Madonna’s Controversial Pepsi Commercial Finally Released 34 Years After Ban

Collaborations between big-name celebrities and famous brands are nothing new. But one famous team up was meant to hit television decades ago, only to finally come to light this year. Madonna and Pepsi had a multi-million dollar campaign full of promise only for it to get cancelled – until now.

Just this Tuesday, Pepsi celebrated its 125th anniversary by releasing its famous canceled commercial with Madonna, which aired for the first time in over three decades during the 2023 MTV VMAs. Madonna took to social media to celebrate their partnership finally getting a prolonged chance in the spotlight.

Madonna causes quite a sinful stir with Pepsi

Back in 19189, Madonna and Pepsi partnered to create a commercial, sealing a $5 million endorsement deal so the soda brand could feature Madonna’s newest sensation, “Like A Prayer.” The ad lasted two minutes and amassed as much as 250 million views across over 40 countries.

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However, the day after the commercial first aired, the music video for “Like a Prayer” dropped. This song and its corresponding video were unique in every way both for the time and for Madonna, representing a very adult, mature shift in themes for her work. Its imagery, featuring burning crosses and the temptation of a saint, caused a strong backlash from religious viewers and it was even condemned by the Vatican.

Feeling they were left with no other choice, Pepsi pulled the commercial and canceled its sponsorship deal with Madonna.

The Pepsi commercial from Madonna arises once again

This week, 34 years after the fact, Madonna is celebrating the famous – and infamous – commercial being allowed back onto TV once again.

“34 years ago I made a commercial with Pepsi to celebrate the release of my song Like a Prayer,” she reminisced on Twitter. She continued, “The commercial was immediately canceled when I refused to change any scenes in the video where I was kissing a black saint or burning crosses. So began my illustrious career as an artist refusing to compromise my artistic integrity.”

Madonna concluded, “So began my illustrious career as an artist refusing to compromise my artistic integrity. Thank you @pepsi for finally realizing the genius of our collaboration.  Artists are here to disturb the peace.”

The accompanying video shows the Pepsi commercial as it existed 34 years ago, but in the spirit of Madonna’s rebellious words, also includes the line, “Celebrating 40 years of disrupting the status quo.”

Is this change of heart a cool refreshment or bubbling with trouble?

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