Madonna arrived in New York in 1977 with thirty-five dollars and a conviction she would be the biggest star in the world. Within seven years she was exactly that, maintaining her position through relentless reinvention and surgically precise provocation.

This episode traces her rise from a Michigan childhood marked by her mother’s death through dance training, failed bands, and the deliberate construction of the most successful female music career in history.

• She has sold over 300 million records, making her the best-selling female music artist in history
• Her Blond Ambition Tour was condemned by the Vatican and praised by critics as groundbreaking
• She founded Maverick Records, which signed Alanis Morissette and earned over a billion dollars
• She has reinvented her style and persona at least a dozen times across four decades