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''American Life'' is the ninth studio album by American singer-songwriter Madonna. It was first released on April 21, 2003, by Maverick Records and distributed by Warner Bros. Records. The album, produced in its entirety by Madonna and Mirwais Ahmadzaï, features references to many parts of American culture. The album is a concept album, with recurring themes of the American Dream and materialism. These themes reject the reputation Madonna held in the 1980s, earned by songs such as her worldwide hit "Material Girl" (1985). The album contains rock, folk and electronica music, as well as influences of acoustic music on many tracks. ''American Life'' received mixed reviews from music critics, with responses noting its consistency, but general responses called the record "about Madonna" and found it confusing. The album peaked at number one in fourteen countries. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and British Phonographic Industry (BPI) both certified it platinum in recognition of one million shipments in the United States, and 300,000 shipments in the United Kingdom, respectively. The album became the 32nd-best-selling album of 2003 and has sold five million copies to date. ''American Life'' garnered two nominations at the 46th Grammy Awards in 2004. Four singles were released from the album. The first, the title track, was released to a generally negative critical reception, with ''Blender'' naming it the ninth worst song of all time. It charted at number 37 in the US while it entered the top ten in most countries, peaking at number two in the United Kingdom. A controversial music video was pulled after scenes of war and violence were criticized which led to an edited version being released. Its following single, "Hollywood", became her first single not to chart on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 since 1983. "Nothing Fails" and "Love Profusion", the third and fourth singles respectively, featured a lack of promotion resulting in a poor commercial performance. Despite it, both peaked at number one in Spain. Madonna promoted the album during a small promotional tour for the album in April and May 2003. At the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards, she performed alongside Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and Missy Elliott a medley of "Like a Virgin" and "Hollywood" and engaged in open-mouth kissing with Aguilera and Spears gaining great controversy and publicity. ''American Life'' was supported by Madonna's sixth concert tour, the Re-Invention World Tour, which was the highest grossing tour of 2004 earning $125 million. The tour was chronicled in a documentary titled ''I'm Going to Tell You a Secret'', which led to Madonna's first live album of the same name. ==Background and development== During the early 1990s, Madonna had focused on a number of provocative releases, like the erotic pictorial ''Sex'' book, the sadomasochist inspired album ''Erotica'', and the erotic thriller, ''Body of Evidence'', all of which she deduced was due to "a lot of rage and anger" within herself". However, by the beginning of the new millennium, Madonna was living a calmer, more introspective and wholesome life with her husband Guy Ritchie and their children Lourdes and Rocco. According to biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli, the presence of Ritchie in Madonna's life had a calming effect on the singer, making her more matured and easing her temper.〔 Concentrating on her music career, Madonna was busy throughout of 2001 on her Drowned World Tour. On September 11, 2001, suicide bombers hijacked two jet airliners and crashed into the World Trade Center, resulting in the death of nearly 3,000 people. The event had a profound effect on American society, with the cultural mood being bleak and paranoia. People, including Madonna, started asking questions about their culture and the American Dream, which had been a long-lasting ideal for many. When Madonna started working on her ninth studio album, ''American Life'', she wanted answers to her queries and an appropriate response to the 9/11 disaster and the ensuing Iraq war of 2003.〔 She believed that the ensuing months with the war would lead to a politically charged atmosphere throughout the country, and wanted to express that in the record.〔 Like her 2000 studio album, ''Music'', Madonna enlisted the help of French DJ and producer Mirwais Ahmadzaï. Always interested in adapting herself and her music to the contemporary compositions, Madonna was inspired by the new Massive Attack and Lemon Jelly albums.〔 "We set out to put the two worlds of acoustic and electronic music together," said Madonna. "It is another step on, but I've never wanted to repeat myself. I don't ever want to repeat myself or make the same record twice."〔 ''American Life'' became Madonna's final studio album with Maverick Records, and marked the end of an eleven-year recording history with the label. In an interview with VH1 titled ''Madonna Speaks'', the singer discussed her 20 years in the music industry, and revealed her motivations behind ''American Life'', about "material things" being unimportant. "I have lots of 'material' things and I've had lots of beliefs about things and what's important, and I look back at the 20 years behind me and I realized that a lot of things that I'd valued weren't important", she concluded. Discussing her thoughts on the conception of the album, she told ''Q'' magazine that through her 20 years of being in the entertainment industry, she would have a correct opinion on fame and fortune and its perils, which would be the base of the album. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「American Life」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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