Was Madonna And Kd Lang's Relationship Real Or Just For Show?
Madonna has quite an intriguing dating history. The Queen of Pop has had her fair share of relationships over the years, with some developing into full-blown marriages, some just short-lived trysts, and some admittedly publicity stunts (remember when she once attended the Oscars with Michael Jackson as her date?). If there's one thing she learned about it all, though, it's that she shouldn't have tied the knot with anyone. In a 2022 Q&A on YouTube, the "Like A Virgin" singer confessed that getting married "both times" was "not the best idea." Still, she has "absolutely no regrets" about the people she romanced in the past.
Now, most Madonna fans are quite privy to who she has been romantically linked with over the years, including her most recent relationships with men decades her junior, like choreographer Ahlamalik Williams and French model and dancer Brahim Zaibat. But many might not know that she reportedly dated some women, too, most notably singer kd lang. There were rumors that they dated back in the 1990s, but according to lang, they were just that — rumors.
kd lang slammed rumors of a past relationship with Madonna
kd lang was the first to admit that there was no truth to the speculation that she and Madonna ever dated. Speaking with The Sunday Times in 2019, the singer theorized that the rumors were planted by their publicist. "We shared a publicist. Did the publicist decide to put out those rumors so they could both sell records?" she wondered (via Metro UK). "I don't know the entire story. Maybe."
The "Constant Craving" singer also addressed the issue in an interview with The Guardian, noting that the rumor blindsided her. "I was surprised when I heard a rumor that I'd slept with Madonna. I was completely oblivious to it," she said. "It's a byproduct of show business. And really, that's one of the reasons I don't like participating in showbusiness." And besides, it's not like she and Madonna had anything in common anyway. "I don't think Madonna ever really liked me, to be honest," she shared in a separate interview with the outlet. "We're very different people."
To be fair, the rumors were not completely unfounded. Madonna did publicly say that she felt an attraction toward lang. "There's kd lang, who's gorgeous, by the way," she told The Advocate in 1991. "She looks like Sean [Penn, her ex-husband]. I met her, and I thought, Oh my God, she's the female version of Sean. I could fall in love with her."
What has Madonna said about her sexuality?
Apart from kd lang, Madonna was also rumored to be involved with other women. Model Jenny Shimizu, who was also Angelina Jolie's ex, previously revealed that she was intimate with the singer in the 1990s. "I was her secret 'booty call' available any time of the day or night for secret sex sessions," she told Daily Mail (via Pink News). Madonna apparently dated Ingrid Casares, too, which was why she had a falling out with ex-BFF Sandra Bernhard, who Casares also dated. "I've always had a theory that you meet people to meet other people," Casares shared with New York Magazine. "I met Sandra because I was supposed to meet M. It's very obvious."
Madonna never explicitly confirmed these rumors, nor did she say that she was interested in women outright. But in her The Advocate interview, she revealed that she had sexual experiences with women, especially during her younger years. "All of my sexual experiences when I was young were with girls," she shared. "I mean, we didn't have those sleep-over parties for nothing." Meanwhile, her former manager, Camilla Barbone, once told The Mirror that Madonna "was into anyone, men or women, anyone who was beautiful. She loved sex."
But while Madonna has never clarified what her sexuality was, she took to TikTok to hint at it. In the video that has since gone viral, she held a pair of pink underwear and wrote, "If I miss it, I'm gay!" Once she attempted to throw it into the bin, she purposely missed and then proceeded to walk away in a rather dramatic fashion. Make of that what you will.