When I met Madonna in November 1998
M-Tribe reader Margit wants to share her memories from November 9, 1998 – the day she met Madonna. Here’s her incredible story, in her own words.
“Radio NRJ did a sweepstake from November 2nd to 6th in 1998 where listeners from all over Europe could win an interview with Madonna in Paris. And I was the lucky 25-year-old-girl from Austria who had the chance to fly to Paris to take part at Madonna’s first European Fan Conference.
First of all I had to send my 4 questions that I would like to ask Madonna to Radio NRJ. So here are the questions I submitted:
• 1. What does an ordinary day in your life look like? When do you get up, what is the first thing you do in the morning, …?
• 2. What comes to your mind when you think of Austria, especially Vienna?
• 3. Do you know any (living) Austrian musicians?
• 4. Will you finally come to Austria next year to perform a live concert?
When I came to Paris we had a schedule for that special day (see image below): At 11.30 a.m. on November 9th all the 9 winners from Austria, Belgium, Germany, Finland, France and Sweden came to Radio Energy in Paris to meet with Damien Bessieres, the radio interviewer, who would be the moderator of the fan conference. Later on a mini bus picked us up and brought us to the luxury Hotel Crillon, where Madonna stayed during her Paris visit and where the interview should take place. After a small lunch, where most of us where to excited to eat, we had a meeting with the Warner stuff, who screened all of the listener’s questions. Just in case there would be some inappropriate questions. But – of course – there weren’t any. At 5 p.m. the big moment had come: Madonna came into the small room where all the winners where sitting in a semi circle in front of her. The first thing I noticed was how petite she was. Of course I knew that she is not tall, but when you see her the first time you’re suprised. But believe me, she can fill a room, her charisma is extraordinary.
The moderator, who was very nervous himself, then started to introduce each one of us to Madonna. She wanted to know our names and where we come from. Damien always said that I’m from Australia instead of from Austria (or “Autriche” in French). He really seemed to have problems to distinguish those two so different countries. 😉 When Madonna saw Frederic, one of the winners from Belgium, she spontaneously said that she could tell that he is Belgian – just because of his fancy outfit (he wore a grey designer chemise from Olivier Theyskens, the designer whose dress Madonna wore at the Golden Globes 1998). She then asked us to promise her to only ask her good and interesting questions. 😉
The conference took about 36 minutes.
After the conference was finished every fan had the once-in-a-lifetime chance to go to Madonna and get an autograph on whatever we had with us (I let her sign a black-and-white-copy of my favourite picture of her that Herb Ritts took in early 1989 for the cover of the May Issue of Interview Magazine). I also took the chance to make her some very special Austrian gifts: First I bought for her a picture book with the work of the Austrian painter Gustav Klimt (I read that she really likes his Art Nouveau paintings) as well as a small “Sacher Torte”, a typical Austrian sweet speciality. In the end I also gave her a Mini-Disc with 73 minutes of music from Austrian musicians (as she didn’t know any living Austrian musician – as I expected it). She seemed to like my gifts, smiled and thanked me. I still wonder if it was a coincident that she later in March 1999 released “Nothing Really Matters”, her last single from “Ray Of Light”, with remixes from the Austrian musicians Kruder & Dorfmeister, which I put on the Mini-Disc I gave to Madonna. I guess I’ll never know…
At the end of the autograph session Madonna agreed to pose with all the winners and the moderator on a picture. I’m the girl on the right with the red hair and the glasses – right next to the moderator Damien.
Next day Radio Energy published a short press release in Austria about this special interview that you can check here.
After all this was a really special day for me and I still like to think back. Sometimes I can’t believe that it happened to me, but then I look at the picture, Madonna signed for me, and know it’s true.
Cheers from Vienna,
Margit.
Special thanks to MArgit from Vienna for sharing her amazing experience with the Tribe.