Madonna. Image: screengrab from YouTube/Pepsi
Madonna celebrated the re-release of her 1989 soda brand ad that showcases her hit song “Like a Prayer,” which music video was criticized by religious organizations including the Vatican.
The Queen of Pop teamed up with the brand for a TV commercial in 1989, which was slated to promote the release of “Like a Prayer” as well as Madonna’s fourth studio album of the same name.
However, a day after the ad premiered, the hit song’s music video was released and immediately stirred controversy for containing clips of burning crosses and other religious imagery.
Although the TV commercial did not feature such clips, the brand opted to pull out the material from airing and shelve it given its association with the controversial music video.
“34 years ago, I made a commercial with Pepsi to celebrate the release of my song Like a Prayer,” Madonna said on her Instagram page last Friday, Sept. 13, showing the 51-second TV ad which was aired during the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards on the soda company’s 125th anniversary.
“The commercial was immediately canceled when I refused to change any scenes in the video where I was kissing a black saint or burning crosses,” she continued. “So began my illustrious career as an artist refusing to compromise my artistic integrity.”
Madonna then thanked the brand—which included the statement “Cheers to disrupting the status quo” at the latter part of the video—for “finally realizing the genius of [their] collaboration.”
“Artists are here to disturb the peace,” Madonna concluded her post, earning praises from fans and fellow celebrities.
Image: Instagram/@madonna
Image: Instagram/@madonna
Image: Instagram/@madonna
Image: Instagram/@madonna
Aside from Madonna, the soda brand also shared some of its “most legendary” commercials including those with Britney Spears, Tina Turner, Ray Charles and Robert Palmer. /ra