Ranking Madonna Albums: A (Not The) Quintessential Guide to the Queen of Pop
I should be studying for my finals — but let’s give some space to pop legacy.
Amidst the Eras Tour hype, I listened the entire discography of Taylor Swift albums, and I thought it was a great exercise to truly know an artist. And I could not further analyze the legacy of pop artists without analyzing Madonna’s discography. Her colossal impact in pop music and culture are undeniable, from the 1980s hairstyle many of our parents tried, to Avicii calling her the biggest artist in the world, all the way to performing next to Sam Smith after their success with Unholy. A timeless icon, and the mother influence of most modern gay divas, here is a personal ranking of her albums. With a career spanning over 40 years, here she is: the Queen of Pop.
14. Madonna (1983)
I knew, right of the bag, that this was going to be one of my least favorite albums from her. But, to be fair, it is probably because I am not a fan of the 1980s pop production. The singles Everybody and Holiday are fun to listen to, but, to my taste, there are not many more enjoyable things about this LP. The personal criticism is about its dated sound, but I need to recognize it is a classic album and it began the career of one of the biggest pop stars in the whole planet.
13. Like a Virgin (1984)
Same for Like a Virgin. It ranks better just because it holds two of the most legendary singles of all time: Like a Virgin and Material Girl. Its legendary status even caused the Library of Congress to hold the album on registry in 2023. Its imagery, music videos, and live performances, such as the 1984 VMAs, hold a great cultural impact to date. However, it still relies heavily on the dated sound of the 1980s. It is Madonna, Part 2.
12. American Life (2003)
The album held a cultural impact that other pop artists rarely hold with their artwork. Taylor Swift talking about politics in Lover and her Miss Americana documentary could never get to the toes of American Life and the way it criticized a post-9/11 United States. The title track’s uncensored video is brutal, without any overuse of the word. It dared to show the atrocities that contemporary wars imply all over the world, and it dared to go places almost no American artist recognizes about their patriotism. And, of course, it gave us the iconic performance with Britney, Christina and Missy Elliot at the 2003 VMAs. However, the theme that seems to unite the whole album is only present in the first two tracks. It rarely gets to the level of social critique other artists have pulled off in a legendary way, such as Victor Jara, or even Frank Ocean in his song, Sweet Life. The album is not cohesive, and it is hard to listen to. To me, it was a less pleasurable effort than her Music album, since both of those albums fell into a folk, electronic sound.
11. MDNA (2012)
Nothing much to say about this one. Maybe, it is Madonna’s version of Britney Jean. At its wildest, it shows an EDM euphoria I could have experienced in an ULTRA or EDC kind of festival in the 2010s. At its calmest, its quite underwhelming (Masterpiece is quite a nice ballad, though). But I think other artists have gotten away with worse: it is just hated on because it does not reflect the iconic, true nature of what Madonna can do as an artist.
10. Rebel Heart (2015)
I wonder what would have happened if B*tch I’m Madonna was released in 2011. Would it have been a huge hit? I bet on it. However, for 2015, for the first time in Madonna’s career, it was behind its time. It is a fun single, though, and I believe the album has some pretty good elements that transcend its EDM moments. Living for Love and Ghosttown are some of her best ballads overall. Living for Love even holds an anthemic nature that is, for sure, a highlight in the album. Better than MDNA, definitely.
9. True Blue (1986)
The single are on top: Papa Don’t Preach…, Open Your Heart…, the title track…, La Isla Bonita itself! The videos from this era are iconic, and they foreshadow the success and longevity Madonna would experience after Like A Virgin. It is an iconic album, for sure, but it still holds that dated 80s sound. It is a better album than Like A Virgin by far, since it contains far more of Madonna’s voice and soul. Besides, can we remark that it is probably the most fun album from her? And yet, it treats delicate topics, like teen pregnancy, with fierceness and an advocacy for rights of choice that are ahead of its time. However, it is still commercial pop, with no wide range of genres or any sound innovation beyond La Isla Bonita. True Blue is a solid 80s album, with the good and bad that implies.
8. Madame X (2019)
Probably, the most conceptual and least accessible album from Madonna. Still, the album is a gem. After three albums where Madonna chased trends, she came back to her own, trend-setting self. And the result is very interesting. As a Latino, I was pleased to see her match with Maluma in Bitch I’m Loca and in the lead single Medellín. I will probably revisit Future, with Quavo, and it will be a frequent track in my playlist, because I loved that song. And I completely admire how, this far into her career, Madonna keeps making pertinent social critiques, such as gun control observations in God Control. I do not think this is an album for everyone, it is probably her strangest album. Or second, after American Life. And yet, Madame X is worldly. It is pluricultural, it is multi-sounded, it is historic, and, at the same time, it answers to its current context. Madame X is Madonna showing her great knowledge about how to create art.
7. Like a Prayer (1989)
This album was the hardest for me to rank. I think the single Like a Prayer is one of my favorite songs from her (and in general). It is euphoric, catchy, anthemic, it beats any rockist criticism, and it is one of her most controversial singles (which always means overcoming some conservative taboo with Madonna). The single also samples one of the greatest choir backing vocals that I have ever listened to. Overall, I think the album was a delight to listen to, but the title track was the major highlight. I was also surprised to hear Prince in one song. And I was finally pleased to hear Madonna move away from the 80s sound, though I feel she fully left it behind until Bedtime Stories. It is a great album, probably her most classic one. I feel I am just ranking it in the middle to make place for the albums I enjoyed the most.
6. Music (2000)
To be honest, I was not a fan of the single Music. I grew some fondness of it with time, but I got to admit: I did not expect such a good, solid album out of the single. And that is what I got with the album Music. I was hesitant to rank Music above Like a Prayer. However, Music sounds like its carved from the Ray of Light woods with some hints of what was about to come with Confessions on a Dance Floor. And, of course, a mastery over folk and electronica that American Life failed to show. Tracks like Runaway Lover are worthy to be played at any gay night, anytime. And they show the potential to welcome the 21st century on the right note. Music was a testament (among many) of Madonna’s longevity, and it shows that, without Madonna, music would not be the same.
5. Hard Candy (2008)
I think people hate on this album and rank it very low because of two reasons. First, it is her straightest album. It features Justin Timberlake (ew!), Kanye West (almost homophobic), and Pharrell Williams, and it drew apart from the gay-friendly, club sound she held in Confessions on a Dance Floor. Second, it shows that Madonna followed R&B trends with this album, instead of creating her own thing, as she had done countless times before. However, the album is criminally underrated. It opens strongly with Candy Shop, 4 Minutes, and Give It To Me (the most LGBT-friendly song in the album). It further carries the R&B, dance vibe all the way through. The album is quite rhythmic, and it shows that, even if Madonna began to follow trends in this era, she understood the assignment perfectly.
4. Bedtime Stories (1994)
Criminally underrated! Before going through her discography, I did not know any singles in the album. When it was time to listen to it, I was impressed. Just like the masterpieces that follow in this ranking, Bedtime Stories carries an impecable cohesiveness. It shows an improvement over Hard Candy on Madonna’s ability to blend into R&B. Human Nature is a perfect, catchy “f — you” to the criticism she faced on her Sex book era. Bedtime Story is a beautiful effort that experiments on different sounds and references Mexican surreal painters in the music video. And Take A Bow is a soothing, calm ballad. It may not be as iconic as the rest of the albums in this ranking, but it surely is one of the best.
3. Erotica (1992)
Following the steps Madonna took with Justify My Love in 1990, Erotica is an unprecedented testament of what Madonna symbolizes as an artist. She IS pop, of course. And yet, she is so much more than that. She is an artist that dared to bring the devastating consequences of AIDS to mainstream music. She is an artist that brought sexual diversity and fetishes to bookstands and top 3 singles, decades before it became common. 25 years before the #MeToo movement, Madonna owned her sexuality away from the male gaze, and the album shed a light on how women used to be — and still are — vilified for expressing their sexual desires unapologetically. Sadly, the reactions to this album show how women face widespread stigma for being sexual, and the extent the damage of this has. Still, Erotica is a sensual, rhytmic journey. Beyond its colossal legacy, its songs are catchy and innovative, even to date. A perfect album to go on a night out, or to feel sexy at any given time, Erotica both pleases and invites to reflection.
2. Confessions on a Dance Floor (2005)
This is the soundtrack of an ideal gay night out. It brings out the sassiest, edgiest, most adventurous and cool side into all of us and it unites us on a single beat, on a single dancefloor. THAT is the vibe that this album carries through. Hung Up, Get Together, and Sorry open up the album, and those singles leave anyone who listens in utter euphoria. They show how, like very few artists — if none, Madonna has stood the test of time. They show how a 47-year-old woman could still jump and flip around in skates, dance in high heels, and provide a fresh sound that inspired the surge of EDM music in the early 2010s, and even disco albums we have heard recently — would there be a disco Dua Lipa without Madonna?
The album unites its playlist through blissful transitions (for me, the transition between Forbidden Love and Jump is flawless!), and it further reveals personal topics in some of its lyrics. Personally, I have never heard a deeper dance track than How High? This album deserved all the hype that it got, and I will never forgive the Billboard Hot 100 list for placing Hung Up at #7, instead of the #1 spot it held in most countries. If Madonna is one of the greatest artists of all time, this album is surely a reason why.
1. Ray of Light (1998)
This is how dreams sound like. If this album managed to take the top spot from Confessions on a Dance Floor, it is for a reason. From start to finish, I felt on a spiritual journey. Confessions on a Dance Floor is to have a good night. Ray of Light is to sit on a rooftop afterwards at dawn, and just reflect about the true meaning and purpose of life. Its production is flawless. And the mystique of this album carries all the way through. Power of Good-bye offers an antidote to the pain of farewells. The calm of the song is also present in Swim, Drowned World/Substitute for Love, and Little Star. Shanti/Ashtangi even offers perfect techno in Sanskrit, which oddly and masterfully works in a pop album. The songs blend themselves together to form one of the closest things to heavenly magic I have ever heard. Along with Perdonar Es Divino, from Gustavo Cerati, I felt carried by this album to the skies themselves, and this album truly raises Madonna from a pop star to one of the greatest artists that have ever lived. Hopefully, #Madonna15 joins this ranking. Hopefully, Madonna keeps dazing her fans and impacting the world for many years to come.