We went to Madonna's steamy Grindr London party. Here's what happened.
Time goes by so slowly when you're waiting for the queen of late arrivals, Madonna, in a steamy London club space on a Thursday night. But it's Mother. You wait.
Following a Times Square takeover with Grindr to kick off Pride Month, the queen of pop once again linked up with the GBTQ dating app to launch her new album, Confessions II. The official sequel to her 2005 record Confessions On A Dance Floor, the album is out today, with Madonna showcasing tracks to a buzzing, buff, and beautiful crowd of Grindr guests on Thursday.
Thousands excitedly queued down the street outside Magazine in Greenwich, as a colossal pair of inflatable legs akimbo, clad in laced up pink boots, towered over the Thames, cheekily serving as the literal entrance to the listening party venue.
Punters and celebs alike stepped through the giant vulva door, from Kate Moss to Daisy Edgar Jones, phones up. Decked out in thick plastic strips, pink lasers, and industrial steel, the venue's air felt thick with sweat, anticipation, and the collective knowledge we'd be in for a late one. And hope, that Madonna would actually be there (reader, she was).
It's a major branding moment for an ongoing partnership between Grindr and Warner Records. As Wired's account of the Times Square event, which was livestreamed within the Grindr app in a first-of-its-kind online moment, says, "For Grindr users, the advertising for Madonna’s 15th album has been hard to miss." The campaign has seen the Grindr app brimming with Madonna features, including a pink icon geolocating the artist in the grid of nearby users, original interviews, exclusive vinyl preorders, and the ability to save Madonna's albums as kink tags. At the London party, Grindr's unmistakable mask logo was everywhere, from the bathroom tiles to wall projections.
Arriving on the stage just after midnight (we expect it), following banger sets from Horse Meat Disco and Jodie Harsh, a pink-gloved and pink-bustiered Madonna happily shared the stage with producer Stuart Price and Honey Dijon for just under an hour. The iconic artist, now 67 and brimming with more energy than ever, sang over selections from her fifteenth studio album, including singles "I Feel So Free," Sabrina Carpenter duet "Bring Your Love," and "Love Sensation." (Flashing warning for the below video, friends.)
A dutiful sea of phone screens rose and receded with every new song, the inevitable moment-capturing a must in such a coveted event, especially when Madonna dropped into her 2005 Confessions On A Dance Floor smash hit "Hung Up."
Though a promo event, the sense of community within the Confessions II party was undeniable, an adoring audience of LGBTQ+ fans celebrating an artist synonymous with genuine love and advocacy for the queer community.
And while it took me 200 years to get home, Mother's always worth it.
Topics Music
Shannon Connellan is Mashable's Senior Editor, General Assignments, based in London. She has been Mashable's UK Editor (and still manages the illustrious UK team) and Australia Editor, but emotionally, she lives searching for Exit 8. A Tomatometer-approved critic, Shannon writes about entertainment, tech, social good, science, culture, and Australian horror, and loves to nerd out with movie stars, filmmakers, and TV creators.
