What happened between Madonna and John Elton—public insults to reconciliation
What's the story
After over two decades of public feuding, music legends Elton John and Madonna have reportedly made up.
The feud stems back to 2002 when John slammed Madonna's contribution to the James Bond soundtrack, Die Another Day.
Over the years, he made several comments about the Vogue singer, including accusing her of lip-syncing during an acceptance speech in 2004.
The duo, who had performed together in the '90s, saw their friendship fall apart in the 2000s.
Criticism
John's criticism of Madonna's 'Die Another Day' and live performance
In November 2002, John told Sky News he thought Madonna's song for the Bond film was "the worst Bond tune ever."
He said, "It hasn't got a tune. They should have gone for somebody like Lulu and Shirley Bassey, or maybe I'm in that league?"
He continued, "I don't think it's the best Madonna record, and I'm a big fan."
Two years later, at the 2004 Q Awards, John dedicated part of his acceptance speech to trash Madonna.
Responses
Madonna's response to John's public criticisms
Despite John's public digs, Madonna won the Golden Globe for Best Original Song in 2012, beating him.
On the red carpet, when asked about John's comments, she said, "[Elton's] been known to get mad at me, so I don't know. He's brilliant, and I adore him, so he'll win another award. I don't feel bad."
Later that year, John declared Madonna's career "over" in an Australian TV interview, accusing her of "mean girl behavior" toward Lady Gaga.
Memoir and praise
John revisited feud in memoir and praised Madonna in 2023
In his 2019 memoir Me, John looked back at his feud with Madonna. He claimed the fight started after she slammed Gaga on an American chat show in 2012.
Bashing her "ungracious and nasty" behavior, he wrote it was wrong for an established artist to "kick down a younger artist."
Despite their differences, things seemed to have calmed down by 2023, when John praised Madonna on Instagram for her Live to Tell performance, honoring those who have died from AIDS.
Reconciliation
Madonna and John's reconciliation in 2025: A new beginning
The decades-old feud between John and Madonna was finally laid to rest this year.
After John's Saturday Night Live performance, Madonna posted their picture on Instagram, writing, "We finally buried the hatchet!!!"
She narrated how she confronted John backstage and how he immediately said, "Forgive me," and they made up.
Now, a legendary collaboration could be in the works as Madonna revealed John had written a song for her and wanted to collaborate.