#VMAs: Madonna Tribute to Aretha Franklin Prompts Backlash, Charges of Culture Appropriation
In the midst of celebrating the best in music, Madonna made a special
appearance at the MTV Video Music Awards to not only present the award
for video of the year but pay homage to the late Aretha Franklin in a
tribute that drew heavy backlash from social media users.
The iconic African-American singer, known as the Queen of Soul, died Thursday morning at her home in Detroit following a battle with advanced pancreatic cancer. She was 76.
Speaking
in front of a projected image of Franklin onstage, Madonna began
chronicling her musical origins, explaining that she consistently got
"cut and rejected" after every audition for not fitting the status quo
with other musicians.
The singer then explained that she struggled
to find success in the industry for she was "not tall enough, not
12-octave range enough, not pretty enough and not enough enough." "I had
no training or dreams but I went for it," Madonna said in a dialogue
that was heavy on her achievements and light on Franklin's.
Madonna,
who seemingly had come straight from her 60th birthday festivities in
Morocco and Malawi, and was dressed in traditional African garb, then
explained that she would go on to audition with a performance of
Franklin's "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" to which she said
she knew "every word" by heart.
Though she was aware that those
who she was auditioning for would simply view her as a "skinny-a** white
girl" who "is going to come out here and sing a song by one of the soul
singers that ever lived," Madonna credited Franklin for being the
reason she is as successful as she is today.
"None of this
would've happened, could've happened without our lady of soul. She led
me to where I am today and I know she influenced so many people in this
house tonight, in this room tonight, and I want to thank you Aretha for
empowering all of us, R.E.S.P.E.C.T. Long live the queen!"
Though
it was an attempt to be a touching honor, viewers were not pleased with
the singer's tribute to the soul singer. Critics slammed Madonna for
making the speech about herself, rather than truly honoring Franklin's
legacy. During this year's Billboard Music Awards, Madonna was also
criticized for "ruining" the tribute dedicated to the late-singer Prince.
Madonna ruined the Prince Tribute on the Billboard Awards in 2016.— April (@ReignOfApril) August 21, 2018
Madonna ruined the Aretha Tribute on the #VMAs in 2018.
I really never want to see her again. Ever. pic.twitter.com/rp6QCql3aR
That was such an awkward tribute to Aretha Franklin. I was hoping Madonna would talk a liiiiiiiitle less about herself and more about Aretha but idk lol 🤦♀️🤷♀️— Kathleen Lights (@KathleenLights1) August 21, 2018
Whoever at the #VMAs let Madonna get on stage and give a tribute to @ArethaFranklin or whatever that was really should be out of a job right about...now.— Alicia Garza (@aliciagarza) August 21, 2018
"If it wasn't for Aretha, we wouldn't have Madonna"- Madonna— Roy Wood Jr- Ex Jedi (@roywoodjr) August 21, 2018
I’m so lost. I thought Madonna was supposed to be paying homage to Aretha but I all heard was her paying homage to herself. HEAVY on the Mayonnaise......— Charlamagne Tha God (@cthagod) August 21, 2018
No comments
Your comments and Encouragement are welcome