Madonna is mourning the loss of her younger brother with a well-documented visit to his grave — a moment that strikingly recreates a scene from her 1991 documentary "Truth or Dare."
On Friday, the Queen of Pop, 66, posted images of herself visiting Calvary Cemetery in Kawkawlin, Michigan, looking somber as she kneels before the graves of her mom — also named Madonna — who died of cancer at 30 in 1963, and her brother Christopher, who died October 4 of cancer at 63.
As captured by director Alek Keshishian, Madonna made the same journey, lying on her mother's grave and speaking about her love for the woman who died when she was 5. The scene was included in her groundbreaking, warts-and-all tour doc "Truth or Dare."
Ironically, Christopher, who fell out with Madonna for many years but with whom she had mended fences after he was diagnosed with terminal cancer, once expressed "horror" that his sister had filmed that visit.
In the new photos, Madonna wears a pinstripe suit, a scarf over her blonde hair, and shades as she knees before her mom's final resting place, fresh roses placed on it.
Her 28-year-old daughter Lourdes Leon accompanied Mom to the cemetery, and is seen next to her grandma's grave.
In one of the photos, Christopher's grave marker is shown with the caption, "Homecoming ... ... ... ... ."
Madonna wrote of her brother after he died, "My brother Christopher is gone. He was the closest human to me for so long Its hard to explain our bond But it grew out of an understanding that we were different and society was going to give us a hard time for not following the status quo."
She went on, "We took each other‘s hands and we danced through the madness of our childhood In fact dance was a kind of superglue that held us together. Discovering Dance in our small Midwestern town saved me and then my brother came along, and it saved him too."
Calling out how important her brother's queer identity was in her formative years, she wrote, "My ballet Teacher, also named Christopher- created a safe space for my brother to be Gay. a word that was not spoken or even whispered where we lived. When I finally got the courage to go to New York to become a Dancer. My brother followed. And again we took each other’s hands, and we danced through the madness of New York City! We devoured Art and Music And Film like hungry animals we were in the epicenter of all of these things exploding. We danced through the madness of the AIDS epidemic. We went to funerals and we cried, and we went dancing. We danced together on stage in the beginning of my career and eventually, he became my the Creative. Director, of many tours. When it came to good taste, my brother was the Pope, and you had to kiss the ring to get his blessing."
Referring to his work on her controversial Blond Ambition tour, she recalled, "We defied the Roman Catholic Church, The Police, the Moral Majority and all Authority figures that got in the way of Artistic freedom! My brother was right by my side. He was a painter a poet and a visionary. I admired him. He had impeccable taste. And a sharp tongue, Which he sometimes used against me but I always forgave him."
Madonna acknowledged their rift, writing, "We soared the highest heights together And floundered in the lowest lows. Somehow, we always found each other again and We held hands and we kept dancing. The last few years have not been easy We did not speak for sometime but When my brother got sick. We found our way back to each other."
Commenting on rumors she had been paying for his treatment, she went on, "I did my best to keep him alive as long as possible. He was in so much pain towards the end Once again, we held hands We closed our eyes and we danced. Together."
In closing, she added, "I’m glad he’s not suffering anymore. There will never be anyone like him. I know he’s dancing somewhere
Madonna herself nearly lost her life battling a savage bacterial infection in 2023, but recovered and went on to complete her massive Celebration tour.
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