On August 14 1984, Madonna’s self-titled debut album was certified platinum by the RIAA to commemorate U.S. sales of more than one-million copies.
The album would eventually be certified five times platinum in the U.S.
Today in Madonna History: August 13, 1952
On August 13 1952, one of Madonna’s closest friends, Herb Ritts, was born in Los Angeles, California.
Ritts specialized in black and white photography and music videos, including Madonna’s Cherish music video and the photoshoot for Madonna’s True Blue, Like A Prayer and Immaculate Collection albums (among others — the list just goes on and on).
Throughout the 80’s and 90’s, Herb was at Madonna’s side taking the most beautiful photos of her possible. We thank him from the bottom of our hearts for capturing Madonna during this time in her life and career.
Today in Madonna History: August 12, 1996
On August 12 1996, Madonna appeared on the cover of French magazine Tele K7.
Today in Madonna History: August 11, 2000
On August 11 2000, Madonna gave birth to a 5-lb, 9-oz boy, Rocco Ritchie, at 11:59 am at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre, Los Angeles, CA.
Today in Madonna History: August 10, 1985
On August 10 1985, Into The Groove spent the first of four weeks in the number-one position on the UK Singles Chart. It was Madonna’s first chart-topping single in the UK, where she has collected a total of thirteen number-one hits to date.
As an added validation, Into the Groove was Madonna’s first attempt at co-producing a song. While artists co-producing their own work is common today, it was relatively unusual at the time, particularly for female artists. The immense success of the single undoubtedly helped convince the powers at Sire/Warner to grant Madonna the artistic freedom to co-produce her next album, True Blue, together with her collaborators Stephen Bray and Patrick Leonard.
Today in Madonna History: August 9, 2012
On August 9 2012, Madonna spoke out for gay rights at an MDNA concert in St Petersburg, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s home town, where a law was adopted to curb homosexual “propaganda.”
Performing in black lingerie with the words “No Fear” scrawled on her bare back, Madonna urged the audience – most wearing pink wrist bands distributed at the door – to “show your love and appreciation to the gay community”.
“We want to fight for the right to be free,” she said.
Today in Madonna History: August 8, 2013
On August 8 2013, Live Nation and Interscope Records announced that Madonna’s MDNA World Tour concert film would be released September 10 on DVD, Blu-ray and as a digital album.
Directed by Danny B. Tull and Stephane Sennour and produced by Madonna, the two hour non-stop performance includes songs from Madonna’s MDNA album such as “Girl Gone Wild” and “Gang Bang,” as well as fan favorites including exhilarating versions of “Hung Up,” “Express Yourself,” “Vogue,” “Open Your Heart,” “Like A Prayer” and “Celebration.”
The MDNA World Tour was released in Australia and Germany on September 6, France and the United Kingdom on September 9, North America on September 10, Mexico on September 13 and Brazil on September 25.
Today In Madonna History 