all about Madonna

4 Pictures - Madonna arrives at New York's JFK airport (October 29 2006) - are added to the gallery.

Superstar Madonna arrived in America yesterday (29 Oct) with her son David as she prepares to further defend her controversial adoption of the tot.
Madonna and husband Guy Ritchie were granted an interim adoption of the 13-month-old boy earlier this month, which has sparked anger amongst groups in his native Malawi, who claim the singer broke the country's adoption laws.
The Material Girl appeared on US TV show Oprah last week, declaring her love for the little boy and praised her biological children Lourdes and Rocco for being so welcoming to the little boy.
On Sunday, Madonna and her three children flew out of London's Heathrow Airport to New York City, where she is expected to appear on NBC News, The Today Show and Dateline to defend her adoption.
source : pr-inside

NBC Today: 2006/11/01
Madonna is interviewed. Tim Allen discusses the new film "The Santa Claus 3: The Escape Clause." Kellie Pickler performs live in the studio. Mireille Guiliano talks about the book "French Women for All Seasons: A Year of Secrets, Recipes, and Pleasures." The best bras for your body.

Live with Regis and Kelly: 2006/11/01
From the holiday film "Santa Clause 3," Tim Allen is here. And, Madonna is in town with a word on her new children's book.

Dateline NBC: 2006/11/01
At 48, Madonna is still making music, headlines, and controversy. In an upcoming interview to air on NBC, hear about her recent adoption, the crucifix and much more when one of the world's favorite pop icons sits down with NBC News' Meredith Vieira. The interview will also air on "Today" on Nov.1 and Nov. 2.

Best International Album :
Christina Aguilera - Back To Basics
Evanescence - The Open Door
Justin Timberlake - Future Sex / Love Song
Madonna - Confessions On A Dance Floor
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Stadium Arcadium

Best International Female :
Beyonce
Christina Aguilera
Madonna
Pink
Shakira

The father of the 13-month-old Malawian boy Madonna is trying to adopt insisted Friday that he supports her plan, and criticized human rights activists here who want the courts to review the process.
"I am surprised what these guys are up to," Yohane Banda told journalists outside the courtroom where a hearing on the human rights group's challenge was held Friday. "Me and my family agreed with the adoption. I just want these people to leave my son alone."
The Human Rights Consultative Committee, a coalition of 67 rights groups, has petitioned the court to make sure no Malawian laws were broken in the adoption process, and to make the committee a party to the adoption so it can help assess Madonna's fitness as a mother.
Judge Andrew Nyirenda held a closed, 90-minute hearing on Friday. He then set another hearing for Nov. 13 to allow lawyers for the committee to submit additional arguments on why the adoption process should be reviewed and why the committee should be a party.
Alan Chinula, the lawyer for Madonna and her husband, film director Guy Ritchie, said he told the judge Friday that no laws had been broken.
"We followed the adoption procedures to the letter," said Chinula.
Justin Dzonzi, the chairman of the human rights committee, said it was not trying to block the adoption but wanted to be a party to the process to make sure Malawian laws were respected.
"We want to be part of the assessment of Madonna to ascertain that she is a suitable mother," he said.
Typically, prospective parents are required to stay in Malawi during an 18-month evaluation period. But the judge who granted an interim custody order to the Ritchies on Oct. 12 said the issue of residence is not specified in the laws. David Banda was taken to London, where Madonna has a home and where a social worker will check on him for the next 18 months.
Child advocates stress that while they do not question Madonna's motives and ability to care for an adopted child, rules and regulations adopted to protect children should be respected. Otherwise, child traffickers or pedophiles might take advantage of loopholes.
Madonna, appearing on "The Oprah Winfrey Show," said Wednesday that she had done nothing wrong, had not used her celebrity to influence Malawian officials and wanted to give David a better life.
The boy's father is a subsistence farmer whose wife died shortly after childbirth -- a relatively frequent occurrence in this impoverished African nation, which suffers from high rates of maternal and infant mortality. Yohane Banda, who left his son with the Malawian orphanage where Madonna found him, lost two other children to malaria in infancy.
In an interview with The Associated Press on Sunday, Banda said authorities had not made it clear to him that he was giving up his son "for good" when he signed adoption papers earlier this month. But Thursday, he shifted the blame to human rights groups.
"I was telling these rights groups that I wasn't selling my son. I said I wouldn't ... sell my son for anything but I had agreed with Madonna before a judge so my comments were taken out of context and I hope Madonna is not angry," he said.
Madonna's adoption plan has sparked international debate about how best to help the millions of African children orphaned because of AIDS and other causes.
source : ap

9 Pictures - Madonna leaving the gym in London (October 25 2006) - are added to the gallery.

Top Electronic Albums :
07 (08) Madonna - Confessions On A Dance Floor

Hot 100 Singles Sales :
22 (18) Madonna - Get Together
38 (41) Madonna - Hung Up
39 (30) Madonna - Sorry

Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
23 (25) Madonna - Jump

Hot Dance Music/Club Play
03 (10) Madonna - Jump

Dance Radio Airplay :
02 (06) Madonna - Jump

Hot Dance Singles Sales :
05 (03) Madonna - Get Together
09 (11) Madonna - Hung Up
10 (09) Madonna - Sorry

2 Pictures - Madonna's family, photographed by Shavawn Rissman - are added to the gallery.

Madonna said the 13-month-old boy she plans to adopt from the African country of Malawi is healthy and thriving in her London home, in an interview that aired Wednesday on "The Oprah Winfrey Show."
The child, David Banda, was taken to London last week after Malawi's High Court granted Madonna and her husband, director Guy Ritchie, an interim adoption order.
Madonna said David was healthy, despite having overcome malaria and tuberculosis. The interview was taped Tuesday via satellite from London.
"David is amazing," the 48-year-old pop star said. "What really surprises me is how great my children are with him and how he's transitioned so easily from living in Africa in an orphanage to living in our house."
David's father, Yohane Banda, has said he didn't understand the adoption meant he would give up custody of his son "for good." But in an interview posted Tuesday on Time magazine's Web site, Banda said he will not contest the adoption.
"I don't want my child, who is already gone, to come back," he said. "I will be killing his future if I accept that."
Banda has said he is too poor to raise David.
Madonna said she met Banda, who thanked her for giving his son a new life. "I sat in that room; I looked into that man's eyes," she said.
The 30-minute interview with Winfrey was the first time Madonna had spoken on TV about the adoption, which has been challenged by human rights groups that allege the singer used her fame and fortune to flout Malawai's adoption laws.
"If only my wealth and my position could have made things go faster," she said. "I assure you it doesn't matter who you are and how much money you have, nothing goes fast in Africa."
Typically, prospective parents are required to stay in the country during the 18-month evaluation period, but the judge who granted the interim custody order Oct. 12 said the issue of residence is not specified in the laws. A social worker in London will check on David for the next 18 months.
Madonna said she initially was urged to consider adopting a child in Ethiopia or Kenya because of Malawi's vague adoption laws.
source : ap

Madonna at Oprah Winfrey Show (October 25 2006) Video Captures - are added to the gallery.

From provocative videos to headline-making risqué concerts, Madonna is known for pushing people's buttons. Now it's her actions off stage that are putting her back in the center of controversy.
In the fall of 2006, Madonna traveled to the African nation of Malawi where she is building an orphan care center with her foundation Raising Malawi. Soon after her trip, news broke that she and husband, Guy Ritchie, were adopting a 13-month-old boy named David.
Local human rights groups have since gone to court, challenging the Malawian government's decision to allow Madonna to adopt David. They believe that Madonna used her wealth and celebrity to fast track the adoption. News outlets have also recently reported that David's birth father, whom originally was in support of the adoption, claims to not have fully understood what he was saying when he encouraged the adoption.
Madonna, accustomed to being criticized in the media, says she never expected to be criticized for her family's choice to adopt a son.
"I didn't realize that the adoption was causing any controversy until I came back," she says. "There were a million film crews in the airport and press camped outside my door. I don't read newspapers or watch television, but all of my friends have let me know what everybody's talking about and what's going on in the news. So it didn't really hit me until I got back to England. It's pretty shocking."
source : oprah.com

5 Pictures - Madonna leaves the Sanderson Hotel in London's Mayfair ater Oprah interview (October 24 2006) - are added to the gallery.

Ricky Martin on Wednesday defended Madonna's adoption of a 1-year-old Malawian boy, calling her an "exemplary" mother, and said he, too, would like to adopt. "I know Madonna as a mother, and she's exemplary," the Puerto Rican star told The Associated Press in a phone interview from Miami.
"The love she gives her kids is a dream, and I know that her heart is big enough to adopt not just one child but to adopt 20."
Martin, who in recent years has defended the rights of children through his foundation and as an ambassador for UNICEF, said he was not aware of the challenges to the adoption by human rights groups that allege the pop diva flouted the African country's adoption laws.
Madonna, in an interview aired Wednesday on Oprah, blamed the media for the controversy the adoption has sparked.
"I feel the media is doing a great disservice to all the orphans of Africa, period, not just the orphans of Malawi," she said.
Madonna and her husband, director Guy Ritchie, were awarded temporary custody of the boy, David Banda, earlier this month.
Martin, when asked if he would like to adopt a child someday, said, "Totally. I don't know when, but right now I am sponsoring three children in India and we have a very beautiful connection."
source : ap

Madonna told Oprah Winfrey yesterday she was surprised by the firestorm surrounding her efforts to adopt a 13-month-old boy from the African country of Malawi -- and she blamed the media for it.
Madonna taped the interview via satellite from London, for airing today. It was the first time she'd spoken publicly in depth about the adoption.
Britain's Daily Mail newspaper quoted audience members as saying the Material Girl told Winfrey: "I did nothing wrong."
According to a member of the Oprah audience, Madonna said she was startled by press reports about the toddler's father, Yohane Banda, who was quoted last week as saying he didn't realize he was signing away custody of his son, David, "for good."
"She said she met with the father, she looked him in the eye," audience member Sheryl Lewis recounted.
Madonna, she added, said she acted according to the law and had both "oral and written approval ... and now the press have gotten to him," Lewis said.
In an interview posted yesterday on Time magazine's website, Banda said he will not contest the adoption.
"I don't want my child, who is already gone, to come back," he said. "I will be killing his future if I accept that."
Madonna told the Oprah audience that she and her husband, Guy Ritchie, had been thinking about adoption for more than two years, said Lewis, of Deerfield, Ill.
Another Oprah audience member, Amanda Bannon of Crawfordsville, Ind., told ABC News that "the biggest thing was that Madonna wants to get the point across that she doesn't want this to be a discouragement to other families to not adopt."
Many in the audience appeared to support the star.
"Madonna is an intelligent woman and she made a lot of sense. I am not always the greatest fan of her, but it was a good thing that she did," Sue Waldman told the Daily Mail.
Madonna, 48, travelled to Malawi on Oct. 4 with Ritchie. They spent eight days visiting orphanages she is funding through her charity.
David was taken to London last week after Malawi's High Court granted Madonna and Ritchie an interim adoption order.
source : ap

from InStyle : As Her Madgesty has said, "Music makes the people come together." The pop icon and her producer, Stuart Price, compiled their ultimate party playlist for us. Our only quibble? Modesty kept Madonna from adding any of her own songs to the mix, and nothing gets a party started like a little "Madgic."

Madonna's Playlist
1. West End Girls by Pet Shop Boys
2. Supernature by Cerrone
3. Dance by ESG
4. All This Love That I'm Giving by Gwen McRae
5. Don't Stop The Music by Yarborough & Peoples
6. Give Me The Night by George Benson
7. Move On Up by Destination
8. The Smurf by Tyrone Brunson
9. Do What You Wanna Do by T-Connection
10. Evolution by Giorgio Moroder

The biological father of 13-month-old Malawian boy David says he did not know that American pop star Madonna would be taking his son "for good" when she came to adopt him earlier this month (a claim government officials dispute). But Yohane Banda tells TIME that his son is now better off and he would be "killing" David's future to insist his son returns.
Banda, 32, lives in a small mud hut in the village of Lipunga, which sits close to the Zambian border about 112 miles west of Malawi's capital Lilongwe. Poor and uneducated, Banda tends a patch of maize and a vegetable garden and every now and again gets a job reworking scrap metal. When his wife Malita Lungu, a Zambian who gave birth to David across the border in her native country, died just a week after David was born, Banda struggled to raise his son with the help of relatives and friends. But a month later he sent David to the orphanage where Madonna would later find him. TIME reporter Peter Kumwenda interviewed Banda in his modest home this week

TIME: Your son David is now in the UK where he has joined his new parents. After all that has happened how do you feel?
Banda: I am OK.

It is been suggested by some sections of the media that you are unhappy about how things went, specifically that you did not understand that adoption means your son now becomes somebody's else's child, isn't that right?

It is true that I was not told properly that my child will be taken for good. You know, I am not educated so the way I was told, I thought it would be the same as keeping him at the orphanage, the only difference being that he will be kept by a rich, respectable lady and in America which is far away. I never understood it as my child being taken for good.

Have you now been told adoption means David is now Madonna's child not yours' anymore?

Yes, some people are saying that.

But you have not been told officially by the orphanage or by government officials?

No, I have not been told.

So do you believe that your child has been taken away from you for good, to become Madonna's child, or do you still think he will come back to you after some time?

What I know and I what I was told is that good Samaritans want to help raise my son by sending him to school and looking after him. When he finishes school he will come back home to stay with us.

If you find that it is true, your son is now another family's child and you may never see him again, what will you do?

Nothing. What can I do?

You won't try and demand your child back?

No no no.

Some human rights activists have taken up the case in court. They say because you did not understand what adoption means, your son's adoption must be nullified. Do you agree with them?

No.

Explain.

I don't want my child, who is already gone to come back. I will be killing his future if I accept that.

So you won't go to court to strengthen their case?

No.

How about other members of your family uncles, brother and so on. Will any them be going to court together with human rights groups to try and stop the adoption?

No, no one will do that.

Do you think your wife would have tried to stop the adoption from going ahead?

No, I don't think so.

Tell me what exactly she would have done about all this?

Well, I don't know. I think she would have wanted our child to go so he can be supported with education so that in future our child can support us.

Finally, I want to ask you about Madonna. You saw Madonna, what do you think about her?

Well, I am just grateful to her for helping my child.

source : time magazine

6 Pictures - Madonna leaving the gym in London (October 24 2006) - are added to the gallery.

Madonna is to ask gay actor pal Rupert Everett to be her African baby's godfather, The Sun can reveal.
The 48-year-old has told friends she wants him to play a big part in little David Banda's life.
Madonna picked Rupert, 47, because of his experience of working in Africa with Aids victims. The move is a sign that Madonna and hubby Guy Ritchie are confident the adoption will be approved.
A close source said: "Madonna and Rupert have been pals for years and he is one of her closest friends. But more than that her trip to Africa was partly inspired by Rupert's work out there.
"She knows he spends a lot of time in the country through his work with Aids charities and that he knows the country well. She feels he knows the culture well and would be a great help to David as he grows up."
Madonna and Everett have been pals since the 1980s and starred in a film together, The Next Best Thing. The adoption has been surrounded by controversy and yesterday David's father Yohane, 31, claimed he has not given approval for a permanent adoption.
He said he hoped David would return to him in Malawi after finishing schooling. African officials yesterday insisted the adoption HAD been handled correctly.
source : thesun.co.uk

8 Pictures - Madonna leaving the gym in London (October 21 2006) - are added to the gallery.

Madonna will speak to talk show host Oprah Winfrey about her decision to adopt a 13-month-old Malawian boy - the first television interview for the pop star since her adoption became an international controversy.
The interview is scheduled to tape Tuesday and air Wednesday, a spokeswoman for Harpo Productions Inc. said Monday.
Madonna traveled to the African country of Malawi on Oct. 4 with her husband, Guy Ritchie. Together, they spent eight days visiting orphanages she is funding through her charity.
The boy, named David Banda, was taken to London last week after Malawi's High Court granted Madonna and her husband an interim adoption order.
The 48-year-old singer has said she acted according to the law, but the toddler's father said Sunday he did not realize he was signing away custody of the boy "for good."
Madonna, who rose to pop culture icon status in the 1980s, has two children - daughter Lourdes, 9, and son Rocco, 6.
source : ap

Hard for me to understand exactly what it is Madonna has done person ally to all who are so violently critical of her recent plunge into Third World child-caring, money-giving and adoption. The press continues to turn her into a monster.

Here's my take. Madonna is sincere in her efforts, but she just doesn't give a damn about how it all looks. Media relations are not her priority, and listening to astute p.r. advisers is not her long suit. She didn't care that people would say she was up to some contrived, copycat-Angelina Jolie/Brad Pitt kind of thing. Given her disdain for newspapers, she might not even be aware of how her actions are often perceived. She doesn't do the things she does for "publicity" - that all just happens whenever she makes a move.

Madonna has a lot of power. And we have said over and over in this space that the ill-wishers who constantly pronounce her as "all washed up" are just wrong. Her last tour broke worldwide records and put her into a new cash category of top-grossing acts. This makes her more of a formidable target for those who want to tear down all success stories. (Somebody said to me, after the 1990 "Blonde Ambition" tour, "She won't be doing this in 10 years." Well, it's 2006, and she's still going strong.)

Now, personally, I think Madonna would have been better off attempting to adopt a parentless child, not a 1-year-old with a living (and probably soon to be demanding) father. And she'd have been far better off never bringing up the word "kabbalah" in connection with any of her announced good works for children left without families because of AIDS. I'm not much for charity with any proselytizing religion mixed in on top of it.

A better p.r. question for a positive outcome regarding giving away money and adopting children in the Third World might be to ask: Where did Angelina Jolie go right, and where did Madonna go wrong? I think both of these phenomenal women are warm-hearted and eager to do good deeds in a naughty world. Perhaps the answer is to take a leaf from the book of the amazing Bono before one jets off to Malawi or wherever. He knows how to do good deeds, make friends and influence people! The Bible says never let your right hand know what your left hand is doing, so perhaps it doesn't really matter so long as these big stars have sincere intentions. How much money are you giving away to help children?

P.S. And lest we forget, the "trend" for adopting Third World babies seems to have begun with the remarkable Mia Farrow, who took nine or 10 children, some with disabilities. No big fuss was made over Mia's adoption techniques. But then again, Mia is . . . small bosomed. She has never worn a vial of blood around her neck, broken Jennifer Aniston's heart, written a sex book, hung herself on a cross, or, well - you get the picture. Mia had plenty of controversy in her time, but her soft, wistful manner always made it seem the scandal was being thrust upon her.

source : nypost

11 Pictures - Madonna leaving the gym in London (October 21 2006) - are added to the gallery.

5 Pictures - Madonna leaving her PR agency in London (October 20 2006) - are added to the gallery.

6 Pictures - Madonna and Guy Ritchie leaving the George private club in Mayfair, London (October 19 2006) - are added to the gallery.

At first glance, Malawi's Home of Hope is a rag-tag collection of ramshackle, dilapidated buildings in a hot, dusty field that would most likely give rise to despair. To the keener eye, however, the orphanage from which Madonna adopted 13-month-old David Banda is a lively hive of purposeful activity.

Students and teachers discuss lessons as they walk in the campus at Mchinji, in the foothills of the green mountains that separate Malawi from Zambia. A dozen youngsters are at work in a mill, grinding maize grown in nearby fields. Others carry freshly harvested tomatoes, onions and peanuts. Teenagers blow off steam after exams by playing spirited games of football and basketball in their bare feet and with makeshift balls. A dozen girls, in clothes frayed but clean, sit chatting on a log in the shade.

Outwardly shabby, perhaps, but clearly a place rich with inspiration, Home of Hope appears to be living up to its name as a haven for several hundred of Malawi's one million children orphaned by Aids or malaria.

The orphanage is the work of 77-year-old Presbyterian minister Thomson Chipeta. In 1998 Chipeta started the facility because he had taken in so many children who had lost their parents. The orphan centre has grown in response to Malawi's increasing need and also as a result of Chipeta's vision and success in raising funds from Europe, Canada, South Africa and Malawi.

Chipeta is like the school he created, rough-hewn and impressive. His handshake is firm, his gaze is clear. 'We have 500 young people here, ranging in age from one to 18. We have a primary school and a full secondary school. Some of our graduates go on to technical training colleges. Education is the way these youngsters can make something of their lives.'

But his face clouds over at the mention of Madonna's recent visit. 'The complaints, the court case, the trouble, the press,' says Chipeta, furrows of worry suddenly creasing his brow. He is at pains to insist that the adoption has been done correctly, but is clearly concerned about the court case and the possibility that the government would think that Home of Hope has done anything wrong.

'It has tainted everything. We have worked to do everything properly, but we cannot accept visitors freely now. We cannot afford to make matters worse.' Clearly the controversy and glare of publicity has been an ordeal for Chipeta.

Despite the impending court battle, most Malawians say they are pleased by Madonna's adoption and by the interest generated in helping the country deal with its burden of vulnerable children. 'Home of Hope is a wonderful school, a very good place,' said schoolteacher Sapensia Banda, who cycled 10 miles to invigilate at exams. 'But the baby who was adopted, he will have even better opportunities. Let's hope he will come back and help us all.' Businessman Dik Mlenga agrees: 'I was raised by my cousin, so I know how tough it can be. She has done a good thing for that boy.'

There is an air of expectancy in Malawi. Clouds are gathering and the annual rains are about to begin. Fields are ploughed and ready for the new maize crop. Malawians are hoping for good rains and good harvests. Likewise, they are hoping that the world's unexpected attention will bring positive results. Love her or loathe her, Madonna's foray has stimulated a lively international debate about how best to deal with the continent's vulnerable children, more than 48 million, according to UN estimates.

Aids, malaria and other diseases create orphans and also prey on the small children. Malawi, one of Africa's poorest countries is also one of the most densely populated. For more than 20 years, the country has had a problem of chronic malnutrition among an estimated 20 per cent of its children.

More significant for Malawi than Madonna's headline-grabbing adoption is her pledge to establish an orphan care centre. About 20 miles down the road from Home of Hope, in Namitete, Madonna's new organisation, Raising Malawi, is planning to build a centre that will assist thousands of parentless children. Working with Consol Homes, a community-based Malawian organisation, Madonna's group plans to build a kitchen and feeding centre, a pre-school unit, a centre for older orphans, a separate centre for widows and grandmothers, play areas and a teaching garden. Phase two will see the establishment of a primary school.

The new centre will be surrounded by 26 villages with a population of 30,000 people, of whom 16,000 are children. It is estimated that the centre will assist more than 4,000 orphans.

'We like to operate with the surrounding communities, to keep the children in their extended families,' says Alfred Chapomba, who has won a reputation as one of Malawi's most effective child care activists as director of Consol Homes. 'This is a problem of critical, national importance,' he says. 'We must all work together: government, local communities and the international donors, all of us.'

Close to Namitete, on the tarred road to Malawi's capital, Lilongwe, stands a small naked boy with a swollen belly. He is dusty and glares at cars and trucks with fierce, disturbed eyes. He hops out of the way of hooting vehicles. Other children by the road shout at him. Could he be one of Malawi's orphans, hungry and alienated and in need of assistance?

'Home of Hope and Consol Homes are two outstanding institutions, but they are the exceptions. There are many more groups that are struggling to get enough food for children and are poorly equipped or cannot provide education. Many children are dying of hunger and disease,' said Rob Jamieson, editor of Lilongwe's Chronicle newspaper. 'Madonna has focused international attention on our problem. We look forward to her sustained interest in our children. If she keeps at it down the years, I think it will really be something.

'I don't know why she picked Malawi, but thank God she did.'

source : the observer

5 Pictures - Madonna leaving a hotel in London (October 20 2006) - are added to the gallery.

8 Pictures - Madonna in London (October 19 2006) - are added to the gallery.

Oct 25 - The Oprah Winfrey Show
Oct 30 - The Today Show
Oct 30 - The Tonight Show with Jay Leno

9 Pictures - Madonna in London (October 13 2006) - are added to the gallery.

A judge on Friday postponed a hearing on a lawsuit by human rights groups challenging the government"˜s decision to allow Madonna to start adoption procedures for a motherless 13-month-old Malawian boy.
"We are ready for the case but the attorney general wants to consult with the Ministry of Gender on the whole adoption process," said Alan Chinula, a lawyer representing Madonna. "Our position is all legal aspects were followed."
Madonna and her husband, Guy Ritchie , have been given temporary custody as a step toward adopting David Banda, who has spent most of his young life in an orphanage after his mother died of complications from giving birth.
The singer said in a statement that she and her husband have followed the law in the adoption process that would be completed after an 18-month evaluation process by Malawian authorities. Normally, prospective parents in Malawi are given custody and required to be monitored in the country for 18 months to determine their fitness. The regulations make no special provisions for foreigners.
"Where were these people when David was struggling in the orphanage? These so-called human rights groups should leave my baby alone," he said in an interview earlier this week. "As father I have okayed this, I have no problem. The village has no problem. Who are they to cause trouble? Please let them stop."
"We note that laws were flouted and our concern is that government may set a precedent that can legalize human trafficking," he said.
He said the committee wants to be a party to the adoption process to make sure the law is followed. He said current law bars international adoptions, saying adoptive parents must be residents in Malawi and must be assessed for between 18 and 24 months.
source : ap

Touched for the very first time - this is the moment Madonna met her adopted African tot and tenderly cradled him in her arms.
The Material Girl turned Maternal Girl as she fell for little Davie Banda at an orphanage in Malawi before plucking him from poverty.
Madge's spokeswoman Liz Rosenberg said last night: "It was love at first sight." A witness to the scene told US mag People: "The look of pure joy on her face was beyond words - not unlike when her own kids Lourdes and Rocco were born."
Madonna and Davie have since returned to London - and a storm over her mercy mission. But last night close pal Vinnie Jones insisted Madge and hubby Guy Ritchie thought hard before adopting - and do not deserve flak.
Director Guy gave hardman Vinnie his first major movie break in Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels.
Vinnie said of Guy and Madge: "If you knew them, they probably wanted to adopt every one of those children at the orphanage.
"They don't just wake in the morning and think, "˜Let's do this today.' They will have completely thought it all over.
They've done a fantastic thing that should be applauded. They are the best thing that could have happened to the boy. It's a massive thing they've done.
"It's very bold. I'd love to do it but the way I'm working, it wouldn't be fair."
Ex-Wimbledon and Chelsea soccer star Vinnie also suspects Madge and Guy took advice from Angelina Jolie and her husband Brad Pitt. Angelina has adopted kids from Cambodia then Ethiopia, in Africa.
Vinnie said: "They're all good friends and had dinner at The Ivy recently - so maybe that was the conversation."

source : thesun.co.uk

from The Sun : She's Madonna is the talking track of the album. Written by Robbie and his pals Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, it's got the signature chiming electro sound of the Pet Shop Boys all over, with witty lyrics about Guy Ritchie dumping ex Tania Strecker (also an ex of Robbie's) for Madge.
Robbie explains: "I sent the track to Madonna and she really liked it. I also sent her Rudebox and she didn't really like it. You could say that the track is a bit stalkerish. She wanted to know what it was about. I lied.
"She said, "˜Is it the futility of being in love with Madonna? Is it the futility of being in a relationship with Madonna? Do you like Madonna in the track?' It's quite a day sending a song to Madonna about her. She'd heard I'd done it."
source : thesun.co.uk

Under pressure from Christian conservative groups accusing pop star Madonna of sacrilege, a U.S. television network said on Thursday it removed footage of the singer performing while suspended on a giant cross from her upcoming prime-time concert special.
Madonna had insisted that the mock crucifixion, a centerpiece of her "Confessions" world tour staged while she performed the hit song "Live to Tell," be included in the two-hour special set to air on NBC on November 22.
But socially conservative organizations organized a campaign urging NBC affiliate stations to refuse to carry the special if the crucifix stunt remained in the show.
After weeks of uncertainty, the network said it decided it would not show the opening portion of the "Live to Tell" performance in which she sings suspended from a giant mirrored cross while wearing a crown of thorns.
Instead, cameras will cut away to other shots while Madonna is on the cross, then cut back to the singer when she steps down to finish the song.
"You hear the song, but you're not seeing her on the cross," one network source told Reuters. The special was filmed during her performance at Wembley Stadium in London.
Madonna's New York-based spokeswoman, Liz Rosenberg, said the 48-year-old entertainer, an executive producer of the special, ultimately acquiesced to the revision of the broadcast, but suggested the singer was not happy about it.
"She wanted it in, and they wanted it out," Rosenberg, a Warner Bros. Records executive, told Reuters. "You won't see Madonna on a crucifix. That element of the song is no longer in the show. How they came to that conclusion I really don't know."
Madonna's use of the cross in her concerts drew protests from the Roman Catholic Church and Russian Orthodox Church during her performances in Rome and Moscow, where leaders of the clergy condemned the act as blasphemy.
Madonna issued a statement last month insisting her act was "neither anti-Christian, sacrilegious or blasphemous. Rather it is a plea to the audience to encourage mankind to help one another and to see the world as a unified whole.
"I believe if Jesus were alive today, he would be doing the same thing," she said, adding that her specific intent was to bring attention to the extreme poverty in Africa.
Madonna has been making headlines with her efforts to adopt a motherless year-old boy from Malawi.
The controversy over Madonna's mock crucifixion is not the first time the Material Girl has drawn the ire of religious groups for her use of Christian imagery. In 1989, the video for her hit song "Like a Prayer" featured the scantily clad singer cavorting in front of burning crosses and statues crying blood.
source : reuters

Top Electronic Albums :
08 (08) Madonna - Confessions On A Dance Floor

Hot 100 Singles Sales :
18 (28) Madonna - Get Together
30 (40) Madonna - Sorry
41 (49) Madonna - Hung Up

Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
25 (27) Madonna - Jump

Hot Dance Music/Club Play
10 (20) Madonna - Jump

Dance Radio Airplay :
06 (20) Madonna - Jump

Hot Dance Singles Sales :
03 (06) Madonna - Get Together
09 (09) Madonna - Sorry
11 (10) Madonna - Hung Up

Pop diva Madonna has admitted to being stunned by the outcry over her adoption of a Malawian baby boy.
The 48-year-old US singer who has had a knack of ruffling feathers throughout her career told People magazine she had not expected the level of criticism levelled at her since the adoption.
"I expect to be given a hard time about many of the things I do," Madonna told the celebrity news magazine in an interview to be published tomorrow.
"I know they are provocative and I prepare myself, but I did not expect the media, the government or any human rights organisations to take a stand against me trying to save a child's life."
Madonna was granted an interim order to adopt David Banda, a poor farmer's son, by a high court in Malawi last week.
But the Human Rights Consultative Committee, an umbrella grouping of 67 local rights groups in Malawi, went to court on Tuesday to challenge the order allowing Madonna to adopt the boy.
Under Malawi laws, expatriates adopting a child have to live in the country for 18 months and are monitored by social workers before they get full adoption rights.
Madonna has also faced opposition from charities which say she could use her wealth more effectively, such as helping African parents fight AIDS and keeping orphaned children in their home communities.
Madonna insists the adoption was legal, saying she and her British filmmaker husband Guy Ritchie had begun the process several months ago and acted "according to the law like anyone else who adopts a child".
And the baby's father Yohane Banda has blasted Madonna's critics.
"Where were these people when David was struggling in the orphanage?" he told British media.
"These so-called human rights groups should leave my baby alone."
source : afp

6 Pictures - Madonna leaving the gym in London (October 19 2006) - are added to the gallery.

Malawian baby David will keep his full surname Banda Mwale as his middle names, and will also take his new mother's maiden name Ciccone as a third middle name.
Madonna, 48, made the decision out of respect for David's family heritage, but also to welcome into her own family.
Yesterday (18.10.06) David's father Yohane returned to his work spraying potato crops, for which he earns 54 pence a day.
Speaking from crop fields in blistering temperatures, Yohane said: "I'm not really missing David because we have agreed with Madonna that he will visit us here in three or four years time.
"I am not asking for anything from Madonna, but when David grows up and is brought here and sees our poverty, he will certainly ask his mum to help." David's father took the 13-month-old baby to an orphanage after his mother died and he could no longer afford to look after him properly.
While Madonna attended the gym yesterday she sent an assistant to buy clothes for David and demanded video footage be sent to her mobile phone so she could approve the outfits.
The singer and her director husband Guy already have a son together, six-year-old Rocco, and Madonna has a ten-year-old daughter Lourdes from her relationship with personal trainer Carlos Leon.
souce : pr-news

8 Pictures - Madonna leaving the gym in London (October 18 2006) - are added to the gallery.

While some child protection groups are up in arms over the way Madonna is trying to adopt an African child, the boy's father says they ought to butt out.
The groups are going to court in Malawi, saying they want to make sure child-protection laws aren't being ignored because the singer is setting up an orphanage. She also wants to raise millions for AIDS orphans.
But the father says he wants his son to have "a bright future" rather than live in poverty. He accuses the activists of being "jealous" of the boy, and tells The Associated Press he'd like to know what their interest is.
The one-year-old boy Madonna picked is now in London, where she has a home. The child was taken there by members of Madonna's entourage, but the singer's spokeswoman says all legal requirements have been followed.
source : ap

My husband and I began the adoption process many months prior to our trip to Malawi. I did not wish to disclose my intentions to the world prior to the adoption happening as this is a private family matter. After learning that there were over one million orphans in Malawi, it was my wish to open up our home and help one child escape an extreme life of hardship, poverty and in many cases death, as well as expand out family.
Nevertheless, we have gone about the adoption procedure according to the law like anyone else who adopts a child. Reports to the contrary are totally inaccurate. The procedure includes an l8 month evaluation period after which time we hope to make this adoption permanent. This was not a decision or commitment that my family or I take lightly.
I am overwhelmed and inspired by my trip to Malawi and hope that it helps bring attention to how much more the world needs to do to help the children of Africa.
My heartfelt thanks for all the good wishes I have received and I hope the press will allow my family some room for us to experience the joy we feel to have David home.

Madonna Ritchie
October 17, 2006
London, England

source : nbc

A Malawian court agreed on Tuesday to hear arguments by a coalition of local rights groups seeking to block "Queen of Pop" Madonna's fast-track adoption of a 13-month boy from the poor African country.
"The court wants to hear our locus standi and why we should be appointed guardians of the child and act in his interest," Justin Dzodzi, chairperson of the Human Rights Consultative Committee, said.
The committee, grouping 67 rights groups, petitioned the high court in the administrative capital Lilongwe, seeking to have its "concerns" heard.
Dzodzi said the group had investigated and established "enough reasons to fight for safeguards in the interim order to ensure that the child is protected as Madonna has no parental rights".
He said the child's father, a 32-year-old illiterate poor farmer, and his relatives believed that the boy had been taken for "custody and not adoption".
"We want Madonna to stay here for 18 months and acquire residency as stipulated in the country's adoption laws ... The court cannot revoke the order if she stays in Los Angeles with the baby," Dzodzi said.
The group's lawyers are likely to argue in the hearing on Friday that Malawian authorities had breached their own regulations by allowing David to leave the country and link up with the Britain- and United States-based Madonna in London.
Madonna was granted an interim order to adopt the child by the High Court last Thursday after spending a week in the Southern African country to assess Aids projects she had funded.
Under Malawian law, expatriates adopting a child usually have to live in the country for 18 months and are monitored by social workers before they get full adoption rights.
source : afp

12 Pictures - Madonna leaving the gym in London (October 17 2006) - are added to the gallery.

David Banda, the 13-month-old baby Malawian baby Madonna and her husband, Guy Ritchie, are hoping to adopt, has arrived in Britain.
The nanny, bodyguard and aides who accompanied the baby on an overnight flight on a private jet from Johannesburg avoided waiting reporters at Heathrow's Terminal 1 arrivals hall this morning and left by another exit.
David has been issued with a passport and a US visa.
The star's spokeswoman, Liz Rosenberg, said yesterday: "The interim adoption grants David's new parents temporary custody for 18 months, during which time they will be evaluated by the courts of Malawi per the tribal customs of the country."
Following a week-long visit to orphanages in the African country, Madonna left Malawi on Friday - the same day that human rights groups filed court documents asking a judge to review the adoption amid claims that it had been fast-tracked because of her celebrity.
Click on image bellow to see 8 pictures :

source : ap/telegraph.co.uk

11 Pictures - Madonna leaving her home in London (October 16 2006) - are added to the gallery.

The Malawian baby that pop star Madonna is seeking to adopt has left the African country on board a private jet.
An immigration official told BBC News that the passport of 13-month-old David Banda had been authorised.
The child was accompanied by one of the singer's bodyguards, a witness told Reuters news agency, and is believed to be en route to South Africa.
A group of Malawian charities has said the adoption is unlawful because Madonna has not lived in the country.
The Human Rights Consultative Committee of 67 organisations had been due to go to court on Monday seeking an injunction to halt the adoption process.
But it deferred the move, saying it needed more time to follow up reports of family members opposed to the boy going abroad.
The group said it wanted to interview an unidentified uncle of David's who is "said to be opposed to the adoption plan".
Justin Dzodzi, who chairs the rights group, said it had sent investigators to the orphanage where David lived to "get a feel of what the villagers and relatives feel about the adoption and if anyone opposes it".
He added: "We want to thoroughly prepare for this challenge and part of our legal action is dependent on getting some disgruntled people to swear affidavits."
The committee insists that Malawian law prohibits international adoption and requires a minimum of 18 months' assessment.
But Penston Kilembe, director of child welfare in the Ministry of Gender, Child Welfare and Community Services, said Madonna and her husband Guy Ritchie had broken no laws.
"The process did not start today - Madonna's people have been pushing the papers for some time and her coming was just to sign the papers to conclude the process," he said.
Madonna and her film-maker husband had been granted an interim court order approving the adoption.
The couple returned to the UK at the weekend after a 10-day visit to Malawi.
Malawian officials said David Banda was being cared for by members of Madonna's entourage while passport and visa issues were dealt with.
source : bbc

Video Captures from 'Arthur and the invisibles' trailer are added to the gallery.

Click here (RapidShare) to download trailer.

After announcing they would not air the Christian-bashing crucifixion scene on its upcoming Madonna TV program, American Family Association reports that NBC executives have again changed their minds. NBC, also, recently ordered Christian Bible verses and references to Christianity and God removed from its children's television program "Veggie Tales".
NBC Executive Kevin Reilly said: "We [NBC] viewed it and didn't see it as being inappropriate."
source : theconservativevoice.com

15 Pictures - Madonna going to the gym in London (October 14 2006) - are added to the gallery.

Madonna returned to Britain empty-handed yesterday after her adopted son was banned from leaving Malawi in a passport bungle.
The pop queen lined up a private jet to bring 13-month-old Davie Banda to the UK but had failed to get the necessary documents.
And last night the singer suffered a second blow when a child rights group pledged to gain a court injunction blocking the adoption.
The drama began only hours after Madonna, 48, was granted an interim adoption order for Davie.
She and movie director husband Guy Ritchie, 38, whisked the tot to the airport where the plane was waiting to take them to England.
The star boarded the jet with Davie but the pilot called immigration when he realised the boy did not have the relevant paperwork. He was then taken off by a carer.
Sources said Madonna was spitting mad at the shambles. But one airport official said: "The law is the law, no matter who you are."
Madonna and Guy had to fly out alone and landed at Raf Northolt, West London, yesterday afternoon.
The singer smiled as she came down the steps. She looked relaxed when she later went for a stroll near her London home.
A spokeswoman for the singer said: "Final legal arrangements are being made to bring David home to his new family."
But Madonna will be furious that Malawi's top children's rights group, Eye Of The Child, is seeking a court ban on the adoption.
It said: "It's not like selling property. It is about safeguarding a human being."
Madonna also came under fire from pregnant TV presenter Lowri Turner, 40.
The mum of two said: "She was described as so excited. She's probably not been that thrilled since she chose her last Gucci shoes.
"Once we stole grown men and women from Africa. Now we take their babies."

source : thesun.co.uk

Superstar Madonna and husband Guy Ritchie flew out of Malawi earlier today--without their adopted son David Banda.
Madonna and Ritchie spent a week in the impoverished African nation meeting orphans and government officials, before filing for an interim application to adopt the 13-month-old tot at the High Court in Lilongwe on Thursday.
The couple met David's father Yohame Banda, whose wife Marita died a month after the baby's birth, and promised to bring him back to Malawi for regular visits.
After a three-hour delay at Lilongwe airport, the couple's private plane departed Malawi at 2 a.m. this morning.
However, David has to remain in Malawi because they were unable to finalize his passport application in time, a senior immigration official told the Reuters news agency.
David will be a young sibling for Madonna's daughter Lourdes, 9, and the couple's son Rocco, 5.
source : hollywood.com

A Malawian child rights group has said it wants to stop Madonna adopting a child from the African country.
The organisation, Eye of the Child, said it would seek a court injunction if the government did not halt its interim order approving the adoption.
"It's not like selling property," the group said in a statement.
Madonna is thought to have flown out of Malawi on Friday without the child, having filed adoption papers to adopt the one-year-old, called David Banda.
source : bbc

Madonna and her husband took custody of a motherless 1-year-old boy from Malawi on Thursday after filing adoption papers and receiving interim approval from a judge in the impoverished southern African nation.
The boy's father said he was happy for his son, named David, and pleased with the celebrity couple who wants to be his parents.
Yohame Banda, the father, said he met Madonna and her film director husband Guy Ritchie at the court as part of the formalities. While they talked, Madonna, who has two children, carried the baby boy, Banda said.
"They are a lovely couple," Banda said. "She asked me many questions. She and her husband seem happy with David. I am happy for him. Madonna promised me that as the child grows she will bring him back to visit."
Madonna has not commented publicly since her arrival in Malawi on Oct. 4, though she has made several public appearances in support of projects she supports here to care for AIDS orphans. Her publicist declined comment on Wednesday on the adoption reports.
Judge Andrew Nyirenda "has just given out an interim order" that allowing Madonna to take David, said Thomson Ligowe, a court registrar. The interim order allows the couple to take the boy home.
Penston Kilimbe, director of child welfare services in the Ministry of Gender, Child Welfare and Community Services, had said earlier that Madonna and Ritchie filed adoption papers before a judge at the Lilongwe High Court.
"They have followed the normal processes. This has been going on for some time. Now this is the completion point," he said.
source : ap

Top Electronic Albums :
08 (08) Madonna - Confessions On A Dance Floor

Hot 100 Singles Sales :
28 (26) Madonna - Get Together
40 (37) Madonna - Sorry
49 (-) Madonna - Hung Up (re-entry)

Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
27 (27) Madonna - Jump

Hot Dance Music/Club Play
20 (31) Madonna - Jump

Dance Radio Airplay :
20 (-) Madonna - Jump (new)
- (13) Madonna - Get Together

Hot Dance Singles Sales :
06 (06) Madonna - Get Together
09 (08) Madonna - Sorry
10 (11) Madonna - Hung Up

Madonna leads the field for the 2006 Billboard Touring Awards with mentions in four categories, including top tour and top draw, respectively award th the top-grossing and top ticket-selling tour. The awards will be handed out Nov. 9 at New York's Roosevelt Hotel, capping the third annual Billboard Touring Conference.
The awards are based on actual box-office achievement based on data reported to Billboard Boxscore, as opposed to a popular vote. The period covered by the awards is December of 2005 through September of this year.
Madonna's run at London's Wembley Arena makes her a finalist in the hotly contested top boxscore category, which goes to the top-grossing single engagement. Also a finalist in that category are Luis Miguel at Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City and Billy Joel's record-setting stand at New York's Madison Square Garden.

TOP TOUR
Bon Jovi, Have A Nice Day
Madonna, Confessions
The Rolling Stones, A Bigger Bang

TOP DRAW
Bon Jovi
Madonna
The Rolling Stones

TOP BOXSCORE
Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden, New York
Madonna at Wembley Arena, London
Luis Miguel at Auditorio Nacional, Mexico City

TOP MANAGER
Angela Becker and Guy Oseary (Madonna)
Front Line Management
RPM Management/Borman Entertainment

source : billboard

Loving mum Madonna dances for joy with locals in Malawi after adopting African tot Davie Banda. The megastar's delight is plain for all to see and even seems to spread to the crowds flocking around her. For Davie, the future suddenly seems full of hope.
Whereas now his home is a fly-infested thatched mud hut in one of Africa's poorest nations, he will soon be whisked away to the opulent world of his adoptive mum.
And in one luxury flight, the 13-month-old will exchange life in one of the Third World's most disease-ridden and hunger-ravaged countries for a mansion in London's plush Marble Arch.
Madonna, worth £248million, chose Davie from a clutch of smiling youngsters at the church-run Home For Hope orphanage.
Davie's new mum, fresh from her raunchy Confessions tour, is one of the world's most outrageous stage performers, while his adoptive dad Guy Ritchie also in Africa for the visit is a Hollywood director.
His new family will include a brother and sister with trendy celebrity names Lourdes, nine, and six-year-old Rocco.
Home for baby Davie will be Madonna's luxurious six-storey townhouse near Marble Arch, worth £5.7million.
The pop star gave the house a £1million overhaul after she bought it in 2001. She also snapped up the two mews houses next door.
Weekends may well be spent at the singer's £9million country estate, Ashcombe House in Wiltshire.
He will also have the run of her £8million mansion in Beverly Hills.
It's all a world away from Lipunga a collection of 30 mud huts on a dust-blown Malawian plain where little Davie's father Yohane still lives.
Everyone in the village in this desperate land lives hand to mouth.
He was given a home there when his mum, Marita, died of fever a week after his birth.
Now he is set to trade a nation where many struggle for their next meal for a childhood of pop tours and dodging paparazzi. Click here to read the full article at thesun.co.uk.

Click here to watch, here (Rapidshare) to download video report from VGTV or click on image bellow to see video captures.

The desperately poor father of the African tot being adopted by Madonna last night declared he was "so happy" the child was being whisked into a world of wealth.
Yohane Banda, 32, earns just a few pounds a month growing potatoes and onions in a mud hut village in Malawi.
But now his 13-month-old son David, also known as Davie, will grow up in luxurious splendour with the pop superstar who has a fortune estimated at £248 million.
Yohane, whose 28-year-old wife Marita died of complications a week after giving birth to the boy, said: "I'm very happy. As you can see there is poverty in my village."
The dad has not met Madonna, who chose Davie during visits to the orphanage where Yohane sent him.
But he was told his son who he could not afford to bring up was being adopted by a "famous US musician".
He said: "I know he will be very happy in America. We are told David will be coming back regularly to know his roots." Click here to read the full article at thesun.co.uk.

source : the sun

On the 16th of October 2006, an exhibition of the original illustrations by Rui Paes that were used in Madonna's "Lotsa De Casha" book will open at the Teatro Nacional de São Carlos, Praça de S. Carlos, Lissabon in Portugal.
The exhibition will be open to the public from the 17th till the 26th of October 2006, between 13h and 19h.
Thanks to Axel

Hey Madonna fans!

The time has come ! The first yearly edition of Icon Magazine is ready and about to hit your mailbox!
Ready to confess through 72 pages of Madonna high quality pictures, behind the scenes facts, interviews and reviews? From the Confessions On A Dance Floor album to Hung and Sorry as well as our lady's 2006 Confessions Tour, this new issue covers 365 days of Madonna history! Also featured in this highly collectible magazine are lyrics to all of Madonna's latest album songs and unreleased tracks, a Confessions On A Dance Floor detailed discography and much more! Shipment of the magazine will start on October 10th. If you're not a member of Icon yet but want to get your copy of the magazine, just click here for more info on how to subscribe.

Want more amazing Madonna pictures? Some you'll be able to take with you during the next 12 months? The Official 2007 Calendar is now available for online ordering, featuring studio and live pictures by Steven Klein, Rankin and more! Just click here to order your copy now. Also, you can take the Confessions Tour with you wherever you go by downloading Confessions tour pictures onto your mobile phone from Madonna's official ringtones site! Click here to pick your favourite.

Did you enter Madonna.com's new poll already? If not, it's time to make your voice heard! As a Madonna fan, do you think that NBC should air the infamous Live To Tell/ Cross scene during their broadcast of the Confessions Tour coming this fall? Just click here and cast your vote!

7 Pictures - Madonna leaving the gym in London (October 03 2006) - are added to the gallery.

Madonna has adopted a 1-year-old Malawian boy whose mother died a month after childbirth, according to the baby's father who said Tuesday he was happy his son was escaping poverty.
"I am the father of David, who has been adopted," Yohame Banda, 32, told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "I am very, very happy because as you can see there is poverty in this village and I know he will be very well looked after in America."
He said his wife, Marita, died a month after the baby's birth from childbirth complications and the child had been cared for at the Home of Hope Orphan Care Center in Mchinji, a village near the Zambian border.
Banda said his son left the orphanage on Monday and was taken to the capital, Lilongwe, where Madonna and her entourage were staying in an upscale ranch.
Malawian government officials said last week the pop star planned to adopt a Malawian boy while she is in the impoverished African nation visiting projects she funds for AIDS orphans. However, they declined to comment on Banda's claim that his son David had been adopted by the singer.
Madonna has made no public comment since her arrival. Her publicist, Liz Rosenberg, said in a statement last week that the star was on a private visit working on projects for children, and dismissed statements from Malawian government officials that she and her husband, film director Guy Ritchie, planned to adopt a boy.
Madonna has visited the orphanage at least once during her visit. Its director, Rev. Thompson John Chipeta, has refused to speak to the media.
Madonna arrived in Malawi October 4 to visit her Raising Malawi project, which is setting up an orphan care center to provide food, education and shelter for up to 4,000 children. It will have projects based on Kabbalah, Judaism's mystical sect, which counts the 48-year-old singer among its devotees.
Madonna and Ritchie have a son, Rocco, 5, and the singer also has a daughter, Lourdes, 9.
Banda, a farm worker who lives in Lipunga, a village about 50 miles from the orphanage, said he had been told that David would make regular visits to Malawi.
"He will know his roots," Banda said.
The child's grandmother, Asinei Mwale, said she learned about the adoption from Chipeta.
"The director of the orphanage came here yesterday and told us that David has been adopted by a famous American singer," Mwale said. "I am very glad for him because having grown up as an orphan myself, I know how tough life can be."
Malawi is among the poorest countries in the world, with rampant disease and hunger, aggravated by periodic droughts and crop failure. About 14 percent of its 12 million people are infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, and an estimated 1 million children have been orphaned. In many villages, grandparents or older siblings struggle to feed orphans.
International adoptions questioned
In an open letter to Madonna released Tuesday, the private Malawian child advocacy group Eye of the Child welcomed her concern for Malawian children, but questioned whether foreign adoptions were in the best interests of children.
Jackie Schoeman, executive director Cotlands, a South African organization that cares for children affected by HIV, said the first choice for orphans should be a place in a local family.
In Africa, orphans usually are take in by their extended families, but AIDS has affected many of the people who might have traditionally provided support.
"If the only other option is for them to be in a long-term institutional then we would consider international adoption," Schoeman said.
source : cnn/ap

Pop Queen Madonna is adopting an African baby boy called Luca, The People can reveal.
And the multi-millionaire mum of two could even bring the year-old orphan back to Britain this week.
Madonna, 48, has repeatedly denied plans to adopt during a visit to poverty-ridden Malawi.
But sources say her hubby Guy Ritchie has made up to four secret trips to the southern African country in the past six months to smooth the way.
And the singer has already had emotional meetings with Luca on Wednesday and yesterday.
She is expected to visit him again today - Mother's Day in Malawi.
The couple have also hired a top lawyer in Malawi's capital Lilongwe in a bid to speed up the adoption process.
Government officials revealed they were instructed to draw up a list of 12 boys for Madonna.
And she picked out cute little Luca when she met them for the first time last Wednesday at the Mchinji Mission Orphanage.
She and film director Guy, 38, were mobbed by smiling youngsters as they toured the centre, which is home to 100 babies and 300 older children.
Dressed in white linen trousers, a white shirt and a safari hat, Madonna looked relaxed and happy as she lovingly cuddled a dozen babies before choosing Luca.
An onlooker said: "The visit was kept firmly under wraps and no one knew she was going."
Yesterday, Madonna and Guy returned to the orphanage - which the couple are supporting with a lucrative donation.
The megastar waved and smiled as the children sang her songs and applauded.
An onlooker said: "It was amazing - she's bringing such happiness to these sad children.
"You could tell by their faces how delighted they were.
"She may be adopting just one child but she is helping the whole orphanage and they are all very grateful for that.
"The money she is giving will make a huge difference to them."
Hundreds of cheering locals lined the route as the entourage left later.
Madonna - who already has a daughter Lourdes, nine, and son Rocco, six - hopes to fast-track the adoption plan so she can take Luca with her when she leaves Malawi on Friday.
She and Guy have instructed top Malawian lawyer Alan Chinula to take on the case.
Mr Chinula confirmed: "I am due to meet with a representative of Madonna concerning the adoption soon."
But the Material Girl faces a tricky legal battle to collect Luca in the next few days.
Adoptions in Malawi usually take at least six weeks and she may have to get a magistrates' court to approve the move.
There could also be problems getting the tot a passport. A local source said: "At the moment the immigration office has run out of stationery and is unable to produce any official documents.
"And the couple may have to become foster parents for 18 to 24 months before they can finalise the adoption - although that would enable them to take him home immediately."
The source added: "To get it all sorted in one week is pretty unlikely.
"But anything can be done if you have enough money and know the right people.
"It is all about finding the right lawyer and the right social welfare officer.
"It is possible to cut corners if you go about it the right way."
Madonna had hoped the best way to cut corners was through Acting Head of State, Chimuntha Banda - who can rubberstamp adoptions - and she ordered aides to fix up a summit with him on Friday. Speaking before the meeting was due, Mr Banda said he was baffled by Madonna's refusal to confirm her plans.
And he revealed she had refused his plea to hold a press conference about them.
He said: "I can't understand why it is so under wraps.
"This 's a good opportunity for her to express herself and to promote understanding for the problems we are facing here."
He added: "Adoption is definitely on the agenda and when we meet we will be discussing it."
But Madonna later infuriated Mr Banda by trying to reschedule her meeting with him - and later postponing it for several days.
Meanwhile, the singer has given almost £2million towards building another orphanage in the country for up to 4,000 children as part of her Raising Malawi charity project.
As The People revealed last month, Madonna and Guy decided to adopt an African baby in a bid to save their troubled marriage.
source : people.co.uk

Madonna visited another orphanage in Malawi on Saturday amid persistent rumors that she plans to adopt a boy who lost his parents to AIDS. 　
It was the pop star's third visit to an orphanage in as many days. She arrived in the impoverished country Wednesday and Malawian government officials have said repeatedly she was planning to adopt a boy there. But Madonna's spokeswoman has denied the rumors. 　
Madonna and her husband, film director Guy Ritchie, traveled Friday to the small village of Mchinji near the Zambian border where she distributed copies of her book "The English Roses" and listened to children sing.
Alick, a boy of about 12, said it was the second time Madonna had visited the Home of Hope orphanage. Several residents said they heard she was going to adopt a boy named Davie and had been in discussions with the boy's guardians to take him to the U.S. But there was no confirmation of that.
Officials at the church-run home refused to speak to journalists, who were kept away from the brick building by bodyguards. Madonna was whisked away in a convoy of sport utility vehicles after the visit.
Malawi government officials have said they have been informed Madonna plans to adopt a boy in the country. But they say she has not yet filed any papers yet.
Madonna's spokeswoman, Liz Rosenberg, has denied the rumors, saying the visit to Malawi is motivated by humanitarian aims to set up orphanages.
Malawi is among the poorest countries in the world, with rampant disease and hunger, aggravated by periodic droughts and crop failure. Just over 14 percent of the 12 million population are infected with HIV, and an estimated 1 million children have been orphaned. In many villages, grandparents or older siblings struggle to feed orphans.
Madonna's visit has been shrouded in secrecy and she failed to show up for a scheduled meeting Friday with a top government minister, apparently because she was tied up visiting another orphanage.
Security officials indicated she was planning on staying for a while.
"We are not leaving soon," said Madonna's chief bodyguard, who gave his name only as Steve. "We are here for a while."
Madonna and her entourage have taken over a posh guesthouse called Kumbali Lodge, situated on a cattle and horse ranch in a well-to-do part of the capital, Lilongwe. It is near the presidential palace ?? and not far away from poor settlements of mud huts, which are home to the vast majority of Malawi's population.
Madonna was seen jogging around the lodge early Saturday before traveling to meet representatives of a local charity that is working with Madonna's own organization, Raising Malawi.
The project aims to set up an orphan care center to provide food, education and shelter for up to 4,000 children. It will have projects based on Kabbalah, Judaism's mystical sect, which counts the 48-year-old singer among its devotees. 　
Madonna and Ritchie have a son, Rocco, 5, and the singer also has a daughter, Lourdes, 9.
source : reuters

Madonna visited an orphanage near Malawi's capital Friday and a government official said she still believed the pop star intended to adopt a child in the country although no papers had been filed yet.
Shortly after Madonna's arrival in the impoverished southern African country Wednesday, government officials said she planned to adopt an orphaned boy. But by Friday, there was still no confirmation.
Madonna's publicist, Liz Rosenberg, has denied any knowledge that the pop star was to adopt a baby.
The celebrity, who has kept a low-profile since arriving in Malawi, made a secretive visit Friday to the Chezi Orphan Care Center near the capital, Lilongwe, the Mines, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Henry Chimunthu Banda said. The Catholic-run orphanage in a rural area has a nursery, a school and a clinic and is well known in the region.
Madonna had been scheduled to meet Friday with Banda - the top government official in the absence of President Bingu wa Mutharika, who is out of the country. But Banda said Madonna had been "caught up" due to her visit to the orphanage and their meeting had been postponed.
On Thursday, Madonna visited another orphanage near Malawi's commercial capital of Blantyre where she was greeted by a crowd of singing orphans. Orphanage officials said her husband Guy Ritchie accompanied her and filmed the children who received copies of her children's book, "The English Roses." The orphanage is home to 128 children, many of whom have lost one or both parents to HIV/AIDS in a pattern repeated throughout the country.
Andrina Mchiela, a senior official with Malawi's Ministry for Gender and Child Welfare, said Friday that no adoption papers had been filed yet, even though Madonna had voiced her intention to adopt a child.
"As far as we are concerned, her plans remain unchanged," she said.
Madonna recently launched a new project called Raising Malawi, which aims to set up an orphan care center to provide food, education and shelter for up to 4,000 children. It will have projects based on Kabbalah, or Jewish mysticism, which has gained popularity in recent years and counts the 48-year-old singer among its devotees.
Kabbalah is virtually unheard of in Malawi, a predominantly Roman Catholic country where superstitions and belief in witchcraft run high.
Malawi is among the poorest countries in the world, trapped in a seemingly endless cycle of hunger and disease. Just over 14 percent of the 12 million population are infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, and an estimated 1 million children have been orphaned.
Madonna and Ritchie have a son, Rocco, 5, and she also has a daughter, Lourdes, 9.
Madonna joins a growing list of entertainer-activists who have focused on aiding Africa.
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, whose daughter was born in Namibia earlier this year, recently announced they would donate $1 million each to two humanitarian organizations active on the continent. They also have two adopted children - one from Ethiopia and one from Cambodia.
source : ap

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5 Pictures - Madonna visits Kondanani orphanage in Bvumbwe (Blantyre, Malawi - October 05 2006) - are added to the gallery.

Thanks to Rinaldo

Today, Sun Media concludes a three-part series looking at the 50 greatest sex symbols to ever hold the popular culture sway -- from movie stars and singers to athletes and models.
They are the individuals who, thanks to good genes and more than a little of that elusive ingredient we call charisma, really are too sexy for themselves -- and everyone else.
Here's top 10 :
10. Robert Redford
9. Farrah Fawcett
8. Brigitte Bardot
7. Mick Jagger
6. Brad Pitt
5. The Beatles
4. Sophia Loren
3. Elvis Presley
2. Marilyn Monroe
1. Madonna: Don't mistake Madonna's position here as our endorsement of her as the world's most beautiful, desirable woman. Rather, consider it an acknowledgment of her extraordinary aptitude for using sex to provoke and promote. While others have been sexier, none has been more cunning in needling and nudging popular tastes to their own commercial gain. Certainly, timing was on her side. She arrived at the dawn of MTV when how you looked and what you did became as important as what you sounded like. Madonna was never a great vocalist, but coupled with videos that bedeviled parents and censors, she established herself as agitator and artist. And, as opposed to certain bubble-headed hicks whose managers pull all the strings, no one was in control of Madonna except the Material Girl herself. And isn't that sexy?
source : lfpress.ca

from Madonna.com : Madonna fans, we want to know what you are thinking! Please participate in the Madonna.com poll that is trying to determine if fans think NBC should air the infamous Live to Tell/ Cross scene from the Confessions Tour in it's broadcast this fall. Click here to vote !

175 Video Captures from Jump video are added to the gallery.

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AOL Music is proud to debut Madonna's latest video "Jump".
Exclusive US Premiere of the brand new video from Madonna for the song 'Jump,' the fourth single from her platinum album, 'Confessions on a Dance Floor' on Warner Records.
The video for 'Jump' will intentionally channel the trashy, edgy, spontaneous 'street' sensibility of an amateur clip with Madonna giving an insider's glimpse at an amazing underground cultural phenomenon of free running to the beat of a hot track. 'Jump' was filmed in Tokyo by director Jonas Akerlund.
Click here to watch the video.

"I can confirm Madonna is in Malawi on a private visit," the singer's publicist Liz Rosenberg said when contacted by Us Weekly. "She is building an orphanage and child care center and is involved in other initiatives geared toward helping children orphaned by Aids thru the Raising Malawi organization. She has not adopted a baby despite reports that she has."
Earlier today, Reuters reported that the singer adopted a 1-year-old baby boy from the African nation of Malawi. The Associated Press also reports that Madonna is considering adoption.
source : usweekly

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Visit Icon Madonna (Madonna's Official Fan Club) to watch a short preview of Madonna's new video.

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Pop diva Madonna adopted a young boy in Malawi on Wednesday and moved ahead with plans to fund a center for 1,000 orphans, many of whom lost parents to AIDS in the impoverished African nation.
The "Material Girl" and an entourage arrived in the Malawian capital Lilongwe by private plane early on Wednesday and were quickly whisked away to an undisclosed location in a fleet of cars and trucks.
Government officials said the 48-year-old singer, already a mother of two, chose the one-year-old orphan from among 12 children specially chosen prior to her arrival in the country, which has legions of children orphaned by the AIDS epidemic.
"She asked us to identify boys only, which we have done after visiting four orphanages in Lilongwe," government spokeswoman Adrina Michiela said. Michiela said Madonna had wanted to adopt a girl but changed her mind two weeks ago.
It was unclear whether Madonna, for whom Malawi waived its ban on non-resident adoptions, would leave the country with her adopted baby or whether they would be reunited at a later date.
The trip has stoked high expectations in Malawi, a nation of 13 million people who are dependent on tobacco exports.
Madonna has said she plans to spend at least $3 million on programs to support orphans in Malawi and another $1 million to fund a documentary about the plight of children in the country.
She traveled to Mphandula, a village 20 km (12.5 miles) outside Lilongwe, where she is funding the construction of the Raising Malawi center to feed and educate around 1,000 orphans.
Residents in Mphandula, which has no electricity, were earlier busy rehearsing songs and preparing for her arrival.
Critics have described the project as a publicity stunt that follows in the footsteps of other celebrities, including actress Angelina Jolie, who have taken up causes on the world's poorest continent.
As part of their studies, orphans at the center will be taught a curriculum based on Spirituality for Kids linked to the Kabbalah school of mysticism to which Madonna adheres.
source : reuters

source : iconmadonna.com