Madonna

Madonna and the gay community have gone hand-in-hand for the last 40 years.

Since rising to fame in the early ’80s, the Queen of Pop has been one of the fiercest allies to the queer community by supporting LGBTQ+ charities, speaking out for equality, and advocating for HIV/AIDS when most others were silent.

She’s also provided the soundtrack to our lives and brought us an unmeasurable amount of queer joy.

Don’t believe me? The Material Mother has the receipts!

So it’s only fitting that the pop icon sent out a heartfelt message for Pride Month to remind the world that she wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for the gays.

To honor the queer community, Madonna shared a video featuring retro clips of Pride marches and rallies alongside shots from her groundbreaking 1991 tour documentary Truth or Dare.

Images of LGBTQ+ heroes like Marsha P. Johnson flash next to clips of Madonna’s backup dancers getting emotional attending a Pride parade, while an instrumental of “Vogue” from her collab with Beyoncé on “Break My Soul: The Queens Remix” plays in the background.

“When Truth or Dare was released in 1991 I had no idea it was going to cause such a stir. But that could be said of most of the things I do!!” the 65-year-old diva captioned the video. “I simply wanted to capture the world. I was living in—and share it with the world.”

She added: “I am forever grateful to the gay community that has always supported me from day one!!! When I arrived in New York for the first time in 1979 — You made an awkward girl from Michigan feel like she fit in, like she wasn’t a freak and. That it was OK to be different. I am forever indebted.”

Madonna finished by pledging to never stop advocating for equality and urging everyone to keep living loudly in their truth.

“In this increasingly chaotic world, we are living in. I will never stop fighting for diversity, inclusiveness and equal rights for all!!!” she wrote. “DON’T HIDE YOUR PRIDE! Let’s celebrate this month and every month” 

Last month, Madonna wrapped up her euphoric and wildly successful Celebration Tour with a record-breaking free concert in Rio that drew more than 1.6 million fans, the largest audience for a standalone concert by any artist.

The Celebration Tour featured many queer moments, including a triumphant “Vogue” number that saw a slew of celebrity judges clocking her dancers as they walked the runway giving ballroom realness in an attempt to not get chopped.

It was 10s across the board for Ricky Martin.

However, one of the stage spectacle’s more emotional moments saw Madonna pay tribute to those that have passed away from HIV/AIDS, including Keith Haring, Freddie Mercury and best friend Martin Burgoyne, while performing her 1986 hit “Live to Tell.”

However you celebrate Pride, remember: there’s only one queen, and that’s Madonna.

Here’s the Queen of Pop performing for her legions of loyal gays at NYC World Pride in 2019.

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