that to me, or I push that away. You can no longer blame other people for things that happened to you. The other is that there is order in the universe, even though it looks like chaos. We separate the world into categories: this is good and this is bad. But life is set up to trick us. It's a series of illusions we invest in. And ultimately those investments don't serve our understanding, because physicality is always going to let you down, because physicality doesn't last.”

Madonna

Madonnarama!, Vanity Fair, 2008-05-01 http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2008/05/madonna200805,
About Kabbalah

Life , People , World , Way

“I'd like to think I am taking people on a journey; I am not just entertaining people, but giving them something to think about when they leave.”

Madonna

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/showbiz/2007-02/17/content_811558.htm.

People , Thinking

“Phallic symbols. You know Catholics. I used to draw people naked all the time in my art class and my nun teachers used to tell me I had to put clothes on them. So I just drew lines around their bodies. See-through clothes.”

Madonna

Madonna Interview : Island Magazine (October 1983), Island, 1983-10-01 http://allaboutmadonna.com/madonna-library/madonna-interview-island-magazine-october-1983,
(When asked what she used to draw as a kid).

People , Art , Teachers , Time

“A lot of people are just really confused by me; they don’t know what to think of me, so they try to compartmentalize me or diminish me. Maybe they just feel unsafe. But any time you have an overtly emotional or irrational, negative reaction to something, you’re fearing something that it’s bringing up in you.”

Madonna

Madonna Interview:Sunday Times Culture, The Times, 2009-09-20 http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/article6836901.ece?token=null&offset=0&page=1,

People , Fear , Feeling , Thinking

“I hate polite conversation. I hate it when people stand around and go, 'Hi, how are you?”

Madonna

I hate words that don't have any reason or meaning. Also I hate it when people smoke in elevators and closed in places. It's just so rude.
http://womenshistory.about.com/od/quotes/a/madonna_2.htm.

Hate , People