Madonna has made changes to her Celebration Tour.
The 65-year-old Queen of Pop has removed photos of Luther Vandross from part of her Celebration of AIDS Victims tour at the request of his estate, her rep confirmed to People magazine.
During Madonna's ongoing Celebration Tour, photos of several celebrities who have died from AIDS, including Keith Haring, Herb Ritts and Freddie Mercury, were projected on a screen as she sang her 1986 single “Live to Tell,” an anthem about perseverance.
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But photos of the “Here and Now” singer were featured at a Feb. 24 performance in Sacramento, Calif., sending shockwaves through his estate.
A representative for Vandross' estate said: Page 6 “Luther Vandross passed away in 2005 due to complications from a stroke he suffered two years earlier,” the statement said.
The rep added, “While we appreciate Madonna's decision to pay tribute to the lives of those lost to AIDS, Luther was never diagnosed with AIDS or the HIV virus. We don't know where she or her production team got the false medical information to claim otherwise. We are currently in contact with Luther Vandross' management to request that he be removed from the memorial.”
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Material Girl kicked off their highly anticipated celebration tour marking the 40th anniversary of their debut album at London's O2 Arena in October.
Two weeks into the tour, Elton John took to social media to thank Madonna for her efforts in continuing to speak out about AIDS and those lost to the disease.
“We were deeply moved by Madonna's performance of 'Live to Tell' as part of her Celebration Tour, paying tribute to the 40.4 million people who have died from AIDS,” the legendary singer, 76, said in a joint statement with the Elton John AIDS Foundation, which he runs.
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“Thank you Madonna for your support and compassion, and for raising important awareness of the ongoing effort to end AIDS. 39 million people are currently living with HIV, of which 9.4 million are not currently receiving life-saving treatment. We must speak out, use our platforms and ensure everyone has the opportunity to live a fulfilling, healthy life,” the post continued.
Madonna has used “Live to Tell” before to commemorate those lost to AIDS, most famously during her 2006 Confessions tour, when she sang the song while standing on a large cross and displaying facts and statistics about the disease's impact on the world.
