Madonna is celebrating her 60th birthday. The Material Girl, known for pop hits like “Vogue,” “Ray of Light,” “Like a Virgin,” and “Like a Prayer,” has been counting down her milestone birthday for days.
In a Twitter post last week, Madonna wrote “Getting ready for my spankings!” The singer capped the post off with festive cake, champagne, and party hat emojis. On her August 16 birthday, Madonna issued a reminder that she is indeed the Queen of Pop by posting a birthday photo of herself taken in Marrakesh.
In honor of her big birthday, Madonna is holding a fundraiser to benefit her charity, Raising Malawi. The proceeds will go to the “Home of Hope” orphanage, located in a rural high-need area of Malawi, and the event will run through the end of Madge’s birthday month, according to the New York Daily New s .
While Madonna is known for spreading the love to the people of Malawi, August 16 is all about her. The newly crowned sexagenarian wasted no time wishing herself a happy birthday. Madonna was also feted by several other stars as they bowed down to their queen.
Bravo’s Andy Cohen thanked Madonna for giving us all “the soundtrack of our lives,” while singer Kylie Minogue cited the singer as her inspiration since age 14. Even French fashion guru Jean Paul Gaultier paid homage to the Madonna, wishing his “everlasting muse” a “joyeux anniversaire.”
You can see some of Madonna’s birthday tweets, including her own, below.
Happy Birthday @Madonna ! The world is better because of you. You gave us the soundtrack of our lives!
— Andy Cohen (@Andy) August 16, 2018
Happy birthday to Lady @Madonna !!! I’m 14 years old, dancing and singing in my bedroom and she was just WOW!!! What a force and an inspiration. Enjoy your day Madonna!!! ???
— Kylie Minogue (@kylieminogue) August 16, 2018
#JoyeuxAnniversaire to my long time friend, my everlasting muse and our Queen of Pop @madonna <3 pic.twitter.com/dqKMv4AEO3
— Jean Paul Gaultier (@JPGaultier) August 16, 2018
In case someone forgot! ???????????? #birthday #magic #Marakesh pic.twitter.com/B0x2qaztAG
— Madonna (@Madonna) August 16, 2018
It’s no surprise that at age 60, Madonna has no plans on slowing down. Last January she told Harper’s Bazaar , “I don’t believe there’s a certain age where you can’t say and feel and be who you want to be… As I get older and I get better at writing and expressing myself.”
Still, when accepting a Woman of the Year award at the Billboard Women in Music in 2016, Madonna, the highest-grossing female touring artist of all time, admitted that in the world of music, “to age is a sin.”
“You will be criticized, you will be vilified, and you will definitely not be played on the radio,” the singer revealed.
That same year, Madonna talked to Billboard about ageism, explaining, “I don’t ever think about my age until someone says something about it. I feel that I have wisdom, experience, knowledge and a point of view that is important. Can a teenager relate to that? Probably not.”
The pop superstar also pointed out that “‘relevance’ is a catchphrase that people throw out because we live in a world full of discrimination” and that “age is only brought up with regard to women.”
