Madonna biography

She also became a mother that same year, giving birth to Lourdes Maria (Lola) Ciccone Leon, whom she had with her lover and personal trainer, Carlos Leon.

She solidified her reinvention as the more mature, family-friendly Madonna when she married British director Guy Ritchie in 2000. She gave birth to their son, Rocco John Ritchie, the same year. She then made the move from the big screen to the London West End stage in the play Up for Grabs (2002),

and wrote her first children's book, The English Roses, in 2003. Madonna was inducted into the inaugural UK Music Hall of Fame in 2004. With the release of her 2005 album Confessions on a Dancefloor, Madonna became the artist with the most gold certified singles in the U.S., beating the Beatles' long-standing record.

On the eve of her 50th birthday, Madonna faced fresh challenges in her personal life. She spent much of the last year fighting allegations that she circumvented traditional Malawi laws to bring home her newly adopted son, David Banda, whom she had been raising since 2006. Critics accused Madonna of using her vast wealth to fast-track the adoption process, a charge she vigorously denied. A coalition of 67 local rights groups challenged the interim custody order on the grounds that existing laws in Malawi do not allow for international adoptions. Madonna's application to permanently adopt the boy was approved by Malawai's high court on May 28, 2008, the pop star's lawyer said. "It's a beautiful and positive judgment," Alan Chinula told reporters."Finally the court has granted Madonna full adoption rights of the boy ... It's all over, thank God." She decided to adopt from Malawai again, and in June 2009, after another legal battle, was granted custody of Mercy James.

She also denied reports she was seeking a divorce from husband Guy Ritchie, and that she was romantically linked to baseball star Alex Rodriquez. In October of 2008, however, Madonna announced that she and Ritchie were officially splitting after eight years of marriage.

Unrivalled Success

Yet her professional life continued to boom: In January 2008 she was named the world's wealthiest female musician by Forbes magazine, with estimated earnings of more than $72 million in the last year alone. Madonna earned much of this income from her H&M clothing line; a deal with NBC to air concert footage; and her Confessions tour—the highest-grossing tour for a female artist to date. She also continuec to sing, act and manage a number of business interests, splitting her time between the United Kingdom and the United States. She was the writer and executive producer of I Am Because We Are, a documentary about the lives of Malawi's AIDS orphans, and the arthouse film, Filth and Wisdom. Her album Hard Candy was released in April 2008, and her Sticky and Sweet tour became her first major venture with concert promoter Live Nation.

In 2009, she released a third greatest hits album, Celebration, which became Madonna's eleventh No. 1 album in the U.K. With the release of the record, Madonna tied with Elvis Presley as the solo act with most No.