Madonna has paid a heartfelt tribute to her late brother Christopher Ciccone, describing him as her closest companion for many years, following his passing at the age of 63.
Her brother, a talented artist, dancer, and designer, had worked closely with Madonna on various projects, including appearing in her music videos, such as “Lucky Star”, and serving as art director for her Blond Ambition World Tour and tour director for The Girlie Show tour. He passed away on Friday in Michigan after a battle with cancer.
In an emotional Instagram post, Madonna revealed that Ciccone had been in immense pain towards the end of his life. She wrote: “My brother Christopher is gone. He was the closest human to me for so long, it’s 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.”
“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, 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 epicentre 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 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. 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. 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.”
Speaking about mending their disagreement prior to Ciccone’s death, Madonna added: “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. 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.”
Madonna paid tribute, saying: “I’m glad he’s not suffering anymore, there will never be anyone like him. I know he’s dancing somewhere.”
Ciccone had a multifaceted career, directing music videos for stars such as Dolly Parton and Tony Bennett, and showcasing his interior design skills in Madonna’s homes in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles. This loss comes after Madonna recently lost her stepmother, Joan Clare Ciccone, to cancer, and her older brother Anthony Ciccone last year.
