Stuart Price, Madonna’s musical director and long-time friend, spoke to the BBC about the celebration. He said: “A greatest hit doesn’t have to be a song. It can be a wardrobe, it can be a video, or a statement. Madonna’s reputation is for being highly precise and highly rehearsed across all departments. When you look at a tour of this scale, it has so many moving parts, so many elements, that everything has to be highly fixed.”

Price, who worked with Madonna on her 2001 Drowned World Tour, praised the star for the icon she cemented herself as. He said: “There’s one thing that’s always dynamic, and that’s Madonna herself. Her personality is so strong, her interaction with the audience is so strong, that it creates opportunities for variation from night to night.”

Madonna, who last toured in the UK for her Madame X Tour in 2020, will see the “Hung Up” singer begin the celebration this Saturday, when she performs at a sold-out show at the O2 Arena in London. The icon will also be performing in the UK on Sunday, 17 October and 18 October before heading to Belgium. However, if fans missed out on these dates, they are in luck as the star will return to the UK for two more shows in early December.

Whilst Madonna certainly has the catalogue for more than 40 hits that she could include in her setlist, here are some that fans would love to see.

“Like A Virgin” (1984)

The icon’s signature song, “Like A Virgin”, was the song that catapulted Madonna into super-stardom. The track, which has been certified Gold in the UK, took Madonna to new heights and made her a pop-culture icon.

“Into the Groove” (1985)

Madonna’s first number 1 hit in the UK, “Into the Groove” is certainly a favourite amongst fans and artists. The song, which has been sampled by the likes of Dannii Minogue, has been cited as a pop classic for its cool and experimental production.

“Express Yourself” (1989)

This dance-pop infused track with deep funk elements is another staple in Madonna’s discography. The song and video saw the icon push new ground thanks to its themes of feminism and freedom of expression.

“Erotica” (1992)

One of Madonna’s darkest and edgiest songs, “Erotica” is another gem from the Queen of Pop. Whilst the lyrics and video are most definitely racy, the track saw the icon tackle the theme of sex like never before. The song was last performed by Madonna almost a decade ago on her The MDNA Tour… here’s hoping it will make its grand return!

“Music” (2000)

A smash hit, “Music” was the lead single from her eight-studio album titled Music. The song has been a commercial success across the world, becoming certified Gold in the UK, Germany, France and Sweden.

“Me Against the Music” (2003)

A track adored by many, “Me Against the Music” saw the Queen of Pop and Pop’s princess Britney Spears go back and forth in a dynamic exchange. Fresh off the wedding bells from the iconic 2003 VMA performance, the duo delivered yet again when the stars collaborated on the hit single.

“Incredible” (2008)

Despite it not being a single,  “Incredible” is pop at its finest thanks to the production by The Neptunes. The track, from the 2008 album Hard Candy, would be a perfect choice for the star to cover.

“Girl Gone Wild” (2012)

This electropop party track is who Madonna is as an artist – daring, bold and unapologetically sexy.

With just a few more days until the tour kicks off, fans of the star will celebrate the icon in true Madonna fashion.

June 14, 2019 – ‘Madame X’ album is out! Madonna’s 14th studio album features 4 singles which will all later reach the #1 spot on Billboard’s Dance Club Play chart. Two years after its release, which Madame X track is your favorite? https://t.co/1X3EABAkXV#madamex #madonnastory pic.twitter.com/vlLHJLygeB — Madonna (@Madonna) June 14, 2021

Madonna Louise Ciccone, known as Madonna and dubbed the Queen of Pop, is an Italian-American singer, songwriter, dancer, actress and mother. The singer came to the attention of the music world with her self entitled debut album Madonna in 1983 and is known for her earlier popular hit singles “Lucky Star” (1983), “Holiday” (1983), “Material Girl” (1984), “Like A Virgin” (1984) and “Into The Groove” (1984) to name only a few.

The musician has sold over 300 million albums worldwide, has the most UK number-one singles for a female artist and is noted for being the best selling female recording artist of all time in the Guinness Book of Records. The singer’s Madame X tour was an all theatre tour, that ran for 75 dates from September 17th 2019 to March 8th 2020. The tour saw the musician perform in smaller venues for the first time since The Virgin Tour in 1985.

The musician explained during an interview with BBC News that her reasons for opting to perform in smaller venues, were due to her doing so many large scale tours and now wanting to connect directly with her audience. The singer’s tour was unfortunately plagued by an ongoing knee injury which features in the documentary and resulted in cancellations of tour dates to support her recovery. The tour ended three days earlier than planned due to the Covid 19 Pandemic on March 8th 2020. The Madame X documentary was directed by Ricardo Gomes and was filmed in Lisbon (Portugal).

The documentary details the singer’s life on the road during her tour and shows the singers alter ego, Madame X who dons an eye-patch. The musician said of her documentary “There was nothing between me and the crowd, and that was an incredible experience,” “I needed to document that — the process, the rehearsals, the show itself, what was in my mind, what inspires certain songs” The singer’s children feature in the documentary which showcases her performances with 48 dancers and an all-female Orquestra Batukadeiras.

The musician recently forged a partnership with Warner Music Group in August thus following in the footsteps of other musical artists. The partnership encompasses 17 studio albums including the singer’s recent albums “MDNA”, “Rebel Heart” and “Madame X”.

Madonna and Warner Music Group today announced a milestone, career-spanning global partnership that includes a new agreement for her entire recorded music catalog… Read more: https://t.co/VvC1nK2NDz pic.twitter.com/BIxYf7CkWY — Madonna (@Madonna) August 16, 2021

The musician’s Madame X Tour was named the highest-grossing theatre tour of all time and she has had a 40-year relationship with MTV following her early musical career success. The relationship was celebrated in September with this tweet. 

Back in September 1984, Madonna performed ‘Like A Virgin’ during the very first edition of the MTV Video Music Awards. Fast forward to September 12, 2021 and her tribute to 40 years of @MTV!#VMAs pic.twitter.com/Fs8c1z0bKy — Madonna (@Madonna) September 16, 2021

The singer’s Madame X documentary in association with Paramount + will be shown tonight, October 8th at 10.00 pm on MTV UK ending the wait for the musician’s followers.

Watch the trailer for the musician’s Madame X documentary here

See the tracklist below for the Deluxe Edition of Madonna’s Madame X album and listen to the album here

Medellìn (Madonna & Maluma)
Dark Ballet
God Control
Future (Feat Quavo)
Batuka
Killers Who Are Partying
Crave (Feat Swae Lee)
Crazy
Come Alive
Extreme Occident
Faz Gostoso (Feat Anitta)
B**** I’m Loca (Feat Maluma)
I Don’t Search I Find
Looking For Mercy
I Rise

The legendry singer will play a series of intimate shows, at London’s Palladium, in 2020. The singer will perform across six days, next year, as part of an intimate run of European shows, which will see her head to the Coliseum, in both Lisbon and Paris.

The shows have been billed as, “a series of rare and intimate performances to take place exclusively in theatres, giving fans an opportunity to see Madonna in an environment like they never have before.”

Madonna will kick off her Palladium residency, on the 6th of January 2020 before performing on subsequent dates on the 27th, 29th, 30th and the 1st and 2nd of February 2020. Ticket prices range from £60 to £480 and fans can register to buy them here, before they go on general sale on Friday the 24th of May 2019.

The announcement comes after Madonna teased fans with a glimpse of her upcoming album, with the release of her latest single, ‘Crave’, which has been described as “infectious pop”, which dropped last Friday (May 10). Her latest single, ‘Crave’, followed the release of  ‘I Rise’ and ‘Medellín’ – Madonna’s first release since 2015’s ‘Rebel Heart’.

Meanwhile, ‘Crave’, will be followed by a Jamaican dancehall influenced single, ‘Future’, featuring Quavo, on the 17th of May, and the “sonically innovative” ‘Dark Ballet’, on the 7th of June 2019.

Madonna is also set to perform, for seven nights, at the BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, in New York, between the 12th and 22nd of September 2020. Before heading to Chicago, for four nights, at the Chicago Theatre, from the 15ht to the 21st of October 2020. Finally, she will play five nights, at the Wiltern Theatre, in Los Angeles, between the 12th and 17th of November 2020.

The queen of pop also has scheduled performances, at Caesar’s Palace, in Las Vegas; the Boch Center Wang Theatre, in Boston; The Met, in Philadelphia; and at the Jackie Gleason Theatre, in Miami Beach, with specific dates to be revealed soon.