All I want to do is talk about Madonna

Mark and Kenny light up some clove cigarettes to discuss the daring and deliciously disconcerting third song from Madame X. Topics include illusionary disco, plethoras of motifs, threatening strings, the Wooster Group, nostalgic coos, useless founding fathers, Casey Spooner, not-so-secret villains, disruptive choirs, James Baldwin, new democracies, Jonas Akerlund, Taylor Swift, Patti Smith, trash cans, Party Girl Vera, sparkly nail polish and dangerous lace gloves, confusing time stamps, the illusions of nostalgia, Madame X’s short story, and the numbing (and ongoing) conversation about Madonna’s gun imagery and gun control. Plus, Mark climbs down a fire escape and Kenny holds out for the VIP section on Pride Island. “WAKE UP!”

Kenny and Mark don their Supreme Hoodies to dive deep on the extreme and WHACKY second track from Madame X. Topics include the 2018 MetGala, Eurovision, Tchaikovsky, A Clockwork Orange, the material life, truth vs. fiction, screen entrapment, insomnia, reading plays, Instagram whoredom, Mykki Blanco, evil cardinals, watchful matrons, the GLAAD Awards, and the turbo-charged return of old friend Joan of Arc. “It’s a beautiful life …”

Mark and Kenny break out the wigs (and, yes, the eye patches) to launch Season Eight: Zero Fucks Given with an epic conversation about the first song and single from Madame X. Topics include: eye twitches, pineapple, pandemic impact, skincare, pussy hats, Cher and a potential Mamma Mia 3 movie, Lisbon, Estere and Stella, Starrah, Dino D’Santiago and his band Expensive Soul, the ups and downs of fado, Amalia & Celeste Rodrigues, the return of Mirwais, the fable of Martha Graham, The World of Madame X documentary, the yellow scarf, the risk of narratives in pop music, Kate Langbroek, MALUMA, Shakira, Edgar Barrera, Alice in Wonderland, flirting in different languages, the Billboard Music Awards, Diana Kunst and May Morgo, the abundance of accessories, an interrupted wedding, lost remixes, the Year of the Clavicle, and the overall schizophrenic quality of Madame X. “Can we just get to the 1, 2, cha cha?”

As the launch of Season Eight nears, Kenny and Mark revive and explore one of the great long form interviews Madonna gave during the first decade of her career with the genius Carrie Fisher over two issues of Rolling Stone in the summer of 1991. Two iconic women discuss men, marriage, mothers – and share stories about god, death, ecstasy and spankings. For the entire episode, subscribe here: www.patreon.com/alliwant2doistalkaboutmadonna

Mark and Kenny celebrate the end of Season Seven with a wide-ranging conversation about the Rebel Heart Tour - and it’s Heart Rebel companion, Tears of a Clown. Topics include Q-Tips, thumb ailments, the comment flurry, Saturday Night Online, bathrooms, Grimes, ART, Billions, Bar Six, diehard fan finances, Kyle Richards, Kevin Antunes, Semtex Films, Michael Jackson, cages, union rope pullers, distancing vocals, Shogun, the Monte mullet, postulants and prophets, the power of red, leather caps and chiseled abs, pretzels, ukuleles, reuniting with Sean Penn, One Battle After Another, John Mulaney, the delight (and danger) in revisiting the hits, spiral staircases and subway escalators, casseroles, Cirque du Soleil and ABBA, cape nods, cafeteria politics, the MEDLEY, boxing in Detroit, David Bowie, Let’s Dance, Labyrinth, Mick Jagger, Annie Lennox, detours, Paris, clowns, cast albums, Jerry Lewis, Grace Jones, deep cuts, cosmopolitans, Charlie Chaplin, thinking about Mirwais, raising money in Miami, covering Britney Spears, disrespectful fans, sandwiches, Valencia Gamble, flappers and scene work, slides, Edith Piaf, suffeRING, special guest bitches, flags, a special visit to Minneapolis, and how Madonna uses her speech at the Billboard Women in Music awards to begin to define her future. PLUS – the grading system returns, Kenny has a brand-new podcast idea, Mark brings back the Tribal Talking Stick, and Madonna takes to the streets with her guitar. “Joan of Arc said I could do it ALL!”

Special Thank You to Simon Delaney for his Tears of a Clown memories.

Dedicated to the memory of the brilliant and life-changing David Bowie.

Rebel Heart Tour video directed by Semtex Films (2016)
Rebel Heart Tour video directed by Billy “BigasBilly” Riegelmann