Influences

In 1985, Madonna commented that the first song to ever make a strong impression on her, was "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" by Nancy Sinatra and that it summed up her "take-charge attitude."As a young woman, she attempted to broaden her taste in literature, art, and music, and during this time became interested in classical music. She noted that her favorite style was baroque, and loved Mozart and Chopin because she liked their "feminine quality". Other musical influences included Karen Carpenter, The Supremes, Led Zeppelin, and dancers like Martha Graham and Rudolf Nureyev. Madonna's Italian-Catholic background, and relationship with her parents, were reflected in the album Like a Prayer. It is also an evocation of the impact religion had on her career.Her video for the title track contains Catholic symbolism, such as the stigmata. During The Virgin Tour, she wore a rosary and also prayed with it in the music video for "La Isla Bonita". The "Open Your Heart" video, sees her boss scolding her in Italian. In Ciao, Italia! – Live from Italy, the video release of her Who's That Girl Tour, she dedicated the song "Papa Don't Preach" to the Pope.

During her childhood, Madonna was inspired by actors, later saying, "I loved Carole Lombard and Judy Holliday and Marilyn Monroe. They were all incredibly funny...and I saw myself in them...my girlishness, my knowingness and my innocence".Her "Material Girl" music video, recreated Monroe's look in the song "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend", from the film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. She also studied the screwball comedies of the 1930s, particularly those of Lombard, in preparation for her film, Who's That Girl. The video for "Express Yourself"  was inspired by Fritz Lang's silent film Metropolis (1927). The video for "Vogue" recreated the style of Hollywood glamour photographs, in particular those by Horst P. Horst, and imitated the poses of Marlene Dietrich, Carole Lombard and Rita Hayworth, while the lyrics referenced many of the stars who had inspired her, including Bette Davis, described by Madonna as an idol. Influences also came to her from the art world, most notably through the works of artist Frida Kahlo.The music video of the song "Bedtime Story", featured images inspired by the paintings of Kahlo and Remedios Varo. Her 2003 video for "Hollywood", was an homage to the work of photographer Guy Bourdin; it sparked a lawsuit by Bourdin's son, against Madonna, Webo Girl Publishing, Inc., Warner/Chappell Music, Warner Bros. Records, Warner Music Group, MTV Networks, and Jean-Baptiste Mondino, due to the unauthorised use of his father's work. Other new-age artists like Andy Warhol's usage of S&M imagery in his underground films, were reflected in the music videos for "Erotica" and "Deeper and Deeper". Madonna became a follower of the Kabbalah school of Jewish mysticism after the birth of her daughter in 1996. She has been open about the influence of the religion on her, and donated millions of dollars for schools based on the religion, around New York and London. In 2004, she changed her name to Esther, which in Hebrew means "star". After she joined the religion, she faced opposition from Rabbis, who felt Madonna taking up Kabbalah was sacrilegious and a case of celebrity dilettanism. Madonna defended her Kabbalah studies by stating: "It would be less controversial if I joined the Nazi Party" and that the Kabbalah is "not hurting anybody." The religion went on to influence Madonna's music, especially albums like Ray of Light and Music. During the Re-Invention World Tour, at one point of the show, Madonna and her dancers wore t-shirts that read "Kabbalists Do It Better."