Musical style

As an artist, Madonna's music has been the subject of much scrutiny among critics. Robert M. Grant, author of Contemporary Strategy Analysis (2005), commented that what has brought Madonna success is "[c]ertainly not outstanding natural talent. As a vocalist, musician, dancer, songwriter, or actress, Madonna's talents seem modest." He asserts Madonna's success is in relying on the talents of others, and that her personal relationships have served as cornerstones to the numerous reinventions in the longevity of her career. Conversely, Rolling Stone has named Madonna "an exemplary songwriter with a gift for hooks and indelible lyrics, and a better studio singer than her live spectacles attest." She has been called "the perfect vocalist for lighter-than-air songs", despite not being a "heavyweight talent."[ Madonna has always been self-conscious about her voice, especially when compared to her vocal idols, a group that includes Ella Fitzgerald, Prince and Chaka Khan.
The release of her first album, Madonna (1983), heralded her arrival but her vocal abilities were not fully formed artistically. Her vocal styles and lyrics appeared similar to those of other pop stars of that period, namely Paula Abdul, Debbie Gibson and Taylor Dayne. The songs on Madonna reveal several key trends that have continued to define her success, including a strong dance-based idiom, catchy hooks, highly polished arrangement and Madonna's own vocal style. In songs such as "Lucky Star" and Borderline", Madonna introduced a style of upbeat dance music that would prove particularly appealing to future gay audiences. The bright, girlish vocal timbre of the early years became passé in Madonna's later works, the change being deliberate. Her second album, Like a Virgin (1984), foreshadowed several trends in Madonna's later works, including references to classical works (the pizzicato synthesizer line that opens the song "Angel"); potential negative reaction from social groups ("Dress You Up" which was blacklisted by the Parents Music Resource Center); and retro styles ("Shoo-Bee-Doo", Madonna's homage to Motown). Madonna's early style and the change that she ushered in it, is best evident in the song "Material Girl". It opens with Madonna using a little-girl voice, but following the first verse, she switches to a richer, more mature voice in the chorus. This mature artistic statement was visible in True Blue (1986). "Papa Don't Preach" from this album, was a significant milestone in her artistic career. The classical introduction, fast tempo and the gravity in her voice was unprecedented in Madonna's oeuvre at that time.
With Like a Prayer (1989), Madonna again entered a new phase, musically. Widely denoted as her most frank record, Like a Prayer reflected Madonna's thoughts on her failed marriage to Penn and her loneliness. Madonna commented "[The album] was a real coming-of-age record for me emotionally. [..] I had to do a lot of soul-searching and I think it is a reflection of that. The album introduced live recorded music and incorporated different genres of music, including dance, R&B, Gospel music. Her relationship with her parents and Penn had a profound effect on the lyrics of the songs. Madonna continued to compose ballads and uptempo dance songs for Erotica (1992) and Bedtime Stories (1994). She tried to remain contemporary by utilizing the use of samples, rap music, drum loops and hip-hop in the songs. Her voice grew much deeper and fuller, evident in the tracks like "Rain" and "Take a Bow". During the shooting of Evita, Madonna had to take vocal lessons, which increased her range further. She herself commented: "I studied with a vocal coach for Evita and I realized there was a whole piece of my voice I wasn't using. Before, I just believed I had a really limited range and was going to make the most of it." Continuing her musical evolution with Ray of Light, the track "Frozen" displayed her fully formed vocal prowess and her allusions to classical music. Her vocals were restrained and she sang the songs in Ray of Light without vibrato. However, the intake of breath within the songs became more prominent. With the new millennium, came her album Music. From that album, Madonna has sung in her normal voice in a medium range, and sometimes singing in a higher register for the chorus. Fouz-Hernández commented that "Throughout her career, Madonna's manipulation of her voice shows us that, by refusing to be defined in one way, she has in fact opened up a space for new kinds of musical analysis."