Talk:Madonna discography

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bump ! Vorash 20:20, 27 May 2005 (UTC)

Contents

[edit] RIAA Certifications

If Madonna has 62 million platinum discs, the number of said platinum discs on Wikipedia are incorrect. I added the certifications from the riaa.com database and the total is 61 million, but the database hasn't been updated. The database doesn't include the 3 new platinum certifications of Music, Bedtime Stories, & COADF. That would bring the total to 64 Million platinum discs in the US.

Also, the US album sales has too many sources and looks unkempt. If there is no official up-to-date source of actually sales, might I suggest the sales be based on RIAA certifications until there is? (ThisIsMyName 14:42, 17 December 2005 (UTC))

You are right: I found the information at the RIAA site that True Blue sold 8 million and not 7 million - the information at the madonnatribe site [1] is wrong. I update the certifications on the bottom of this site. The US certifications should be correct now.
The certifications doesn't mean 1 mill. sold - it means shipped. COADS sold approx 600,000 - 800,000 in the USA, but shipped 1 million in the USA. That's a certified Platinum. Of course some fans want to interpret the Platinum into 1 millions sold. The best is to reformulate/ rearrange the US sales/ platinum section - it's POV to mention only the US certifications. --Red-Blue-White 18:08, 17 December 2005 (UTC)

Yes. It is for shipments, not sales. But COADF has sold 1.5 million according to Billboard, and most likely is up to 1.6 million now.

It is not up to 1.6 million! It was near the bottom of the top 200 when it was announced the album was at 1.5 million. Therefore, it is in all probablilty not up to 1.6 million.

COADF soundscan sales in the USA are now sitting at 1,599,300 as of January 2007. Obviously it will pass 1.6 million next week.

[edit] Worldwide Sales

Confessions on a Dancefloor has not sold 4 million copies worldwide. It MOVED 4 million woldwide, moved has the same meaning as SHIPPED. If she would have SOLD 4 mllion copies in one week, she would have beat out Michael Jackson, Britney Spears, Usher, and the Beatles for the most sales in one week, which clearly she has not. It would be in the news, because it would be a world record. E! Online & Yahoo! Music should not be an official source for counting record sales. -ThisIsMyName 00:02, 27 November 2005 (UTC)

The reported note "moved 4 million copies worldwide" can be replaced by the correct/full sales later.--Red-Blue-White 01:05, 27 November 2005 (UTC)

Worldwide record sales of "Confessions" USA: 350,000 (although the debut number is 344,061) UK: 210,000 Germany: 200,000 Italy: 150,000 France: 140,000 Spain: 100,000 Canada: 70,000 Sweden: 60,000 Japan: 50,000 Australia:40,000 Ireland: 30,000 Brazil: 25,000 Denmark: 20,000 Argentina: 15,000 Finland: 15,000 Portugal: 10,000 Norway: 10,000 Switzerland: 10,000 Belgium: 10,000 Taiwan: 5,000 South Korea: 2,000 Singapore: 7,500

There is no proof the cd selling over 3.5 million in the first week, nor does the link posted beforehand provide the total amount of sales. Record label always know how many copies were shipped (moved). And they never exaggerate those numbers. Why? Because they have to pay royalties to the artists, producers, musicians, etc. So if a label says a certain amount was shipped (moved), it has to give a check with an amount of money proportional to those sales. (ThisIsMyName 11:09, 27 November 2005 (UTC))

These numbers are the sales of one week - it's impossible to update it every week (we won't get the numbers every week). Let's wait one month for the official world sales numbers. We have 4 million moved (shipped) cd's. Now we must look if they sell all of them - or more. --Red-Blue-White 15:48, 27 November 2005 (UTC)

The source for "Confessions.." worldwide sales is an official source, but the article is from Herald Sun newspaper that is dated 17th November 2005. The sales of the record had not been calculated in 2 days of the release date. (ThisIsMyName 11:07, 5 December 2005 (UTC))

At the moment we get official sales from Warner USA, Japan, Germany, UK and France - and everytime the sales differ. --Red-Blue-White 01:39, 8 December 2005 (UTC)

I doubt that the 3.5 million are correct [2], but at the moment these are the only official sales we have. --Red-Blue-White 20:24, 12 December 2005 (UTC)
The source is official, just not the article. If the Herald Sun article was dating November 22 or 23, it would make sense, but it's not. The first week of sales could not be calculated within 2 days of the release date. The article was posted on warnermusic.com.au November 21, 2005. I'm sure the album has sold well over 3.5 million copies by now, but just not by the date of the article. - ThisIsMyName 21:20, 12 December 2005 (UTC)
Obviously Warner published the shipped copies and not the sales, like the other sources did. But I think we can keep it because this news is official. Warner will publish more reliable sales soon. --Red-Blue-White 22:07, 12 December 2005 (UTC)
This link has worldwide sales that probably could be referenced. [3] —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Maggott2000 (talk • contribs) 07:51, 3 January 2007 (UTC).
This link has a good breakdown, with creditations, so could be a better source for sales and stop the rampant sales amendments. [4] 146.171.254.66 21:50, 4 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Totals

In case of albums totals the figures given seem to be rather low, it's less than 170 mln worldwide, and according to Warner Madonna has sold more than 200 mln albums worlwide.

I wonder why the discography table doesn't include totals. Gbeeker 18:30, 4 August 2005 (UTC)

  • Ok I answer my own question - because the totals are below the table. Gbeeker 07:06, 11 August 2005 (�TC)

[edit] Release date for "Confessions On A Dancefloor"

Is "Confessions On A Dancefloor" being released on November 15 or November 29? Different sources say either of the two. Sebastian Prospero 22:03, 10 August 2005 (UTC)M

I agree why does the discography add up to 175 while Warner state 200million albums.

The discography doesn't add up exactly to WB's declaration, but to about 170/180Mill- This is possibly the closest we really get for a major artist comparing sales as reposrted in the major markets and the shipments declared by a record company. Yes it is a discrepancy, but WB talk of shipments, sales are usually collected from only major markets(so there are markets missing). This discrepancy is usually bigger than 10% as in Madonna's case. In the Beatles' case, it's 130% (400M sold altogether that we know of EMI declared 1 billion) Elvis, and others have major 'gaps' here as well, we may actually think that WB are more honset than most other record companies on declarations.


[edit] IFPI CONFIRMS 200 MILLION ALBUMS

Hey, finally the IFPI confirms Madoona's sold MORE than 200 million albums... OFFICIAL data from the most official source in the world... End of discussion. [5] —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 84.70.181.217 (talk) 17:26, 28 March 2007 (UTC).

[edit] Current singles in the tables

Being a bit nit-picky here... and if anyone disagrees feel free to revert my change... but I think it is a mistake to update the singles table week-by-week with a new chart position, as it insinuates that the number listed in the table is the peak position, which it isn't. Adding a number after a song has peaked seems more accurate and logical. Perhaps an asterisk or symbol of some sort can indicate that "song is currently charting" or something to that affect? I'm looking specifically at "Hung Up", with a #25 in the Dance chart column. I think its safe to say it will not peak there, but the table as it stands now indicates otherwise. -- eo 14:59, 18 October 2005 (UTC)

Of course it's better to wait for the official cd release - or if HU peaks at #1 ;) I add a notice: "currently charting" --Red-Blue-White 15:32, 18 October 2005 (UTC)


[edit] Reverting edits by 70.18.232.89

I reverted these edits by 70.18.232.89. As you can see, some numbers were changed. Due to the fact that he vandalized a page, I would like to see some actual referencing for the new information before I accept it. --Wolf530 04:02, 24 October 2005 (UTC)

I examined it. The actual numbers are correct. --Red-Blue-White 12:24, 24 October 2005 (UTC)
I assume you mean, what's there now? :) --Wolf530 23:59, 24 October 2005 (UTC)
Si! The site is correct ;) --Red-Blue-White 00:19, 25 October 2005 (UTC)

[edit] True Blue Album & Song

Can someone please fix this. When you click on the song "True Blue" it takes you to the album. I'm not sure how to redirect this. The single should have its own page.

Fixed. --Wolf530 23:59, 24 October 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Songs vs. Singles

In this category: Category:Madonna songs, you have a few songs, and then there's a sub-category for "Singles". Wouldn't it make more sense to have everything in the "songs" main category? Singles are more difficult to define (where was it released as a single, which form -- radio edit, remix, etc.), so it may be more useful to people just find them all in one category. Thoughts? --Wolf530 23:59, 24 October 2005 (UTC)

it makes sense ;) all singles are easy to find on the discography and a category with all songs could be enough. --Red-Blue-White 00:26, 25 October 2005 (UTC)
Sorry, just to clarify, do you believe we should merge the "Songs" category and the "Singles" sub-category, or leave them as is? --Wolf530 04:12, 25 October 2005 (UTC)
in my opinion it's the best to merge them as one category "songs": the exact desciption (singles/ songs/ promos) is listed on the bottom of each site (template) and the discography shows all singles & promos. but maybe it's better to wait and see how many non-singles articles come. --Red-Blue-White 23:04, 27 October 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Which chronology for the Holiday Collection

In which chronology should the Holiday Collection EP go? Singles or Compilations (like Remixed & Revisited)? --Bensin 01:14, 9 December 2005 (UTC)

"You Can Dance" is a album (with 7 tracks). "Remixed & Revisited" is a EP with 7 tracks (considered as a single in many countries). "The Holiday Collection" is a classic 4 track EP and is considered as a single but wasn't a regular single release: it has been released to promote "The Immaculate Collection" in 1991 some months after "The Immaculate Collection". It's a kind of extended maxi single that belongs to the "Holiday" release 1991 in the UK. --Red-Blue-White 10:51, 9 December 2005 (UTC)
OK. Which single preceds it, and which follows it? --Bensin 18:32, 9 December 2005 (UTC)
Its between "Rescue Me" and "This Used To Be My Playground" (the same like the 1991 "Holiday (Remix)". --Red-Blue-White 20:36, 9 December 2005 (UTC)


[edit] US sales & certifications

Madonna 5xPlatinum (5,000,000) (October 2000) Like A Virgin Diamond=10xPlatinum (10,000,000) (May 1998) True Blue 8xPlatinum (8,000,000) (May 13, 1997) Who's That Girl Platinum (1,000,000) (September 1987) (1,300,000 shipped)* You Can Dance Platinum (1,000,000) (January 1988) (1,700,000 shipped)* Like A Prayer 4xPlatinum (4,000,000) (July 1997) I'm Breathless 2xPlatinum (2,000,000) (July 1990) (2,200,000 shipped)* The Immaculate Collection Diamond=10xPlatinum (10,000,000) (October 2001) Erotica 2xPlatinum (2,000,000) (January 1993) 1,873,000 Soundscan + 84,000 MC BMG=1,957,000 sold Bedtime Stories 3xPlatinum (3,000,000) (November 2005) Something To Remember 3xPlatinum (3,000,000) (October 2000) 2,061,000 Soundscan + 179,000 MC BMG=2,240,000 sold Evita 5xPlatinum (2x2,500,000)** (March 1999) (2,600,000 shipped)* Ray Of Light 4xPlatinum (4,000,000) (March 2000) (3,792,000 Soundscan + 459,000 MC BMG=4,251,000 sold) Music 3xPlatinum (3,000,000) (November 2005) GHV2 Platinum (1,000,000) (December 2001) (1,321,000 Soundscan + 90,000 MC BMG=1,411,000 sold) American Life Platinum (1,000,000) (July 2003) 663,000 soundscan

A reminder for the next reverts/ edits. See RIAA [6] --Red-Blue-White 00:40, 16 December 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Split: albums and singles

I think we should now separate the singles, albums and misc in their own articles, I already did the two Madonna albums discography and Madonna singles discography . This is allowed just look at Mariah Carey discography it is separated in two pages (albums and singles). And Can we rename this page into Madonna misc discography for the video releases, promos and misc. --Hotwiki 15:16, 20 December 2005 (UTC)

I think it's no good idea. You see what happened to the sites "album covers", "trivia" and the list sites. All information about Madonna is spread over dozends (bad) articles. It's better to remove all redundant stuff and make GOOD articles. A "Misc discography" is really a fan-thing only - and nothing for a enzyclopedia.
It's a bad idea to make 3 small Madonna discographies - we should make one good discography. And please don't look what Mariah Carey fans are doing. --Red-Blue-White 17:33, 20 December 2005 (UTC)

The 2articles that I did is not bad at all duh and from what I saw Mariah Carey fans did a good job in their articles and since the articles I made are useless thanks to you, I will put back the infobox.--Hotwiki 17:51, 20 December 2005 (UTC)

The point is, you want to make 3 articles: Singles, Albums and Misc. The singles and albums are only 1 table each - there's no need for a site fo one table. Why tear apart a good article? To have more articles than Mariah? This Madonna/Mariah competition destroyed the Madonna main article. The actual discography is a good article. --Red-Blue-White 18:11, 20 December 2005 (UTC)
I am going to agree with RBW - there is absolutely no need to split up a perfectly good discography page into seperate articles. This one discography page was totally fine the way it was, why fix what isn't broken? -- eo 18:37, 20 December 2005 (UTC)

Please delete the singles and look at Madonna singles, this page has 64 kb, and the singles are many.--Daniel bg 10:24, 30 December 2005 (UTC)

The site has grown too big - 64 kb are really too much. Now we have Madonna albums and Madonna singles. --Red-Blue-White 07:18, 31 December 2005 (UTC)

  • It's all about coding, I've removed some redundant codes from the singles table so now it's cut down to 50Kbs. hth, matt-(my page-leave me a message) 18:15, 20 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] What is Madonna's Most Succesful Album???

can any one tell me what the most famous and succesful Madonna album is? I assume Like a Prayer but some people seem to think it's Ray of Light. anybody???

True Blue (sales more than 22 million)--hottie 09:24, 14 October 2006 (UTC)
  • TRUe BLUE only sold 20 million, but The Immaculate Collection is her greatest selling album, selling 23 million.72.94.46.117 23:02, 10 November 2006 (UTC)

True Blue is the most successful studio album, whereas Immaculate is only a Greatest Hits (and thus most people don't count it as an album). matt-(my page-leave me a message) 18:17, 20 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Confessions Remixed

Why is this album considered on the discography? I mean, it's oficial, OK; But it was just a limited edition of three thousand copies, not a massive release. --PMS1234

[edit] Deluxe editions

There are no deluxe editions mentioned on discogs.com, nor available on Amazon and CD Universe, but I've noticed covers that look real and official of deluxe editions and I'd like to buy those albums. I assume those are remastered editions as well. Can anyone provide more info?

[edit] True Blue

"True Blue" has been certified 8x Platinum according to rockonthenet.com. Please quit changing it to 7x Platinum just beause it has sold 7.4 million.

[edit] Promo Singles

Promo singles such as "Impressive Instant" etc that only charted on the US Dance charts should be removed from the singles discography and put into a seperate Promos section. They are not "proper" singles.81.154.179.141 21:24, 23 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] WTF?

Why does it say Ray of Light sold 4.2 million copies according to Billboard when Billboard's article CLEARLY stated the album sold 3,800,000?!

[edit] Too many countries in singles section considered as world biggest music markets

Hi, everybody! I would like to draw your attention to the fact that in the headline of Madonna discography page it is said: "only world's biggest music markets included". Suddenly I see among "biggest music markets" info from such overestimated countries like Austria, Switzerland and Ireland which by all means are not world's biggest music markets at all. How a country with a population of less than 10 million inhabitants can be considered as a big music market I wonder? At the same time the chart info from countries that really make the World's top 10 markets is absent. For example, we miss Italy and the Netherlands (the latter is, by the way, not only one of the biggest, but the one of the civilized markets in the world). Here is Madonna singles history in the Dutch Top 40. I hope this will be useful.

Holiday #11 Like a Virgin #4 Material Girl #8 Crazy for You #14 Into the Groove #1 (3 wks) Holiday (re-issue) #12 Dress You Up #5 (2 wks) Gambler #9 (2 wks) Borderline (re-issue) #2 (2 wks) Live to Tell #3 (3 wks) Papa Don't Preach #2 (3 wks) True Blue #4 (2 wks) Open Your Heart #7 La Isla Bonita #2 (2 wks) Who's That Girl #1 (4 wks) Causing a Commotion #3 (2 wks) The Look of Love #12 Like a Prayer #2 (4 wks) Express Yourself #5 Cherish #15 Dear Jessie #25 Vogue #2 Hanky Panky #13 (2 wks) Justify My Love #4 Rescue Me #9 This Used to Be My Playground #8 (2 wks) Erotica #8 Deeper and Deeper #17 (2 wks) Rain #36 Secret #15 Take a Bow #34 You'll See #15 Don't Cry for Me Argentina #3 (2 wks) Frozen #2 (4 wks) Ray of Light #17 (2 wks) Drowned World/Substitute for Love #27 Power of Goodbye #6 (3 wks) Beautiful Stranger #6 American Pie #4 Music #4 (2 wks) Don't Tell Me #12 (4 wks) What It Feels Like for a Girl #7 Die Another Day #4 American Life #13 Hollywood #25 Me Against the Music (w. B. Spears) #6 Hung Up #1 (7 wks) Sorry #2 (3 wks) Get Together #13 Jump #6 (2 wks)

All the best!

Frantic Romantic. Russia.


Good point. Well, they should re-head it as 'some of the biggest markets' It is also ironical thet the US, in terms of singles is put ahead of others, when in recent years (in teh past it was different0 its single sales have been very low, in fact lower that japan (biggest singles Mmarket) and the uK (second biggest) according to the IFPI. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 84.70.80.195 (talk) 19:14, 4 February 2007 (UTC).

[edit] Madonna Singles Sales

Where are these singles data from? 'Hung Up' shows 8.7m, which is way over the top. The United World Chart has 'Hung Up' at 8.7m inclusive of airplay. Take out airplay, and sales are 5.1m. Music is the same, and should be 4.3m. Also, Hung Up is now reported as her biggest selling single ever, therefore, all other singles 'must' be less than 5.1m (if that report is correct) 60.234.242.196 05:35, 3 January 2007 (UTC)

United World Chart data is as follows: 8.7m for Hung Up, 7.41m for Music, 5.75m for American Pie, 5.18m for Sorry. The site states that 55% of these figures are from airplay, and 3% from websites. Only 42% of this is actual sales. Sales data is collected from USA, JAPAN, UNITED KINGDOM, GERMANY, FRANCE, AUSTRALIA, ITALY, SPAIN, NETHERLANDS, BELGIUM, NORWAY, SWEDEN, FINLAND, DENMARK, AUSTRIA, SWITZERLAND, IRELAND, GREECE, CANADA, AND NEW ZEALAND.

Therefore the data, corrected for this is: 3.65m for Hung Up, 3.11m for Music, 2.41m for American Pie, 2.17m for Sorry —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 146.171.254.66 (talk) 18:58, 4 January 2007 (UTC).

From the United World Chart links provided (and adjusted). American Life 1.2m, Hollywood 1.2m, Die Another Day 1.5m, Don't Tell Me 2.1m, What It Feels Like For A Girl- 1.2m 146.171.254.66 20:59, 4 January 2007 (UTC)
The solution is simple the name should be changed to Total Points instead of total sales in reality both combined are more important than just one alone Rsf7589 21:43, 5 January 2007 (UTC)
This (and all other artists) is based on sales. I then see you increase all the figures back up 'as sales'. Airplay is not relevant to most.60.234.242.196 23:51, 5 January 2007 (UTC)
I dont know if u noticed but wikipedia doesnt specifically say which one you must follow... just because most artist have it this way means nothing... artist like anastacia and pink have it as points... also btw the UWC says that 55% is based on airplay and 42% is based on sales. but that doesnt mean that every song will depend on these percentage numbers why? because say a song received more sales than airplay and if that were to be so then the percentage of sales would increase over that of airplay, i have to mention this is just so none of you out there take the total points of a song and take 42% and make it the official sales of a song that's inaccurate because a song may haved received more of sales than airplay..im going to have to speak to an administrator about this because you can't base sales on an estimate percentage without knowing the actual numbers Rsf7589 02:09, 6 January 2007 (UTC)
I agree with this too, but unless there is an alternative resource, as this is the only one being used. I have to say that it is not logical to have every song get exact same airplay. I don't think going to points is the correct solution. I will see whether contacting UWC gives better insight. It is also however very unlikely that every big hit (by all artists) all suddenly managed to sell over 5m, as this is not that common.146.171.254.66 21:31, 6 January 2007 (UTC)
Actually i disagree many artist have achieved sales of over 5m and it is common to sell a lot, your solution does not really solve anything as the source you provide does not indicate does actual numbers so if u are going to contact the UWC, its best to do so ASAP, otherwise the section from 1998 (frozen) to 2006 (jump) will be changed to points, and since there is no rules against this that will be final. Another detail is that song Over and Over, whomever put it there is not really relevant because they added believeing that it charted in italy, it may or it may havent but if it did they must fix the colors and find the actualy number otherwise it will be removed because it didnt chart anywhere else. Rsf7589 20:22, 8 January 2007 (UTC)
UWC does not have an Email address, so this will not be a quick process for whoever is doing it. Your comment that you are going to move to points and that will be final, is not discussion and eliminates concensus. This needs to be discussed first of all. Please do NOT edit it until concensus has been reached. I do not agree with this approach, as it will be a mix of sales and points. As said earlier, points mean little to most, sales mean a lot. I also disagree that it is in fact common to sell 5m singles. It is not common at all, maybe 3 singles per annum.60.234.242.196 09:47, 9 January 2007 (UTC)
Well none of these single's sales actually have sources so i suggest u remove all sales...the UWC sales they have posted are inacurate so thats one solution, if anyone can come up with something better then go ahead, but thats my suggestion Rsf7589 20:42, 9 January 2007 (UTC)
Not sure whether UWC were contacted via phone, but today they have changed their 'about us' to say that 49% of their point system is sales. This is therefore going to drop the figures down. I think time to reference another source. Most other sites will be Madonna fan sites, so will inflate the data, but wiki is just having verifiable links, which these will be. 146.171.254.66 19:11, 11 January 2007 (UTC)

This was discussed, yet one user overrides all. Unbelievable. We now have a mix of sales and points. We now have a comment to say that to get to points use the % which was already there. We now have zero references to the data. We now have a massive increase in the vandalism of the figures. We now have totals incorporating both sales and points. I wish someone would bring in an administrator, as this is rediculous.Maggott2000 22:24, 3 February 2007 (UTC)


Leave the UWC. It does not COLLECT data from countries. Ite stimates it and gets it wrong all the time. Hung Up has entered the all-time top ten in the Guinness Bopok of Records and WB have paid tax to the Inlland Revenue and declared copyrights to the IFPI for 8.8million in April. That includes single sales, digital sales and ringtones. It's the best selling single of the decade full stop. Can we stop going bty the UWC? It is not an official chart, it does not collect data, it estimates it, it does not include all the world, and the iFPI have often shown that the UWC are out by millions (2.3 million in the case of COAD). Can we just go by the IFPI, whichj, in teh end is the official and legal organisation in charge of all teh record industry all over the world? Thanks. I keep finding that the main problem with Wikipedia is the fact that it does not distinguish between reliable and unreliable sources, official and unofficial sources, biased and unbiased sources. For comments, you can use whatever you want, but for datta yopu must stick to official sources. Even fansites have been used to provide data (I mean fansites with no acknowledgement from official sources). At times even formu posts are quoted aboyut album sales (Mariah Carey artiicle, only based on forum posts and fansites- be serious!) While official or reliable sources are neglected. If official data are not available, THEN you move to reliable unofficial sources, but teh fact that the data is not official must be stated in this case. The UWC is reasonably reliable (though it got last year's top 10 all wrong, by millions!)but NOT official. Fansiotes are not official (unless backed by the record company- and I mean on the data provided, not on everything, so, for example, absolutemadonna backs its singles sales quoting WB- that's ok, others just invent them or tke them even from unsigned articles and forums- that's not ok)not reliable, and often biased. Thanks. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 84.70.80.195 (talk) 19:25, 4 February 2007 (UTC).
Once again the 'points' have turned to 'sales'. Garbage in, garbage out. 60.234.242.196 04:52, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Confessions On a Dance Floor

In 3 places on the actual wiki page for this album, as well as her, it states that this album has sold 11m. This page even says this information came from Warner Bros. I have seen virtually 100 sites that reference a press release by Warner, and these all say 8m. Can someone supply at least one link that mentions 11m. 146.171.254.66 22:17, 6 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] True Blue RIAA certification

True Blue is listed as having been certified 8x Platinum, but when I perform a search using the RIAA database, the highest certification I find is 7x Platinum on February 9, 1995. Is the online database just missing this certification, or was it for some reason re voked? - Charity 17:40, 28 January 2007 (UTC)

  • The 8x Platinum certification was just a goof. Someone just put it there like they did with Mariah Carey's Emotions 5x Platinum cert. The RIAA has True Blue only at 7x Platinum and Emotions as 4x Platinum.72.94.46.100 20:21, 11 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Sales info

The number of times the sales information keeps changing on this discography page is absolutely ridiculous. Even after someone has actually posted links showing sales information people keep coming in here and posting fake inflated sales figures (ie. American Life selling 6 million copies). This album has sold between 3.5 to 4 million as stated on the link and will probably never reach 6 million. So why do we have to see fake sales info constantly popping up on here. Someone should lock this page from editing. User:Mikeinrdgpa

There are several editors on this page with their own agenda's. Some are fans who want Madonna to look better, others are Madonna haters who want her to look bad (in comparison to Mariah, Cher, Celine). It is all across the net and wiki. Although some other editors have done a good job in doing referencing, they are the minority, and generally ger reversed. Without referencing, this page is not credible. Maggott2000 22:24, 3 February 2007 (UTC)


[edit] I'm Going to Tell You a Secret

Why do people change the sale number of I'm Going to Tell You a Secret? According to mediatraffic.de it has sold 444.000 units!!! It also doesnot reach one million with 7,5% of total sales which are not covered by mediatraffic.de.

[edit] Missing "Like A Virgin" and "True Blue" album data.

There is no "Like a Virgin" or "True Blue" album data in the albums section. This data is missing between the "Madonna" and "Who's That Girl" album information.A Geographer 19:44, 19 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Remixed and Revisited's album sales

The album has only sold 500,000 worldwide. It did not sell 1 million, because it only sold 120,000 in the US and wasnt certified Platinum in Europe or anything like that. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 72.94.46.100 (talk) 20:33, 11 March 2007 (UTC).

  • It didnt even sell 500,000 worldwide. It only peaked at #74 in Canada and #94 in Europe. It only reached at #115 in the US. It only sold about 120,000-200,000 worldwide to be honest.LAUGH90 21:25, 17 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Amazon Not Reliable

We should not trust what someone from Amazon.com says. It is not official from a record label or whatever, so we shouldn't use it as a source for sales. I think we should use the other source because it is much more reliable.LAUGH90 16:56, 18 March 2007 (UTC)


[edit] Use of flags rather than abbreviations for countries

I am of the opinion that this makes the chart look more professional, so I vote for it to stay. 60.234.242.196 05:20, 19 March 2007 (UTC)

I also think the chart looks very professional and aesthetically pleasing, i tried doing it to the singles, but i inadvertatently made a mess of the table, that is the only reason i reverted that, if someone wants to edit the singles, go for it, i just wasnt very good at it was all, i may try again when i have more time. i think we should implement this in other charts for discography - not only the flags, but the who look and feel of this chart, i think this chart is amazing with album art and flags, etc. i originally revamped it to this version, and everyone has embraced it and built so much on it 74.204.40.46 05:51, 20 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] This article is too big and messy

I know this has been stated a few topics above, but i think its time we split the discography into Madonna albums and Madonna singles. This is an artist who has been releasing material for 25 years - this page has become far too cluttered and messy. If we were to have an albums page, we could split the tables into Studio albums, Compilation/remix albums and Live album (see Kylie Minogue discography). Madonna is hardly over, more releases are going to emerge and this page is going to expand even more. I think its time we split them. Peter2012 04:41, 23 March 2007

[edit] Sales data

The following sites report to have researched the sales data for Madonna. I will quote the data and the average from the lot. The average is close to what the figures that have been adopted. sites [7],[8],[9],[10],[11],[12],[13],[14]

Madonna: 10m, 8m, 8.3m, 8m, 10m, 6.26m, 7.58m, 8m. ave = 8.3m
Like A Virgin: 20.4m, 19.5m, 18.3m, 19m, 19m. 14.37m, 17.15m, 19m. ave = 18.3m
True Blue: 22.5m, 20m, 19m, 20m, 14.98m, 17.9m, 21m. ave = 19.34m
Who's That Girl: 6m, 4.6m, 5m, 8m, 2.15m, 4m, 5m. ave = 5m
You Can Dance: 7m, 5.1m, 7m, 2.32m, 4.53m, 5m. ave = 5.1m
Like A Prayer: 15m, 13.5m, 11.4m, 15m, 9.17m, 11m, 13m. ave = 12.6m
I'm Breathless: 6.7m, 5.4m, 5m, 5m, 4.14m, 5.45m, 5m. ave = 5.2m
The Immaculate: 23m, 23m, 23m, 22m, 25m, 19.98m, 22.1m, 22m. ave = 22.5m
Erotica: 5.5m, 4.8m, 5m, 3.86m, 5.43m, 5m. ave = 5.0m
Bedtime Stories: 7m, 7m, 6m, 6m, 5.26m, 6.4m, 7m. ave = 6.4m
Something To Remember: 7.7m, 10m, 7.7m, 8m, 5.78m, 8.15m, 8m. ave = 7.9m
Evita: 11m. 17m, 7m, 11m, 5.7m, 5.7m, 11m. ave = 9.8m
Ray of Light: 17m, 15m, 15m, 14m, 14m, 12.56m, 13.49m, 14m. ave = 14.4m
Music: 15m, 13m, 13m, 14m, 8.61m, 9.39m, 15m. ave = 12.6m
GVH2: 7m, 5.1m, 7m, 3.42m, 4.94m, 7m. ave = 5.7m
American Life: 6.5m, 3.5m, 5m, 2.27m, 3.38m, 5m. Ave = 4.3m
Confessions ...: 8m, 6.14m, 7.6m, 11m (and Warner Bros 8m link). ave = 8.2m
There is concensus that Confessions has sold 8m, not 11m. There is no concensus on what Evita has sold. The ave figures also cannot be used, as considered non referenceable, so links representing closest to these is best approach. 60.234.242.196 06:23, 29 March 2007 (UTC)

WOW. That's a huge amount of data and sources. Please add the info. I for one trust that you are correct. I also know that Confessions sold 8m. Please don't put I'm Breathless in the album category, which has been discussed to death. Please add your sales data though! Thank you for checking up on it!!! We need reliable info. Herewego123 12:11, 30 March 2007 (UTC)


Update: I reverted your edits. Fix any falsehoods, and add all your sources. Herewego123 12:22, 30 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] I'm Breathless IS a soundtrack

Can the person constantly moving I'm Breathless to the studio albums section give it a break. I'm Breathless is an album of music featured in and inspired by the motion picture Dick Tracy (film). According to the wikipedia on Soundtrack, this is what a soundtrack is! If that isn't enough proof, go to the music page of www.madonna.com and you'll find I'm Breathless under soundtracks. Now stop this rediculous ploy. Peter2012 12:39, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

I'm Breathless is NOT a soundtrack. If it were a soundtrack, it wouldn't say "Music from and inspired by the film," but rather "Original Motion Picture Soundtrack." The word "soundtrack" doesn't appear anywhere on the sleeve or in the album credits. Breathless is really a studio album, imaged around the Dick Tracy film, and the character Madonna played in it. It isn't a soundtrack. That's a huge misconception. Jtpop 05:09, 2 April 2007 (UTC)
And it should be noted that—unlike I'm Breathless—both Who's That Girl and Evita are tagged "Motion Picture Soundtrack." I'm Breathless is a concept album (much like Garth Brooks' The Life Of Chris Gaines and Christina Aguilera's Back to Basics) but a studio album nonetheless. Why this is so hard for some to grasp, I'll never know. — The Real One Returns 06:01, 2 April 2007 (UTC)
Just because the term "soundtrack" is not mentioned on the cover, does not mean the album is not a soundtrack. Look at the cover of the "Next Best Thing" or "Die Another Day" soundtracks, like "I'm Breathless", they state that the recording is "Music from the motion Picture". As 3 or 4 songs featured in the film Dick Tracy while the remaining material is "inspired" by it, and the film's official logo appears on the cover, it is according to Wikipedia, a film soundtrack. Would Madonna have made the album, had the film not existed? Highly unlikely as the film was the reason for its creation. Peter2012 5.50, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

None of that matters. Dick Tracy HAS AN OFFICIAL SOUNDTRACK (that actually says "SOUNDTRACK" on it!) and "I'm Breathless" isn't it! The Mad-Eyes.net site summed it up best: "On May 22nd, 1990 Madonna released I'm Breathless, a studio album that is often seen as the soundtrack of Dick Tracy. However, only three songs are actually from the movie: More, Sooner Or Later and What Can You Lose, which are written by Stephen Sondheim and produced by Madonna and Bill Bottrell. The other songs are "inspired by" the film Dick Tracy and all written and produced by Madonna and Patrick Leonard. Since the sound of all the tracks is very similar - all retro cabaret-jazz with an ironic twist - it's a very conceptual album." Doesn't matter if it would have existed if the movie hadn't come out or not, "I'm Breathless" is still really a studio album, loosely inspired/themed/whatever after the movie. The real soundtrack exists and is notarized, making this entire argument futile. One more time: "I'm Breathless" is NOT A SOUNDTRACK!!! -- 172.165.170.236 08:48, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

Mad Eyes is a fan site. Many films have multiple soundtracks dedicated to them. Madonna had released her own solo album in 1989, the previous year before, which was Like A Prayer. As stated, Madonna and her management already cleared up this issue. Herewego123 11:00, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

And STOP calling reverts of the article back to a version that features "I'm Breathless" in the studio album section "vandalism." It is not. Vandalism is when someone maliciously DESTROYS something, it isn't someone taking an opposite and equally forceful stance. Labeling "I'm Breathless" for what it is (a studio album) is not being a vandal. If I just wanted to get back @ or put people in their place, I could just as easily cry "vandalism" whenever one of you decides to put "I'm Breathless" in the "soundtrack" section. Meh. No one here owns this article, and therefore no one gets to deem their word as gospel, or have final say (except for an administrator) . --172.165.170.236 09:41, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

I'm Breathless was confirmed a soundtrack by Madonna, her management, WB, and Madonna.com. Any reverts or changes will be removed. Thank you. Herewego123 10:51, 2 April 2007 (UTC)
I'd like to mention to 172.165.170.236, that he or she is actually removing sourced and updated sales information each time he or she reverts the page. I'm hoping we can resolve this without going further. 172.165.170.236 may also like to create a page and a username for themselves. Just a suggestion. ;) Thanks for trying Wikipedia. Herewego123 10:57, 2 April 2007 (UTC)
I'll post further links. The Daily Telegraph which uses press releases, also included this:

The albums

Last Updated: 3:56pm BST 26/07/2006

  1. Madonna 07/83
  2. Like A Virgin 11/84
  3. True Blue 07/86
  4. Who's That Girl (soundtrack) 07/87
  5. You Can Dance 11/87
  6. Like A Prayer 03/89
  7. I'm Breathless (soundtrack) 06/90
  8. The Immaculate Collection 11/90
  9. Erotica 10/92
  10. Bedtime Stories 10/94
  11. Something To Remember 11/95
  12. Evita (soundtrack) 11/96
  13. Ray Of Light 03/98
  14. Music 09/00
  15. GHV2 11/01
  16. American Life 04/03
  17. Remixed & Revisited (EP) 11/03
  18. Confessions on a Dancefloor 11/05

[15] —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Herewego123 (talk • contribs) 11:02, 2 April 2007 (UTC).

Image:MadonnaRIAA.JPG—BreathlessNotASoundtrack 11:50, 2 April 2007 (UTC)


User:BreathlessNotASoundtrack will be checked for Sockpuppetry status.Herewego123 12:16, 2 April 2007 (UTC)
Go right ahead, I just registered this name. I was the one posting under IP 172.165.170.236. Anyways, I notice you switched gears and didn't bother to answer back to what I presented from RIAA, detailing how "I'm Breathless" is NOT a soundtrack as you claim. --BreathlessNotASoundtrack 12:36, 2 April 2007 (UTC)
Kind of a crappy name to give yourself. They put I'll Remember as an album, and solo, misspelled "Girlie Show", and so forth. This is not a source that is complete. The RIAA catalog does not exist online. The bottom line is, Madonna and her people have already sorted this out. You can call it a concept soundtrack if you wish, but Madonna is counting it as a soundtrack and not a proper solo album from her, hence the album being called Breathless, her character, and not simply Madonna. She released her "solo" record literally one year prior. When Madonna's albums are all remastered this year, there's no doubt in my mind that I'm Breathless will not be included. Furthermore, many mods have already written specifically in the text not to change it's listing, and the main article states that Confessions is the tenth. A consensus was made years ago. Herewego123 17:43, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

Rikky Rooksby in the book "Madonna: the Complete Guide To Her Music" (Omnibus Press, 2004) also labels the album as a soundtrack and states that the movie "yielded no less than 3 seperate soundtrack albums. A singer/songwriter Andy Paley composed a number of songs in a 30s style...composer Danny Elfman created an album's worth of instrumental music, and finally Madonna produced an album of her own which included the three songs from the film..." He also quotes Madonna in a 1994 Q magazine interview for saying, "I would have to say that the favourite record I've made is the soundtrack to Dick Tracy." Peter2012 4:41, 3 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Page protected

I've protected the article because of the recent edit warring. Please discuss the issue here rather than undoing each other's edits again and again. Extraordinary Machine 13:17, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

Thank goodness! Herewego123 17:43, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Ray Of light

Ray of light sold much more than 14 million worldwide. Over 16 or 17 millions¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_albums_worldwide

http://www.beautifulmadonna.com/charts/albumven.html

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