Madonna is mourning the loss of her brother, Christopher Ciccone, by remembering him as a visionary who defied the global moral majority alongside her for much of their lives. After a representative for Christopher confirmed his death from cancer on Friday, October 4, to People, Madonna took to Instagram on October 6 to share an emotional tribute to her brother, describing him as the person closest to her for so long.
Alongside a carousel of photos of herself and Christopher through the years, the pop superstar began her heartfelt message by reflecting on some of their early memories.
“It’s hard to explain our bond, but it grew out of an understanding that we were different and that society was going to give us a hard time for not following the status quo,” Madonna, 66, wrote. “We took each other’s hands and danced through the madness of childhood,” she added.
Dance was a kind of superglue that held the siblings together, Madonna explained, emphasizing how discovering the art form in their small Midwestern town first saved her, and then her brother when he came along. She recalled that a ballet teacher once created a safe space for her brother to be openly gay. When Madonna found the courage to move to New York to pursue her dream of becoming a dancer, Christopher followed.
Madonna detailed their time in New York during their formative years, saying they devoured art, music, and film like “hungry animals” in the heart of an exploding creative scene. Coming down to explaining how her brother stood by her side when she took the stage at the beginning of her career, Madonna said her brother was the pope of art, and hence he ended up working as a creative director for many of her shows.
We can confirm the fact as he is listed as the art director of the singer’s Blond Ambition World Tour in 1990 and the production design lead for 1993’s The Girlie Show. He also offered his talents to Madonna as a dresser, creative consultant, and backup dancer.
“We defied the Roman Catholic Church, the police, the Moral Majority, and all authority figures that stood in the way of artistic freedom,” Madonna wrote. “My brother was right by my side.”
Toward the end of her tribute, Madonna reflected on Christopher as a “painter, poet, and visionary” with impeccable taste and a sharp tongue, which he sometimes used against her, though she always forgave him.
“We soared to the highest heights together and floundered in the lowest lows. Somehow, we always found each other again, held hands, and kept dancing,” she wrote.
Christopher, who worked as an interior specialist, a designer of footwear, and a memoirist, all while dedicating himself to painting as his primary model of personal expression, according to his representative, is survived by his husband Ray Thacker, his father Silvio, and siblings Martin, Madonna, Paula, Melanie, Jennifer, and Mario.
Madonna concluded her tribute by acknowledging that the last few years had been difficult, as the siblings had fallen out. However, upon learning of his illness, they reconciled. She shared that she did her best to keep him alive for as long as possible, but he was in significant pain toward the end. “I’m glad he’s not suffering anymore,” she expressed. “There will never be anyone like him. I know he’s dancing somewhere.”
Ciccone was 63 at the time of his death.
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