"Nasty and ungracious”: Elton John exposes feud with Madonna in new book
Pop legends Elton John and Madonna have had an ongoing feud for years as they battled against each other in the music charts.
However, things have come to a head as John has revealed in his latest autobiography, as he said that Madonna is “nasty and ungracious”.
After Madonna said that one of Lady Gaga’s hits Born This Way was “reductive”, John went in to defend his close friend.
He said: “Her tour is a disaster and it couldn’t happen to a bigger ****.
“If Madonna had any common sense, she would have made a record like Ray of Light, stayed away from the dance stuff and just been a great pop singer and made pop records, which she does brilliantly.
“But no, she had to prove that she was like…
“And she looks like a f****** fairground stripper.”
He revealed what really happened in his autobiography ‘Me: Elton John’.
He said: “I got that Gaga’s single ‘Born This Way’ definitely sounded similar to ‘Express Yourself’, but I couldn’t see why she was so ungracious and nasty about it, rather than taking it as a compliment when a new generation of artists was influenced by her, particularly when she claims to be a champion for women.”
He also said that due to his years-long friendship with interviewer Molly Meldrum, he did not expect the footage to be aired.
“Still, I shouldn’t have said it. I apologised afterwards when I bumped into her in a restaurant in France and she was very gracious about it.”
However, John ran his mouth later on, calling out Madonna for lip-syncing.
“Madonna, best live act? F*** off. Since when has lip-syncing been live?” John said in 2004 after accepting an award for classic songwriter at the 2004 Q Awards.
“Sorry about that, but I think everyone who lip-syncs on stage in public when you pay like 75 quid to see them should be shot. Thank you very much. That’s me off her Christmas card list, but do I give a toss? No.”
Madonna addressed the matter in 2012 backstage at the Golden Globes, after she won Best Original Song.
She said: “I hope he speaks to me for the next couple of years. He’s known to get mad at me… He’ll win another award. I don’t feel bad.”