Madonna's successes have long focused on marrying established Detroit forms to what is currently  hot in the clubs. Her successes with her first three or so albums rooted from marrying Motown, Diana Ross and the Temptations pop to '80s synth pop and producing deliciously fun results. Her later 1980s work, such as "Express Yourself" and "Like a Prayer", was influenced heavily by the hard soul of Aretha Franklin, another Detroit native, and married it to the power-pop popular at that time. Her more recent techno work takes house music, another Detroit form, and puts it in pop form with more than a little Eurodance. While this has been the least successful of her endeavors, it has still produced, at times, excellent results.

Detroit is the musical capital of the Midwest.

Detroit is the musical capital of the Midwest.


Yes, it is. Not that Minneapolis and Chicago are too shabby in that respect. Madonna, Prince, and Michael Jackson share being Midwestern minority musicians, Madonna for being Italian and French-Canadian and the other two for being black.

Yes, it is. Not that Minneapolis and Chicago are too shabby in that respect. Madonna, Prince, and Michael Jackson share being Midwestern minority musicians, Madonna for being Italian and French-Canadian and the other two for being black.


That's funny.  I've never thought of those three as being "Midwestern".

Of course, "Midwest" is really just a lump term for the inland northeast of the US.

That's funny.  I've never thought of those three as being "Midwestern".

Of course, "Midwest" is really just a lump term for the inland northeast of the US.


Yeah, there need to be more divisions. They're all minority musicians from Great Lakes industrial cities, if you consider Italian-American a minority, but I suppose it is away from the areas where they are a majority in the Northeast. And they're all born in 1958, and together represented the '80s sound pretty well.

Yeah, there need to be more divisions. They're all minority musicians from Great Lakes industrial cities, if you consider Italian-American a minority, but I suppose it is away from the areas where they are a majority in the Northeast. And they're all born in 1958, and together represented the '80s sound pretty well.


Yeah.

Why is the Great Lakes considered more Midwest than say Iowa or Kansas?  I find that stupid.

Yeah.

Why is the Great Lakes considered more Midwest than say Iowa or Kansas?  I find that stupid.


Yeah, it is pretty stupid. The Midwest really is a blanket term for German-American areas on the interior of the country. The Great Lakes cities are far more Northeastern than Midwestern, if you had to choose.  They're just Great Lakes, really. That's a pretty good term for them.

Yeah, it is pretty stupid. The Midwest really is a blanket term for German-American areas on the interior of the country. The Great Lakes cities are far more Northeastern than Midwestern, if you had to choose.  They're just Great Lakes, really. That's a pretty good term for them.


I think the "Midwest" is the region between the Mississippi and Rockies.  It probably includes certain areas of Illinois and Wisconsin, and excludes most of Texas and some of Oklahoma.

I think of Chicago-Milwaukee as the point where the Midwest begins and the Rust Belt ends. The Rust Belt is W. Pennsylvania and New York, Ohio, Michigan, the Chicago-Milwaukee-Madison-Rockford areas of Illinois and Wisconsin, and Indiana.

I think of Chicago-Milwaukee as the point where the Midwest begins and the Rust Belt ends. The Rust Belt is W. Pennsylvania and New York, Ohio, Michigan, the Chicago-Milwaukee-Madison-Rockford areas of Illinois and Wisconsin, and Indiana.


Yeah, once you get past the Chicago suburbs you're Midwest.  I'll draw a map.

And the Milwaukee-Madison area too, probably. Michael Jackson and Madonna actually despised each other, apparently. He called her a "fat cow", and she said "I may be a fat cow, but at least I'm not an alien who fudges little boys."

And the Milwaukee-Madison area too, probably. Michael Jackson and Madonna actually despised each other, apparently. He called her a "fat cow", and she said "I may be a fat cow, but at least I'm not an alien who fudges little boys."


;D

I really think Madonna looked alot better before she lost so much weight to try to update herself...now her look is very "blah."

I really think Madonna looked alot better before she lost so much weight to try to update herself...now her look is very "blah."


Yeah, skinny is gross.

I attached a map of the Great Plains region.