Madonna’s 13th studio album, Rebel Heart, dropped in March of 2015. It marked a departure from the club-heavy albums she’d been putting out for more than a decade, leaning more on techno-tinged power ballads.
It was also her best record since 2005’s Confessions On a Dance Floor.
Rebel Heart has a large lineup of producers, both big names and small, including Kanye West, Avicii and Diplo. Nicki Minaj returns to feature on a track. But unlike on previous releases, that laundry list of contributors doesn’t overwhelm the final product.
That said, a few tracks on Rebel Heart sound out of place amid the slower, more contemplative songs. This is a 14-track album that would have been more consistent, and better, at 10 or 11.
Rebel Heart received the best reviews of any Madonna album since Confessions On a Dance Floor, but that didn’t help it commercially. Though it sold respectably, it broke a five-album #1 streak when it peaked at #2 on the Billboard 200. Worldwide, the album reached one million sales, the lowest total of her career. At 57, Madonna finally seemed less than invincible.
Each time they take a photograph
I lose a part I can’t get back
I wanna hide
This is the part where I detach
Each time they write a hateful word
Dragging my soul into the dirt
I wanna die
Never admit it, but it hurts
[Chorus]
I don’t wanna talk about it right now
Just hold me while I cry my eyes out
I’m not Joan of Arc, not yet
But I’m in the dark, yeah
I can’t be a superhero right now
Even hearts made out of steel can break down
I’m not Joan of Arc, not yet
I’m only human
[Post-Chorus]
Anything they did to me, said to me
Doesn’t mean a thing, ’cause you’re here with me now
Even when the world turns its back on me
There could be a war, but I’m not going down
[Verse 2]
One little lie can ruin my day
Words are like weapons, they betray
When I am afraid
One word of kindness, it can save me
[Chorus]
I don’t wanna talk about it right now
Just hold me while I cry my eyes out
I’m not Joan of Arc, not yet
But I’m in the dark, yeah
I can’t be a superhero right now
Even hearts made out of steel can break down
I’m not Joan of Arc, not yet
I’m only human
[Post-Chorus]
Anything they did to me, said to me
Doesn’t mean a thing, ’cause you’re here with me now
Even when the world turns its back on me
There could be a war, but I’m not going down
[Bridge]
Being destructive isn’t brave
They couldn’t say it to my face
One day, I won’t care
But for the moment, I’m not there
I’ll just close my eyes and let you catch me now
[Chorus]
I don’t wanna talk about it right now
Just hold me while I cry my eyes out
I’m not Joan of Arc, not yet
But I’m in the dark, yeah
I can’t be a superhero right now
Even hearts made out of steel can break down
I’m not Joan of Arc, not yet
I’m only human
[Post-Chorus]
Anything they did to me, said to me
Doesn’t mean a thing, ’cause you’re here with me now
Even when the world turns its back on me
There could be a war, but I’m not going down
Anything they did to me, said to me
Doesn’t mean a thing, ’cause you’re here with me now
Even when the world turns its back on me
There could be a war, but I’m not Joan of Arc
Meet Me In Montauk 
I suspect at this point, Madonna will only recapture major commercial success by either being a host on American Idol or the Voice, doing a duet with a younger popular artist like Billie Eilish or Lil Nas K, or both. Regardless, the move away from EDM is welcome, at least by me.
Lil Nas X obviously, not his twin K.😀