A Tribute to Madonna (video)

Vulgarly Classic III by Nonardo Perea

HAVANA TIMES – On August 16th, Madonna will turn 60 years old and here I am humbly publishing this video in her name, she most likely won’t even find out about it (I read somewhere that she doesn’t accept gifts from her fans), but I’ve made it to satisfy myself in some way or another.

I have been following her music ever since I was 15 years old. In the ‘80s, not everyone had the luxury of having a tape recorder or radio, but at home, my grandmother had a small one that my uncle had brought back for her from East Germany when it was still socialist, and I remember always trying to look for foreign radios whenever I got the chance that it would pick up on FM, where they often played the Queen. That was her moment of glory. I had to wait for her to be played on national TV in order to see her music videos, which were nearly always put on Saturdays on the program (which no longer exists) Contacto hosted by Hilda Ravilero.

Madonna entered my life somehow and listening to her music and watching her videos have filled my artistic creations with vibrancy because they get my moods up and make me feel alive… The way she presents herself to the world and her feminism encourage me, her and her strong attitude made me understand that we as humans all have an equal right to be whoever we are.

I used the song “Erotica” in the video, which will soon celebrate its 26th anniversary, the single came out on October 13, 1992 and was included on the studio album that shares the same name. It was also released at the same time Madonna’s debut book came out, entitled: Sex.

Erotica is a conceptual album which deals with subjects relating to sexuality which is why it came under harsh critique.

In my video, I have created a symbiosis between Madonna and myself, with pictures in the video from her photoshoot for the book “Sex”, and it is also a form of protest in some way or another against EFE Bar (which is located on 23rd and F Streets in Vedado) where two guys were indiscriminately thrown out in July for no reason because they wanted to take a photo of themselves kissing and they were denied this right. One of these young men was Cuban photographer Brian Canelles.

Nonardo Perea

Nonardo Perea: I see myself as an observant person and I like to write with sincerity what I think and live first hand. I’m shy and of few words; thus it’s difficult for me to engage in conversation. For that reason, my best tool for communicating is writing. I live in Marianao, Havana and am 40 years old.

2 thoughts on “A Tribute to Madonna (video)”

  • Obviously the comment above knows very little about music or art and it’s history. Madonna is a legend a it’s a well deserved title. And this video was a great tribute to her the video was creative and sexy and conterversial.

  • With all due respect to Ms. Perea, shame on the Havana Times for publishing this. And so far I see nothing about Aretha Franklin in HT. I assume something is in the works.

    Madonna may be quite entertaining to some but let’s face it, basically she made a career by flaunting a pathetically shallow egomania, something so endemic to the US that we now have a president epitomizing this characteristic.

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