Madonna Ciccone
Madonna, born in 1958, Madonna Veronica Ciccone, who goes by the stage name, Madonna, is an American pop culture icon who’s often referred to as the Queen of Pop. Born in Michigan, where her father worked as an engineer in the automotive industry, Madonna lost her mother early on to breast cancer at the age of just 5-years old, which had a great impact on her life.
In 1978, while attending the University Michigan School of Music on a dance scholarship, she dropped out to move to New York City to pursue her dreams of becoming a professional dancer. With little money to support herself, she took a job at Dunkin’ Donuts. However, after an incident that occurred shortly after she was hired, where she squirted jelly on a customer accidentally, she was fired.
With only $35 in her pocket on arrival in New York City, Madonna searched for other work. She took random jobs where she could, primarily dancing as a backup dancer for modern dance troupes. One night, when she was returning home after a rehearsal, she was robbed at knife point by two men, leaving her scorned and fearful about her choices to abruptly move to New York City.
However, instead of giving up, even through all the failure and setbacks, she pushed forward. She landed small parts singing and performing with bands such as the Breakfast Club, and eventually she caught the eye of Sire Records founder, Seymour Stein. In 1982, at the age of 24-years old, she debuted her single, Everybody, followed by, Burning Up, both which became huge club hits.
Subsequently, she released her self-titled album, Madonna, and has since become one of the most famous singers to have ever lived, influencing many other modern-day singers and professional dancers.
