Madonna and her daughter Lola have a lot of “tension” in their relationship.
The 67-year-old star and her firstborn Lourdes ‘Lola’ Leon, 29, have collaborated on The Test, which appears on the Queen of Pop’s new album Confession II, and Lola revealed she broached the idea of working together as she wanted to delve into things “that are unspoken” in the mother-daughter relationship.
During an interview with Bob the Drag Queen on iHeartRadio and TikTok LIVE Premiere With Madonna, Lola explained: “It was my idea. There’s a lot of love that’s unspoken, but also a lot of tension and emotions that kind of are difficult to put into words, because it can be so emotional.
“A way that I thought would be easier for us to speak about these things would be maybe through art, which is always something that my mom and I have connected over. That’s really brought us together.”
Madonna called the songwriting process “a very magical moment,” adding that both she and Lola “had to be vulnerable”.
In The Test, Madonna reflects on how her global fame affected her daughter.
In the first verse, Madonna sings: “Little star / I tried to put you on a pedestal / You didn’t ask for all the flashing lights / I didn’t think of how it could disturb.
“Or how it hurt / I wish I knew / The pain I’ve caused / My butterfly / Was always being watched.”
The opening words of the song are a reference to Madonna’s 1998 track Little Star, which was dedicated to Lola and was recorded shortly after she welcomed her into the world.
On the second verse, Lola praises her famous mother’s influence.
She sings: “A hand tenderly reaching to me / You are my reason to be / Or what I want, or look like / What I wear, all the clothes on my back. “And what I attract / I trace the line of what you have sewn / Keep my own design / Make it a landscape / Make it alive.”
In the first chorus, Madonna takes over at first, referencing how people “tried to put us to the test”, and how she feels like she’s “treading on your footsteps”.
She sings: “Sometimes I think you wish I’d go away/ But my shadow stays and it’s okay to be yourself.”
Later, Lola responds: “I know they tried to put us to the test/ I’m not the same when I’m hanging on your coattail.
“Sometimes I wish I could multiply you/ But I know you are all around me/ You are all around me.”
Madonna recently revealed that the song was written for a very specific and poignant reason.
She told Interview magazine: “[Lola] approached me about writing a song together as a way to heal our relationship.”