Madonna performed “Living for Love” — the inaugural single from her forthcoming album, “Rebel Heart” — for the first time at the Grammys on Sunday. Dressed like a matador and surrounded by topless men wearing bull masks, the iconic singer asked the audience to rise to its feet before exiting the stage through the ceiling.
Madonna was introduced by Nicki Minaj and Miley Cyrus, who chose the wise words “Let’s give it up for our bitch, Madonna! She made me call her that…” to do so.
Prior to taking the stage, the icon mooned the red carpet attendees.
The 56-year-old singer rushed to release “Living for Love,” along with five other tracks from “Rebel Heart,” in an official capacity after unfinished versions of two other tracks leaked in late November. Madonna hadn’t yet announced the album’s title or release plans when the initial leaks occurred, but she’s since set March 10 as the drop date. The song’s video, in which Madonna portrays a matador fighting off an army of men dressed as bulls, premiered last week.
Madonna confirmed via Instagram that she will also perform at the BRIT Awards on Feb. 25, three days after “Living for Love” is slated for release in the U.K.
This marks the second consecutive year Madonna has performed on the Grammy stage. In 2014, she joined Macklemore, Ryan Lewis and Mary Lambert to sing “Same Love” while a few dozen weddings took place on the telecast.