Today in Madonna History: March 9, 1998

On March 9 1998, Frozen hit #1 on the Italian Singles Chart (FIMI). On the same date, the Ray Of Light album made its debut at #1 in Italy.

The single would top the Italian charts for four weeks while the album spent three weeks at #1.

Today in Madonna History: March 8, 1988

On March 8 1988, Papa Don’t Preach was released in the CD Video format in the U.S.

The CD Video format, introduced in Japan in 1987, combined the technologies of the standard audio compact disc with LaserDisc video on a 5″ gold-coloured disc.

The Papa Don’t Preach CD Video (which was also released in Japan and in the U.K.) included the song’s 1986 music video together with the 7″ Version, 12″ Version and the U.S. b-side Pretender on the audio portion of the disc. It was Madonna’s only commercial release in the short-lived format.

Today in Madonna History: March 1, 2015

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On March 1 2015, Madonna visited Italian talk show, Che tempo che fa, as part of her promotional tour for the Rebel Heart album.In addition to an interview with host Fabio Fazio, she performed Devil Pray for the first time, along with the album’s second single, Ghosttown.

Madonna’s appearance on the show aired on March 8th.

Today in Madonna History: February 26, 2008

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On February 26 2008, Entertainment Weekly magazine confirmed the title, cover art and release date of Madonna’s final studio album for Warner Bros., Hard Candy.

Madonna chose to stick with the sweet theme because “she loves candy,” said her longtime rep, Liz Rosenberg. “It’s about the juxtaposition of tough and sweetness, or as Madonna so eloquently expressed, ‘I’m gonna kick your ass, but it’s going to make you feel good.'”

The album, which would feature Justin Timberlake on multiple tracks and production by Pharrell Williams, Timbaland, and Nate “Danja” Hills, was scheduled for release on April 29th in North America. The first single, 4 Minutes, would precede it in mid-March.

Today in Madonna History: February 21, 2001

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On February 21 2001, Kevin Reagan won a Grammy award for Best Recording Package for Music.

Reagan had collected the same award two years earlier for his art direction on Madonna’s Ray Of Light album. He would go on to win it a third time in 2003 for The Dixie Chicks’ Home.

Today in Madonna History: February 20, 2001

On February 20 2001, Madonna’s official website announced that Madonna planned to record a Spanish version of her next single, What It Feels Like For A Girl, with a tentative release date of late March.

While the Spanish version (titled Lo Que Siente La Mujer) featured on the maxi-single and serviced to Latin radio stations was set to the album version of the song, Madonna would blend the Spanish lyrics with the music from the Calderone & Quayle Dark Side Mix for the live version performed during the Drowned World Tour.

Today in Madonna History: February 17, 2001

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On February 17 2001, Don’t Tell Me hit #1 on the SoundScan Canadian Singles chart, spending a single week at the top.

After the long-running Canadian music industry publication RPM folded in late 2000, Nielsen SoundScan (which had tracked music sales across Canada since 1996) became the country’s recognized national singles chart publisher until the introduction of Billboard’s Canadian Hot 100 in 2007. Don’t Tell Me was Madonna’s first single to reach its peak during the SoundScan Canadian chart era.