Madonna, the pop icon released a new single from her upcoming album Madame X which is set debut on June 14th. Her new album will include artists like Swae Lee and Quavo. The new album will have fifteen incredible new songs that relate to many audiences around the world. Madonna also released her first single from the album on April 17th, titled “Medellín”. On May 10th, May 17th, and June 4th Madonna will release three more singles from her new album making fans look forward to the complete album even more.

According to Pitchfork, her new song eludes to gun violence and creates a statement about gun safety. Madonna gave a statement about her reason for the song “I Rise”, “I wrote ‘I Rise’ as a way of giving a voice to all marginalized people who feel they don’t have the opportunity to speak their mind. This year is the 50th anniversary of Pride and I hope this song encourages all individuals to be who they are, to speak their minds and to love themselves.”The song opens with Emma González’s speech from the protest, March For Our Lives after the tragic Parkland Shooting. Emma is a survivor of the shooting who made an inspiring speech stating, “Us kids don’t know what we’re talking about. That we’re too young to understand how the government works. We call B.S.”. Emma’s voice is powerful and moving to make you listen to the song with intention.

The song has a soft beat with a mesmerizing melody. Madonna repeatedly sings “I rise” empowering the listeners. The song has an interesting pop tune but also has a somber harmony. Towards the end of the song she sings, “Freedom’s what you choose to do with what’s been done to you,” powerfully stating that we, as a society have the power to create change. Madonna shares how the tragic events that take place and societal problems that occur also affect celebrities. The emotional ballad is an activist art piece that will make listeners more draw attention to the amount of gun violence that deeply affects America.