Madonna Announces Sequel to Confessions On A Dancefloor
Madonna has officially announced that her forthcoming album will serve as a sequel to her 2005 club-focused record, Confessions On A Dancefloor, which included hits such as "Sorry" and the Abba-sampling "Hung Up."
The artist had been hinting at this project since 2023. On Monday, she cleared her Instagram feed and updated her biography to feature a lyric from "Hung Up": "Time goes by so slowly."
On Wednesday, Madonna confirmed the album's title as Confessions II and revealed its release date as 3 July.
Alongside the announcement, she shared a 60-second video preview of the opening track, "I Feel So Free." The song features a throbbing synth bassline and incorporates a line from her 1980s hit "Into The Groove":
"Out here on the dance floor, I feel so free."
'To Rave Is an Art'
Confessions II will be Madonna's first album since 2019's Madame X and marks her 15th studio release overall.
The original Confessions On A Dancefloor is widely regarded as one of her best works, alongside albums like Like A Prayer and Ray Of Light. It was an unapologetically euphoric exploration of dance culture.
For the sequel, Madonna has reunited with British producer Stuart Price, who also produced the first album. The original record was famously created in the loft of Price’s London home, where Madonna even carved her name into the rafters during downtime.
Price and Madonna also collaborated on the 2023 Celebration tour. In 2024, Madonna posted a photo from Price’s new studio in west London, captioned:
"Back in the Stu with Stuart Price."
After several weeks, she updated fans on the album’s progress, writing:
"These past few months [have] been medicine for my SOUL."
She also shared images of her children participating in the recording process.
When announcing the new album, Madonna quoted lyrics from a new song titled "One Step Away":
"People think that dance music is superficial, but they've got it all wrong,"
she wrote in a press release.
She described the dance floor as more than just a physical location, calling it a threshold and a ritualistic space where movement replaces language.
"The dance floor is not just a place, it's a threshold: A ritualistic space where movement replaces language."
The 67-year-old artist characterized this lyric as a "manifesto" for her new music.
"We must dance, celebrate, and pray with our bodies,"
she said.
"These are things that we've been doing for thousands of years - they really are spiritual practices. After all, the dance floor is a ritualistic space. It's a place where you connect with your wounds, with your fragility."
Madonna continued:
"To rave is an art. It's about pushing your limits and connecting to a community of like-minded people."
Fan Anticipation and Related Projects
Fans have speculated about the upcoming release for several months. Interest intensified in March when The Sun reported that Madonna had filmed "her most X-rated music video to date" at a secret UK location.
She is also rumored to make a special appearance with Sabrina Carpenter during Carpenter’s set at the second weekend of the Coachella Festival this Friday.
Posters promoting the new album have already appeared in cities worldwide.
In addition to her music projects, Madonna will appear in the second season of the Emmy-winning television show The Studio, which satirizes the film industry.
She filmed her role in Venice—the location of her iconic "Like A Virgin" music video—in March, alongside actress Julia Garner, who was slated to portray Madonna in a biopic that was ultimately canceled.
Variety magazine reported that the second season of The Studio will reference the attempts to adapt Madonna’s life story for the big screen.
