Diana Ross and Madonna are both successful musical artists who are influential in the music industry. Diana Ross' career began at the top with members of her band The Supremes. Madonna also enjoyed similar success reaching the top of the charts in the 1980s. They both experienced the significant loss of one of their parents which affected them deeply. They have each been married twice and neither marriage worked. These women are iconic legends who paved the way for other women to pursue careers in music and showed us how success can be achieved. Diana Ross was born in Detroit, Michigan on March 26, 1944. She began her career in 1960 when she and two friends formed the group The Supremes. Other members of the group were Mary Wilson and Florence Ballard. In 1961, the group was signed to Motown Records by Berry Gordy Jr. (Diana Ross). They enjoyed great success with 12 number one pop singles, numerous television appearances, sold-out concerts and various gold recordings. “At the height of the civil rights movement, they were also adopted by the world as symbols of black achievement and black womanhood. » (Simon & Schuster) Their music was aimed at adults as well as adolescents. They were the most important girl group of the 1960s and set records that no group could rival. They attended political fundraisers quite often and were asked to attend funerals when Martin Luther King Jr. died. They have performed at venues in Las Vegas and around the world. Their televised performances took place about once a week or a large concert. They were models of black success for many African Americans. (Simon & Schuster) Diana Ross finally left the group in 1969 when she decided to become a solo artist and act in films....... middle of paper ......983 and it slowly experienced success. His second album "Like a Virgin", which reached number one on the Billboard Chart and went platinum within a month. (Madonna) She had her first tour called The Virgin Tour and placed 17 songs consecutively in the Top 10 of the Billboard Chart. She married her first husband Sean Penn, which lasted a short time due to domestic violence issues. During the 1980s, she starred in four films: Shanghai Surprise, Who's That Girl, Bloodhounds of Broadway and Dick Tracy. In 1989, Madonna's "Like a Prayer" video was shown on MTV as part of Pepsi's endorsement. The video was controversial because it showed "themes of interracial relationships, burning crosses, a mixture of sexual innuendo and religious ideologies." (Madonna) Pepsi decided not to support her after the video was released and Pope John Paul II advised her fans not to attend her concerts in Italy..