Madonna, at 50, kicks off world tour

Last Modified: 21 Aug 2008
Source: ITN

Madonna is to kick off her Sticky & Sweet world tour at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, the latest test of her enduring appeal just a week after her 50th birthday.

The "queen of pop" will be hoping to eclipse her last trot across the globe in 2006. "Confessions" became the top-grossing tour ever by a female artist, with ticket sales of $105 million.

Sticky & Sweet, featuring hits that span nearly 30 years in pop music including her latest album Hard Candy, includes 49 dates and is due to wrap up in Sao Paulo in December.

Roughly half the tour venues have yet to sell out including Cardiff, although organisers Live Nation announced the tour was on target to gross more than £135 million.

Sticky & Sweet is also a major test for Live Nation, which signed the American star to a ten-year contract in 2007 reported to be worth a total of £65 million.

Madonna reinforced her reputation as a shrewd businesswoman by switching from long-term label Warner Brothers at a time when the pop world recognised that live performing was generally more lucrative than selling records.

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