Madonna has hit back at haters online for commenting on her appearance at the Grammys, and she claims it all comes down to camera angles.
Now, Madonna is known as the Queen of Pop for a reason. From her back-to-back hits like Hung Up to Material Girl, the legendary singer has garnered a worldwide fan following since the 80s.
But more recently, the star has taken to social media, and the majority of comments she receives are from people hating on her looks.
Whether it’s highlighting how she’s aged or questioning whether she’s had work done, there’s almost always a torrent of abuse flung her way no matter what kind of video she posts.
And it seems the star has finally had enough of the outdated narrative.
You may have seen that Madonna recently grabbed the attention of fans after her appearance at the Grammys left the internet feeling confused.
The ‘Vogue’ singer briefly appeared at the 65th annual award show to introduce Sam Smith and Kim Petras, and fans think she’s become unrecognisable.
“This legit looks like a Madonna impersonator with pics of the real Madonna in the background. She really f**ked up her face,” wrote one.
“Madonna looks good for her age… if her age is 2,700 year old vampire who eats babies and small animals alive,” a second joked.
“Has Madonna been nominated for ‘Best New Face’ at this year’s Grammy Awards?” offered another.
“What magic formula was used to create #Madonna’s new face? I’m so confused!” someone else said.
She has since responded to such critiques on Instagram, saying that they are part of a wider social issue with how we view women as they become older.
The singer has also blamed the camera angles for “distort[ing]” her face.
A video of Madonna chatting with some of the prominent people that night was published on her Instagram.
She appeared to be having a good time and partying all night, but she really used the caption to confront her detractors.
“Instead of focusing on what I said in my speech which was about giving thanks for the fearlessness of artists like Sam and Kim- Many people chose to only talk about Close-up photos of me Taken with a long lens camera By a press photographer that Would distort anyone’s face!!” she said in the viral post.
“Once again I am caught in the glare of ageism and misogyny That permeates the world we live in.
“A world that refuses to celebrate women pass the age of 45 And feels the need to punish her If she continues to be strong-willed, hard-working, and adventurous.
“I have never apologized for any of the creative choices I have made nor the way that I look or dress and I’m not going to start.
“I have been degraded by the media since the beginning of my career but I understand that this is all a test and I am happy to do the trailblazing so that all the women behind me can have an easier time in the years to come.
“In the words of Beyonce ‘You-won’t break my soul’.
“I look forward to many more years of subversive behavior -pushing boundaries-Standing up to the patriarchy -and Most of all enjoying my life.”
This isn’t the first time she has spoken out about the backlash she’s faced in the media, speaking to The Cut back in 2018, she said: “All the challenges that I had to face 20 years ago seem ludicrous,” she said. “What I am going through now is ageism, with people putting me down or giving me a hard time because I date younger men or do things that are considered to be only the domain of younger women.
“I mean, who made those rules? Who says? I’m going to keep fighting it. Ten to 20 years from now, it’s going to be normal. People are going to shut up.”
