Madonna and Elton John have officially ended their decades-long beef.
The two pop icons were apparently friendly back in the '90s, but they've been feuding for basically the entire 21st century so far. It all dates back to 2002, when John slagged Madonna's song from the James Bond movie Die Another Day and began a years-long pattern of criticizing her for lip-synching, allegations Madonna has denied. Things got more heated upon the rise of Lady Gaga in the late 2000s and early 2010s, with John coming to Gaga's defense after Madonna criticized her for copying her style on songs like "Born This Way."
In 2012, John took the conflict to new levels of public intensity upon the release of her MDNA album, going on Australian TV to announce, "She's such a nightmare. Her career is over, I can tell you that. Her tour is a disaster and it couldn't happen to a bigger cunt." ("And she looks like a f—ing fairground stripper," John added.) Earlier that year, "Masterpiece," Madonna's song from her directorial debut W.E., won Best Original Song at the Golden Globes, beating out John's "Hello Hello" from Gnomeo & Juliet. John's husband David Furnish responded to Madge's win at the time by writing, in a since-deleted Facebook comment, "Madonna winning Best Original Song truly shows how these awards have nothing to do with merit. Her acceptance speech was embarrassing in its narcissism." In response to that, before performing "Masterpiece" at a 2012 live show, Madonna announced, "I'd like to dedicate this next song to a Mr. Elton John. I know he's a big fan of it, and I know he’s a big fan of mine. And you know what? I forgive him. Gotta start somewhere."
In 2023, John posted something nice about Madonna for a change, writing on his Instagram in partnership with his own Elton John AIDS Foundation:
"We're deeply moved by the heartfelt tribute from @madonna during her Celebration Tour performance of ‘Live to Tell’, honouring the 40.4 million people we've lost to AIDS.
Thank you, Madonna, for your advocacy and compassion, and for raising important awareness of the ongoing mission to end AIDS. With 39 million people living with HIV today, 9.4 million of whom are not currently on life-saving treatment, we must keep using our voices and platforms to ensure everyone has the opportunity to live full and healthy lives.
Now, they've finally formally made up in person. Madonna posted a photo of herself with John on Instagram, writing that she went to see him perform with Brandi Carlile on SNL this past weekend and "buried the hatchet." In the message, she talked about how sneaking out of her house to see an Elton John concert in Detroit as a teenager was a pivotal moment in her journey. "I needed to go backstage and confront him," Madonna wrote on IG. "When I met him, the first thing out of his mouth was 'Forgive Me' and the wall between us fell down. Forgiveness is a powerful tool. Within minutes. We were hugging."
Here's the full text of her post:
We Finally Buried the Hatchet!!!
I went to see @eltonjohn perform on SNL this weekend!! WOW.
I remembered when I was in high school- I snuck out of the house one night to see Elton perform live in Detroit! It was an unforgettable performance that helped me understand the transformative power of music.
Seeing him perform when I was in high school changed the course of my life. I had always felt like an outsider growing up and watching him on stage helped me to understand that it was OK to be different-to stand out- to take the road, less traveled by. In fact, it was essential.
Over the decades it hurt me to know that someone I admired so much shared his dislike of me publicly as an artist. I didn’t understand it. I was told Elton John was the musical guest on SNL and I decided to go.
I needed to go backstage and confront him . When I met him, the first thing out of his mouth was, “Forgive Me” and the wall between us fell down.
Forgiveness is a powerful tool. Within minutes. We were hugging.
Then he told me had written a song for me and he wanted to collaborate. It was like everything came full circle!!
And you can tell everybody , This is Your Song………
The chances of a new Elton John/Madonna song being any good in 2025 feel pretty low, but I'd still like to hear it.
In other Elton John news, he gave an update on his failing eyesight in a new interview with The Times of London. With his right eye basically blind, he's left with the following circumstances:
I can see you, but I can’t see TV, I can’t read. I can’t see my boys playing rugby and soccer, and it has been a very stressful time because I’m used to soaking it all up. It’s distressing. You get emotional, but you have to get used to it because I’m lucky to have the life I have. I still have my wonderful family, and I can still see something out of here. [He points at his left eye.] So you say to yourself, just get on with it.
