Superstar (Madonna song)

, where MDNA was previewed and critics first heard "Superstar"|alt=A two-storied rectangular building with large windows and door. A number of cars are parked in front of it. "Superstar" was written and produced by Madonna, Hardy "Indigo" Muanza and Michael Malih and was recorded at MSR Studios in New York City. After the completion of MDNA, critics around the world were invited to Abbey Road Studios for an initial review of the album. Many critics noted that Madonna's daughter Lourdes' vocals appeared in "Superstar", which was subsequently confirmed by the singer herself. Musically, "Superstar" is an uptempo dance-pop song, that features influences of electronic and pop music. The track was mixed by Demacio 'Demo' Castellon for The Demolition Crew, and recorded by Angie Teo. Editing for the track was completed by Stephen 'The Koz' Kozmeniuk for The Demolition Crew. According to Neil McCormick from The Daily Telegraph, the composition features a "shimmering ambiance built up from a ringing guitar loop and echoing tom-tom pattern that might have been constructed from Beatles' drum fills." Along with the looping music, the lyrics are simple and obtuse in nature, which McCormick believed was done deliberately like "You can have the password to my phone / I'll give you a massage when you get home". There are also references to her older songs like "Into the Groove" (1985) with the line, "You're Travolta getting into your groove". ==Artwork and release==

The accompanying artwork for "Superstar" was created by Brazilian graffiti artist Simone Sapienza, known as Siss. It was directed by Binho Ribeiro and Giovanni Bianco. On the cover Madonna wears a shorts with a whip, while a phrase reads; "The shorts says: 'let's have dinner!'. The whip says, 'but you must pay for'". A contest sponsored by Keep Walking Brazil project selected 30 proposed covers, and Sapienza was chosen by Madonna after being among the ten finalists. "Superstar" was released as a promotional single in Brazil on December 3, 2012. Readers of Brazilian newspaper Folha de S.Paulo received a free copy of the single together with their newspaper. The single features the original album version along with a remixed version by DJ Eddie Amador. In January 2026, Madonna released the "Superstar" EP, which included the Eddie Amador remix, to digital download and streaming sites. ==Critical reception==

"Superstar" received generally mixed to favorable reviews from music critics. Becky Bain from Idolator called it a "sweet love song" and compared it as the sweeter, more simplified version of "Ray of Light". Andy Gill from The Independent stated the song was an "obvious hit single" and compared the song to her 1990 release, "Vogue". MuuMuse's Bradley Stern complimented "the sugary-sweet, instantly summer-friendly" nature of the song, while Alexis Petridis from The Guardian described the composition of the track as "saccharine". Priya Elan from NME was very positive towards the song, and described it, along with "Girl Gone Wild", as "accomplishments" and "sound better than they have any right to." While reviewing the album, Robert Copsey from Digital Spy noted that "Superstar" was the most "relaxed [sounding] song" compared to the rest of the tracks which he described as kind of "in-yer-face." Neil McCormick from The Daily Telegraph described the song as "sweet and summery". Slant Magazines Sal Cinquemani gave it a mixed review, calling its lyrical content a "faux pas". Another mixed reception came from writers of Virgin Media, who awarded it three stars out of five, and called it a "passable slice of electro-hued chart-pop." Enio Chiola from PopMatters gave it a poor review for its lyrical content by calling it "badly written", but stated that songs like "'Superstar' and 'Masterpiece' indicates that Madonna isn't just a blubbering mess of bitterness." In his review of MDNA for Pitchfork, Matthew Perpetua said that the track, along with "B-Day Song" from the album, are "mesmerizingly dumb lyrics" and are as "spiteful trolling rather than vapid pandering." Gigwise listed the lyrics as one of the most embarrassing moments on MDNA. In August 2018, Billboard picked it as the singer's 86th greatest single; "a blatant copycat of Solveig's smash Dragonette collab 'Hello', it also has one of the sweetest, most straightforward choruses of the whole MDNA set". ==Music video==

Although no music video was officially confirmed or produced, media outlets reported that a music video for "Superstar" was to be shot in October 2012. Madonna wanted to dress as a "Terror Bride", which is a combination of an Iraqi bridal veil and a US soldier's uniform. The dress was to be portrayed as a statement for oppression against women and warfare. However, the singer's advisers talked her out of wearing the costume because they thought it would "put her life at risk". Sources then stated "[Madonna] had the outfit ready to go. She was really proud of it and said it was her 'Terror Bride' costume [...] At first, when people started telling her it was madness, she just brushed it off, but when they mentioned that her actions could put her life at risk, she decided to ditch it from her video and certainly won't be wearing it on stage." Madonna said she was "really disappointed" about not wearing the outfit, but had put aside the idea for a future use. ==Track listing==

• ;Keep Walking Brazil Special Edition CD single • "Superstar" – 3:55 • "Superstar" (Eddie Amador Remix) – 6:18 ==Credits and personnel==

Credits adapted from the MDNA album liner notes. • Madonna – vocals, songwriter, producer • Hardy "Indigo" Muanza – songwriter, producer • Michael Malih – songwriter, producer • Demacio 'Demo' Castellon – audio mixing for The Demolition Crew • Angie Teo – recording at MSR Studios, New York City • Stephen 'The Koz' Kozmeniuk – music editing for The Demolition Crew • Lourdes "Lola" Leon – background vocals ==Charts==

After the release of MDNA, "Superstar" debuted at number 150 on the South Korea International Downloads chart, with a total of 174,917 streams and digital downloads. ==Release history==