Music

Madonna's "Holiday" is so good that two people were set for life after it became a hit. Subsequently, they didn't find success with the Material Girl or anyone else.

Published on May 6, 2024

Madonna‘s “Holiday” is so good that two people were set for life after it became a hit. Subsequently, they didn’t find success with the Material Girl or anyone else. Here’s a look at how “Holiday” was a blessing for two artists who couldn’t sustain their success in the entertainment industry.

Madonna’s ‘Holiday’ helped 2 people move out of their rooming house

Madonna’s “Holiday” was penned by Curtis Hudson and Lisa Stevens of the dance music group Pure Energy. During a 2012 interview with Blogcritics, Stevens discussed the impact of the tune. “When we wrote ‘Holiday,’ we were living in a rooming house,” she recalled. “We didn’t have a whole lot of money in our pockets. When the royalties started falling in, it helped a lot! We moved out of the rooming house.”

Hudson offered some even juicer details. “The song still generates money,” he explained. “Can you live off of one hit? Yes, you can if you get the right hit. It can last you a lifetime. We’ve been living proof of that. If we did nothing else, the royalties from ‘Holiday’ could support us.”

Why the songwriters of ‘Holiday’ were never heard from again

While Hudson and Stevens are primarily known for writing “Holiday,” even though Stevens emphasized that they wrote other great songs. “You know the saying: ‘You’re only as good as your last hit,'” Stevens said. “We had a hard time getting anything else played. 

“The music business can be so dog-eat-dog,” she added. “We wouldn’t sign certain contracts, because people wanted your blood. They wanted a certain percentage of your songs when they didn’t write one iota of them.” 

Hudson said that he loved music, but he despised the music business. He was upset that many in the music industry lacked integrity. The songwriter noted that many so-called songwriters were willing to put their names on songs that had no role in writing. While Hudson and Stevens did not remain in the industry, the continued popularity of “Holiday” as well as Madonna’s long string of hits ensure that they will always have a place in the history of popular music.

How the song changed everything for Madonna

“Holiday” became a modest hit in the United States. It climbed to No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100, staying on the chart for 21 weeks. The tune appeared on Madonna’s self-titled album, which is much more of a bubblegum pop record than her subsequent releases. That record reached No. 8 on the Billboard 200, remaining on the chart for 168 weeks. Madonna became the Queen of Pop’s most popular album on the Billboard 200.

“Holiday” was Madonna’s first single to crack the top 40. It paved the way for the next two singles from Madonna — “Lucky Star” and “Borderline” — to hit the top 10. Neither “Holiday” nor “Lucky Star” nor “Borderline” were massive hits. However, they all paved the way for Madonna to become a superstar when she took on a more risque image with her second album, Like a Virgin. From there, Madonna would reinvent herself as many things, including a dominatrix, a New Age guru, and a cowgirl.

If “Like a Virgin” was Madonna’s coronation as the Queen of Pop, “Holiday” put her in line for the throne.

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