Madonna hits out at AI: “The complete opposite of making art”
Pop legend Madonna has condemned AI in the music industry, describing the practice as “the complete opposite of making art”.
Madonna made her comments about AI, as well as ongoing practices in the modern music industry that have become commonplace, as she gears up to release her new album, Confessions II, on July 3rd, 2026.
Looking back to her early days, Madonna, who has been at the top of the industry for more than 40 years, reflected to Vogue Italia, “You used to be surrounded by painters, musicians, dancers, artists, all concentrated in one place, working with a certain purity. I really care about that experience, but I don’t think many people do it today.”
She then stated, “Today, to get a record deal, you think about how many followers you have,” before adding, “Working only in terms of algorithms and artificial intelligence doesn’t allow you to take risks, which is the complete opposite of making art.”
Madonna also referenced her recent single, ‘Bring Your Love’, explaining that the line “Don’t try to distract me with numbers” was born out of her “not thinking about the charts, the streaming numbers.”
Similarly, Alice Cooper recently outlined why he believes AI will never replicate human artists, stating it “has no emotion, it has no heart, it has no feel, has no soul to it, and that’s where it dies right there.”
Meanwhile, Madonna also hit headlines in recent days for seemingly teasing a headline set at Glastonbury Festival in 2027.
While speaking to Graham Norton for a special BBC programme, Madonna shared that following a tour, she had “something bigger” planned for summer 2027.
Upon being asked whether it was in the UK, she coyly replied, “It could be. Why do you have to know everything? I’ve told you a lot of interesting things, that’s what you get, and the rest you have to wait for.”
The ‘Like a Prayer’ singer cryptically added, “I heard this phrase a long time ago that the definition of being an adult is the ability to delay gratification.”
Notably, Madonna was previously heavily rumoured to headline Glastonbury in 2024, but it didn’t come to fruition with Dua Lipa, SZA, and Coldplay instead topping the bill.
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