Madonna and Elton John end yearslong feud

And just like that, they were friends again.

After Katy Perry and Taylor Swift, and the Gallagher brothers, Madonna and Elton John have finally buried the hatchet, effectively ending a feud that had begun more than twenty years ago.

The American star posted a picture on Instagram of her and Elton John backstage after his performance on the New York comedy sketch show Saturday Night Live.

Watching Sir Elton on the show reminded Madonna of seeing him when she was in high school, an experience that “changed the course of my life”, she wrote on Instagram.

“Over the decades it hurt me to know that someone I admired so much shared his dislike of me publicly as an artist. I didn’t understand it”, the popstar went on.

Things first went sour between the two divas in 2002, when Elton John described Madonna’s theme song for Die Another Day as “the worst Bond tune ever”.

Two years later, at the 2004 Q Awards in London, the British singer accused Madonna of lip-syncing. “Madonna, best live act? Fuck off”, he said on stage.

Over the years, Elton John went on to distribute more petty comments, while Madonna remained largely silent, at least publicly.

When she won over John at the Golden Globes in 2012, John’s husband David Furnish wrote on Facebook: “Madonna winning Best Original Song truly shows how these awards have nothing to do with merit. Her acceptance speech was embarrassing in its narcissism.”

Sir Elton also accused the American popstar of behaving like a mean girl with his protégée Lady Gaga.

But rest assured that this is now all in the past. In 2023 already, John had praised Madonna’s advocacy on HIV and AIDS.

On Saturday night, Madonna gathered her courage and confronted Elton John.

“When I met him, the first thing out of his mouth was, “Forgive Me” and the wall between us fell down. Forgiveness is a powerful tool. Within minutes. We were hugging,” she said.

Elton John called the interaction "a healing moment" and thanked Madonna for forgiving his “big mouth.” “I’m grateful we can move forward. I’m increasingly distressed by all the divisiveness in our world at the moment," he added.

According to Madonna, John has already written a song for her and is eager to collaborate. Anyone else got a little dust in their eyes?

Additional sources • The Guardian