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Indy100 Staff
Feb 06, 2023
Madonna and Jeb Bush. An unlikely pair
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Madonna channeled her inner Jeb Bush at Sunday night's Grammys, asking the audience to cheers after one of her lines was met with silence.
The veteran star appeared on stage to introduce Sam Smith and Kim Petras, and took the moment to recap all of the things she's been called during her iconic career.
"Here's what I learned after four decades in music; if they call you shocking, scandalous, troublesome, problematic, provocative, or dangerous, you're definitely onto something."
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The room was silent. "That's where you make noise," she told the audience, triggering some enthusiastic clapping.
\u201cMadonna at the #GRAMMYs introducing Sam Smith and Kim Petras before their performance of Unholy\u201d— \ud835\udc0c (@\ud835\udc0c) 1675652434
"So I'm here to give thanks to all the rebels out there, forging a new path, and taking the heat for all of it," she continued. "You guys need to know, all you troublemakers, that your fearlessness does not go unnoticed. You are seen, you are heard, and you are appreciated."
Many on Twitter thought the slightly awkward moment was similar to an infamous Jeb Bush moment on the presidential campaign trail in 2016.
\u201cMadonna had a Jeb Bush \u201cplease clap\u201d moment lllolol GET OFF MY TV\u201d— LaLa\ud83e\uddda\ud83c\udffe\u200d\u2640\ufe0fAttorney Unleashed (@LaLa\ud83e\uddda\ud83c\udffe\u200d\u2640\ufe0fAttorney Unleashed) 1675652199
\u201cMadonna doing a Jeb Bush is maybe the saddest thing I\u2019ve ever seen on an awards show.\u201d— Art from Friends at the Table (@Art from Friends at the Table) 1675652344
Speaking at the Hanover Inn in Hanover, New Hampshire, seven years ago, Mr Bush gave an impassioned speech to distance himself from his opponents.
"So here's my pledge to you," he said. "I will be a commander-in-chief that will have the back of the military. I won't trash talk. I won't be a divider-in-chief or an agitator-in-chief. I won't be out here blowharding, talking a big game without backing it up.
"I think the next president needs to be a lot quieter, but send a signal that we're prepared to act in the national security interests of this country, to get back in the business of creating a more peaceful world."
When the audience sat in silence while he paused for their reaction, he said: "Please clap."
He later suspended his campaign, but not before notching up a litany of cringe moments.
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