Madonna Ciccone

“I grew up in a high school where it was very conservative, and I felt like people disapproved of me, and I felt like an outsider.”

“I hate being called a pop star. I hate that.”

“I think of myself as a performance artist. I hate being called a pop star. I hate that.”

“Prince Charles is very relaxed at the table, throwing his salad around willy-nilly. I didn't find him stiff at all.”

“I'm encouraging other people, whether they're professionals or not, to use their creativity to express themselves, to get a conversation going, to get the party started, really.”

“I'm a showgirl. After 20 years in show business, I've learned to roll with the punches.”

“When I first came to New York I was a dancer, and a French record label offered me a recording contract and I had to go to Paris to do it. So I went there and that's how I really got into th...”

“A lot of places I go are dangerous, like Tel Aviv or Rio, but that never stops me from going there and putting on a show. I have good security. I don't worry about that.”

“I didn't have many friends; I might not have had any friends. But it all turned out good in the end, because when you aren't popular and you don't have a social life, it gives you more time...”

“When I'm hungry, I eat. When I'm thirsty, I drink. When I feel like saying something, I say it.”

“In this business, my business, I get to meet all kinds of incredible people, fascinating people, glamorous people and sexy people and highly intellectual people. And you meet them and you go...”

“On the one hand, the idea of marriage and the sort of traditional family life repulses me. But on the other hand, I long for it, you know what I mean? I'm constantly in conflict with things....”

“My physical transformations - like changing my hair - are usually a reflection of what's inspiring me at the moment.”

“I think it's fun to get in a room and sweat with people. I'm happy to share my workouts with everyone.”