Madonna Honors Superfans Who Died in Crash With New Release of a Classic Single

Madonna continues to be in a reflective, dance floor-ready mood. A week after finally dropping the long-rumored Ray of Light remix album Veronica Electronica, the singer was back in the groove on Friday morning (Aug. 1) with a 40th anniversary celebration of her beloved Like a Virgin single “Dress You Up.”

The final single from the diamond-certified 1985 album is bundled in a three-song digital drop featuring a bouncy official remix and a nearly six-minute “12” Formal Mix” that includes an funky, extended bass-slapping, bell-ringing midsection of the song produced by Chic’s Nile Rodgers, who also plays iconic chicken scratch guitar on the track. The final version is a four-and-a-half minute “Casual Instrumental Mix” that strips away the vocals to focus on the song’s insistent, hypnotic melody.

According to a press release, the three-piece package is dedicated to the memory of Barbie doll designers and Madonna superfans Mario Paglino and Gianni Grossi, who both tragically died in a car crash in Italy earlier this week. “We dedicate this release to them. Thank you for dressing up so many of your creations in Madonna iconic looks over the years,” it read.

In addition to combing through the archives, Madonna is reportedly working with Deadpool & Wolverine producer Shawn Levy on a limited Netflix series based on her life and career. While it wasn’t known at press time which part of her nearly five-decade career that project will focus on, The Fantastic Four: First Steps star Julia Garner recently said that she thinks the Madonna biopic she was tapped to star in that got shelved in 2023 is “supposed to still happen.”

Listen to the “Dress You Up” anniversary bundle below.