The story behind Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” and the relationship that inspired the song

A hymn of pop music… This is how we can define in a general way “Like a Virgin” by Madonna, of which there is no doubt that it is one of the most emblematic of all time. And it is, in any case, the one that catapulted the so-called ‘Queen of Pop’ as an artist who would mark an era.

Yes, it is true that her debut album from 1983 had already positioned her as a singer to follow. But it is fair to say that the album Like a Virgin of 1984, was the one that made her an unmissable face and a provocative figure in the entertainment industry.

Cover of ‘Like a Virgin’ by Madonna. Photo: Warner Bros. Records.

Therein lay his success and much of the controversy, especially for the most conservative circles in the United States and the world. How could a woman named Madonna (a term that refers to the Virgin Mary in Italian) be so provocative? How would such an artist venture to sing a verse about virginity and being touched for the first time?

For those times, they were big words. And well, you know, people were easily shocked. Anything that called into question the puritanical values ​​of society should be pointed out and restricted, even if the song didn’t even really speak in a sexually explicit sense.

The original composers of the song, Billy Steinberg and Tom KellyRather, they created it inspired by the feeling of falling in love with someone again after having suffered a disappointment in love. This is the story behind Madonna’s “Like a Virgin”.

The inspiration behind Madonna’s “Like a Virgin”

As we said, in those days it was thought that Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” was a song about losing virginity. The ‘poor’ and ‘innocent’ minds of young people would be induced to sexual practice and all those exaggerated things typical of their time… But that conception of the song is quite far from reality.

The theme was written, as we said before, by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly, two friends who were dedicated to composing together, one the lyrics and the other the music respectively. In fact, Steinberg had already tried his luck with his own band, called Billy Thermal, which although it had been signed by a record company, ended up disbanding.

Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly
Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly. Photo: Getty.

For Billy Steinberg, things were not looking good in music, so he ended up working with his father in his father’s vineyards in the Coachella Valley, California… And it was during his period as a viticulturist that he wrote “Like a Virgin”this while driving a truck loaded with vineyards.

According to Steinberg, the song is inspired by the feeling of falling in love again after a love disappointment. He himself went through a similar situation in those days, according to what he told the SongFacts site:

“I was involved in a very emotionally difficult relationship that finally ended and I met someone new. I remember writing that lyric about feeling shiny and new. I made it through the desert, somehow I did; I managed to get through this very difficult moment.”

Billy Steinberg for SongFacts

So yes: Madonna’s “Like a Virgin”, the concept of virginity and being “touched for the first time”, is an analogy from the composer for how we feel when we fall in love again.

Billy Steinberg
Billy Steinberg. Photo: Getty.

How did “Like a Virgin” get to Madonna and why did Nile Rodgers not want the song?

Once Billy Steinberg had the lyrics ready, He approached with his friend Tom Kelly to start shaping it musically. And of course it was complicated, since they had been working only on rock compositions for some time. In their hands, they held a provocative pop song that they first They tried to put it together as a ballad, but the main chorus just didn’t fit for them. in that style.

Anyway, they finished it and then showed it to Warner Bros. Michael Ostin in a meeting. Ostin himself would meet Madonna a few days later and show her the Steinberg and Kelly recording. It goes without saying that the singer loved it.

In addition, they had found an interesting formula: Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” was going to draw attention –for better or worse– for that contrast between the reference to virginity and the image of the singer as a sexual icon.

nile rodgers
Nile Rodgers in 1985. Photo: Getty.

Of course, although “Like a Virgin” had enchanted Madonna, the song was not to the liking of its music producer, nile rodgers. The legendary Chic guitarist, who had just come off a resounding success with Let’s Dance by david bowieI thought that the song composed by Billy Steinberg was even silly.

However, despite not being delighted with the demo, it is said that Rodgers couldn’t get the song out of his head in the days that followed.. Finally, that was what convinced Nile to agree to produce the song, which was also the one that gave the name to Madonna’s 1984 album.

Fun fact: basically, the main instrumental base of “Like a Virgin” is all played by Chic. Nile Rodgers did the brief guitar sections, while Bernard Edwards and Tony Thompson did the rhythmic sequence on bass and drums, respectively.

Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” and the null relationship between the singer and the original composers

It goes without saying all the success that Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” brought. The song became an immediate hit, and the music video was a favorite on networks like MTV.

Interestingly, Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly have never had a greater closeness with Madonna. In a interview with SongFacts, Steinberg said they only met Madonna once, and it was at a party for her manager. where the meeting was, rather, brief and very dry.

Steinberg once said that Madonna’s representatives wanted to add a credit for her to the song, but they refused. “I always thought she was a little resentful because its title track was written by someone else and she did not participate in the subject ”Billy said. Also she would have rejected the offer to co-write with Kelly and Steinberg more songs.

Madonna
Madonna in 1985. Photo: Getty.

Be that as it may, there is no doubt that Madonna’s “Like a Virgin”, composed by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly, with the production of Nile Rodgers, is one of the greatest pop songs of all time.

If you want to know the story behind other great songs of all time, Here we leave you our content on all kinds of great songs of bands and artists from different eras.

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The story behind Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” and the relationship that inspired the song