Madonna returns to the dance floor with Confessions II, her 15th studio album

Twenty one years after Confessions on a Dance Floor, Madonna is back with a follow up: Confessions II, her fifteenth studio album since her debut in 1983, released on Friday, July 3. It marks the first time in her career that she has made a direct sequel to an earlier album, and that is no coincidence. The 2005 original, created in collaboration with producer Stuart Price, is still widely regarded as one of the most influential dance pop records of all time. It reached number one on the Billboard 200 and produced hits including "Hung Up," which landed in the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100. Confessions II aims to honor that legacy, with Price once again at the controls.

The two resumed their collaboration during the Celebration Tour, for which Price served as musical director. In an earlier interview with Billboard, he described their working relationship like this: "You measure a working relationship not by the gaps between but by how easily you pick up again from when you left off. As soon as we started to work together on this tour, the shorthand was there. We were able to create productively." That chemistry comes through across the album's sixteen tracks, which move between house variants, French Touch influences, breakbeats and excursions into trip hop, without ever pushing toward aggression or harsh sonic friction.

The album features some notable collaborations. Belgian artist Stromae appears on "My Sins Are My Savior," Colombian reggaeton star Feid lends his voice to "Read My Lips," and Dutch DJ and producer Martin Garrix shows up on "Bizarre," a track that reviewers suggest is about Madonna's ex husband Sean Penn. She sings about a "movie star with deep blue eyes" who drove "way too fast" in a Shelby Cobra, a reference to a car she gave Penn during their relationship from 1985 to 1989. She also teamed up with Sabrina Carpenter on "Bring Your Love," after the two shared a stage in April during Carpenter's headlining set at Coachella. Perhaps the most personal contribution comes from her daughter Lola Leon, with whom she recorded "The Test," a candid exploration of their mother daughter relationship.

There is not much to say about the PR campaign surrounding the album that is not already obvious: according to NU.nl, Madonna's team has pulled out all the stops over the past few months, from surprise performances and a short film to advertising through the gay dating app Grindr. The album also includes the previously released singles "I Feel So Free," "Love Sensation," and "Bring Your Love." Tracks like "Good for the Soul," "One Step Away," and "Danceteria" fill the dance floor with lush, cerebral productions that frame the club as a church and dancing as spiritual work. "Danceteria" also references the New York club of the same name where Madonna gave her first performance in 1982.

Critical opinion on the artistic merit is divided, though largely positive. Variety describes Confessions II as the best album Madonna has made in decades. Billboard calls it a modern statement on club music that evokes earlier eras without slipping into pastiche. Consequence takes a more nuanced view, arguing that while the album throws a great party, it does not have much to say: the lyrics too often cycle through variations on the idea that dancing is good for the soul, without offering any real depth. The spoken interludes that stitch the tracks together, similar to the continuous DJ set format of the original, are occasionally intriguing but more often predictable. Even so, Consequence agrees that Confessions II is a clear step forward compared to Madame X from 2019 and the bravado of "Bitch I'm Madonna" from 2015.

For Dutch music fans, the presence of Martin Garrix is particularly noteworthy. The Amsterdam native, for years one of the most recognizable names on the international mainstage dance circuit, contributes to "Bizarre" on an album that firmly positions itself within the European dance tradition. Whether Confessions II will also take shape as a live show in the Netherlands remains to be seen, but with this album Madonna has at least made clear that she has not left the dance floor behind.