Madonna dropped by The Tonight Show to walk all over Jimmy Fallon on Thursday, as well as push typically accepted boundaries between talk show guests and set furniture. Fortunately, the host didn’t mind at all.
“You do all these things first, and then people take your ideas and they don’t give you credit,” Fallon gushed about Madonna’s career, which is funny if you consider the fraught history behind Madonna’s 1990 hit “Vogue.”
“And they also don’t do it as good,” said Madonna. “That sounds really arrogant, but it’s kinda true.”
The pop icon was there to promote her upcoming concert film Madame X, which offers a behind-the-scenes look at her 2019 tour of the same name. Madonna also referenced Black American author and activist James Baldwin, noting that she was inspired by his quote, “Artists are here to disturb the peace.”
She appears to have misunderstood the meaning of Baldwin’s words slightly, which referred to exposing frightening societal truths rather than climbing on top of a desk before flashing a live studio audience — but at least she’s having a good time.
“And so I hope that I have disturbed not only your peace this afternoon, but people’s peace while they watch this show,” said Madonna. “But I mean that in the best way.”
Madame X arrives on Paramount+ Oct. 8.
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