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Celebration: The Story Behind Madonna’s 2000s Dancefloor Classic
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In Depth

Celebration: The Story Behind Madonna’s 2000s Dancefloor Classic

Capping another decade of dancefloor classics, Celebration is the song that asserted Madonna’s continued chart dominance in the 2000s.

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Madonna’s milestone – and most comprehensive – his collection to date, 2009’s Celebration unfurled the flags for almost three decades’ worth of chart dominance. In need of a single to introduce the project, the “Queen Of Pop” teamed up with club legend Paul Oakenfold to prove she could still set dancefloors alight at the turn of yet another new decade.

Listen to the best of Madonna here.

A compilation that was a sign of the times

The music industry changed beyond all recognition in the early 2000s. As online piracy and the rise of streaming platforms upended familiar business models, record labels were forced to establish new revenue streams. Where physical releases had once been guaranteed money-makers, the highest income was now being made from touring.

Madonna had been signed to Sire Records by head honcho Seymour Stein, who famously finalised the initial two-single deal from his hospital bed in 1982. The relationship had endured with Sire’s parent label, Warner Bros, right until 2007, when Madonna announced she would be inking a 360-degree deal with Live Nation which would cover tours, merchandise and physical music product.

To mark the end of her first chapter with Warner (she would re-sign with the company a decade later), the “Queen Of Pop” compiled a new definitive hits collection, following from her previous compilations, the 1990 game-changer, The Immaculate Collection (still one of the best-selling albums of all time); the 1995 ballads package, Something To Remember; and GHV2, from 2001, which catalogued many of the hits from the Erotica album onwards. Inevitably, a new hits collection, titled Celebration, would need a new track or two…

Madonna picked a dancefloor legend to work on new material

London-born DJ Paul Oakenfold had made his name on the UK club scene in the 90s, enjoying huge hits with dance trio Grace (the 1995 reissue of Not Over You Yet) and as part on Perfecto Allstarz on Reach Up (Papa’s Got A Brand New Pigbag). Famous for creating compelling commercial trance remixes, Oakenfold had also been called upon to rework tracks from many of the world’s biggest pop acts, including Elvis Presley (the Rubberneckin’ mix that charted in 2003) and Britney Spears.

His remix of Give It 2 Me, Madonna’s collaboration with Pharrell Williams, from 2008’s Hard Candy, had been a huge club success (it was another of the “Queen Of Pop”’s 50 dance-chart-topping cuts, collected on Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones), and so reuniting for new material for the 2009 project seemed obvious.

Celebration became the compilation’s signature hit

Although other tracks were recorded with Oakenfold for what became Celebration (including Broken, which was issued as a limited-edition 12” to fan-club members), the song Celebration became the album’s lead single. Featuring one of Madonna’s signature spoken-word sequences (most famously the “And you can dance… for inspiration” introduction to Into The Groove) in “Haven’t I seen you somewhere before? You look familiar… You wanna dance? Yeah. I guess I just don’t recognise you with your clothes on… What are you waiting for?”, its infectious melody and contemporary club sound earned Ciaran Gribbin, who would later front INXS, a writing credit alongside Ian Green.

The track went Top 5 in the UK

In 2009, streaming had yet to fully break through, although downloads by now significantly outpaced physical sales. And yet the “Queen Of Pop”’s unparalleled dominance of the UK singles chart largely continued, with Celebration peaking confidently at No.3 following its release on 31 July. The song would also make for yet another No.1 on the US club chart – a regular occurrence ever since 1983’s Holiday first achieved that feat for the star.

Celebration’s remix would arguably outrank the original version

Electro house pioneer Benny Benassi was commissioned to rework Celebration, and his trance-inspired take became the one seized upon by club DJs while also being used to soundtrack the song’s promo video. On this remix, some of Madonna’s spoken lyrics were repositioned to the start of the song, and, today, it’s the more frequently played version, being added to various live setlists since its release.

In 2010, Celebration earned a Grammy nomination for Best Dance Recording, and Benassi would work with Madonna again on 2012’s MDNA album, appearing on the single Girl Gone Wild and album track I’m Addicted.

Celebration’s video and live performances have made it a fan favourite

The celebration promo video was filmed at Dolce & Gabbana’s Metropol theatre, in Milan, Italy, and featured a number of Madonna’s dancers, plus her daughter Lourdes. The song also became the closing number of Madonna’s next tour, The MDNA Tour, which ran across the second half of 2012 and included 88 performances. On The Celebration Tour, her greatest-hits run of 2023 to 2024, the song became part of each night’s grand finale.

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