It is with great delight that Electroqueer gets to introduce you to one of our favorite new acts of the moment – Madison.
Madison is bursting onto the electro scene with his hot new track ‘Move Your Ass’ and you may have noticed that it had a nice home at the top of the EQ Chart lately for a few weeks. We can’t remember how we stumbled upon Madison, but we are extremely happy that we did!
Hailing from Nottinghamshire, Madison grew up in a close knit family in which he is very close to his mother — they even share the same birthday in April! Music and performance was always a huge factor in his life and realising his ambitions at an early age, Madison trained at the renowned Laine Theatre Arts – the same school that Victoria Beckham attended! The two even met each other by coincidence at Selfridges once and bonded over their enjoyable (and some not so enjoyable) times both spent at Laine.
Since leaving Laine, Madison has decided to take on the world in way of becoming a popstar, songwriter, actor, model and aspiring author. His debut children’s book is even set to be released later in 2007! Having just worked on a film with Nicole Kidman, everything is moving quite quickly for this ambitious 21 year old.
Electroqueer has been spending some time with Madison in London and we caught up with him recently to get inside his world a little bit more…
EQ: So Madison – how are you finding all the time to devote to pop star fame, acting, songwriting and writing your first children’s book?
Madison: I enjoy variety in what I do, and I’m pretty ambitious, so I really want a taste of everything in the entertainment world – variety is the spice of life! I really enjoy acting, but singing and songwriting is my main passion. The book is something I started over Christmas, whilst doing a show in Milton Keynes. It started as a ‘passtime’, but I really enjoyed it, and I’m finalising the last draft very soon.
EQ: We love your track, ‘Move Your Ass’ and your performance at Popshow was brilliant. How did this song come about and what’s it all about?
Madison: Thank you, I loved the Popshow gig! ‘Move Your Ass’ is a great club track I wrote with my producer Danny Kirsch. It’s quite simple in its formula, and I came up with the lyrics in about 15 minutes. I just wanted to describe what people do in a club when a great track comes on.
 David Bowie an inspiration |
EQ: We’ve even heard you are a young David Bowie in training amongst the Popshow crowd – what do you think of that comparison?
Madison: David Bowie was revolutionary in his time, and is a bit of an icon for me. To be compared in the slightest way is a massive honour, it really is. I love his image and style, it’s definitely something I’m going for in my work. |
EQ: You obviously put a lot of thought and preparation into your look and performance – how important is fashion to you?
Madison: Fashion is hugely important to me, and has always been a passion of mine. I think with pop, there are so many different acts out there, so when I present my act I want to make an impact through the performance and costume. I’m so lucky in that I’ve got a great team around me, who work hard to create my look with me. Ross Jenkins, my stylist is fantastic, and my creative director Nik Pate works with me to create my images for promotion. They are great guys with really unique ideas. I really want to blend music with fashion, thats where I see my career going in the long run.
EQ: What CDs or songs could we find in your iPod now?
Madison: Oh crikey, I’m such a mixed bag, you’re gonna laugh! I love all kinds of music from classical to pure 90’s cheesy pop! There is lots of Spice Girls (who I love), Madonna, All Saints, Pet Shop Boys, Britney, Anastasia, Janet…the list goes on! I love the Minogues too. Lots of electro and dance to workout to, lots of 90’s pop. Far too many to mention! I’m a pop fan, I’m not into anything rock or indie. Indie needs to move on now – Just how many bands can begin with ‘The…’?! The only reason my computer crashes is because of the vast volume of music on it!
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EQ: We think you are on the cutting of edge of some great electro pop these days – what do you think the future holds for electro music?
Madison: I think it’s definitely on the up. Dance music still does well in the charts, and to me, Electro is just that bit cooler. I think there are lots of great artists that are working in a more electro vein, such as Darren Hayes who I now love, so I hope to see it return with a bang pretty soon. |
EQ: Speaking of Mr. Hayes, what did you think of Darren Hayes recent performance at Club Delicacy?
Madison: I really did love it. I wasn’t a massive fan to be honest, but I am now! He really blew me away. It was very intimate, but so full sounding, very electro. There was a great vibe in the air that night. I’m looking forward to his new album in August.
EQ: We hear you live with two fashion designers! We can only imagine how much fan that must be! What’s it like to be surrounded by so much creativity everyday?
Madison: I absolutely love it! I actually live with 2 designers and an artist, all of whom come up with some amazing work. There is Ross who has his own menswear label, ‘Ross Jenkins’, Gwen Ash who has her label ‘Gash’, and Nik Pate, who is a production and image designer. His work is fantastic. So whenever I need a new costume, they go the studio and knock me something up, I love it!
EQ: We hear you’re working on a new track called ‘Club’. Tell us about it. And whats going on with the Club Discoteca EP?
Madison: ‘Club’ is a track I’ve been perfecting for a while. I think it will be my best song to date, I’m going to work on it with my producer very soon. It’s very upbeat, with a very different edge to it, quite different from my other work. You’ll have to wait to hear it. There’s another track in the works too called ‘Black’, that I’ll be recording very soon. The Club Discoteca EP is something I’m working towards getting together this year, about 6 songs of my best material. It’s just a working title, but I’m hoping to have it ready, with new artwork, for the summer.
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EQ: Can we expect anything different at your second Popshow performance on March 27th?
Madison: I’m kinda mixing around my performance this time, I’ve got a new outfit, my dancers are doing something a little different, but I’ve not decided on the final set list yet. You’ll be surprised I think, you’re gonna have to wait for the night though to know exactly what I’m doing! I’m on an earlier slot this time, as I was headlining before, which was a great honour. Popshow is a fantastic night, so head on down if you can! |
EQ: Ok here is the canned question that we ask everyone…What are your thoughts on the word ‘Electroqueer’ and what does the word mean to you?
Madison: ‘Electro’ is a genre of music, and ‘Queer’ means someone or something who is different, not necessarily to do with sexuality. So to me ‘Electroqueer’ means someone who is a little different in the electro music vein. And long live ‘Electroqueer’ in my opinion! Everything comes full circle, and electro will have its day again very soon!
EQ would like to thank Madison for taking the time to let EQ readers get to know him more. As a thank you, Madison is also offering up an exclusive download of ‘Just Enough’ for EQ readers. Get in touch with Madison yourself over at MySpace – www.myspace.com/madisonsmusic.
You can also download more Madison tracks over at www.ishouldbesolucky.com/madison.