On September 17 1998, Madonna released a statement against the World Vaisnava Association’s criticism of her Ray of Light/Shanti MTV performance: “The essence of purity and divinity is non-judgement… they should practice what they preach… if they’re so pure, why are they watching MTV?”
On August 10 1998, Matthew Rolston wrapped up the 3-day shoot for Madonna’s The Power of Good-Bye music video. The video was shot in Los Angeles and Malibu Beach, California.
On May 24 1998, the Ray of Light single made its debut on Australia’s ARIA Singles Chart at its peak position of #6. It was present for a total of seventeen weeks on the chart, and was certified Gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for shipment of 35,000 copies of the single.
In ARIA’s year-end singles chart, Ray of Light ranked 57th for best-selling Australian single of 1998.
On April 27 1998, Madonna made an unannounced appearance at the 9th annual Rainforest Foundation Benefit Concert at New York City’s Carnegie Hall, where she performed Frozen with the East Harlem Violin Project, while wearing a Versace dress.
Jon Pareles from The New York Times felt that during this performance Madonna had “turned herself into America’s answer to Björk”.
Later that night, she wore a cowboy hat and joined various artists in a rendition of The Beatles’ With A Little Help From My Friends and Twist & Shout.
On April 11 1998, Madonna appeared on the cover of TV Guide.
In the issue, Madonna explains the relationship she had with Lourdes’ father, Carlos Leon:
“I was in love with him. A lot of people think I walked out on the street and looked at him and said, `You’re going to be my sperm donor. I had a relationship with him. I still have a relationship with him. We are really good friends. . . . the last thing I want my daughter to do is grow up without a father. I grew up without a parent.”
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.
On March 7 1998, Madonna’s Frozen climbed to #2 on the Billboard Eurochart (in its second week), behind Celine Dion’s #1 My Heart Will Go On.
