Madonna released Confessions II on July 3, 2026, her 15th studio album and the first time she has called a record a sequel. Critics are calling it her best album in decades, praising its dance-floor cohesion and vitality and the way it channels Confessions on a Dance Floor while also recalling Ray of Light and Bedtime Stories. Stuart Price, who produced 2005’s Confessions on a Dance Floor and served as Madonna’s musical director on the Celebration Tour, returned as a key collaborator; Price told Billboard in 2023 that their working shorthand returned immediately. The record runs 16 songs and includes a high-profile collaboration with Martin Garrix on the thumping track “Bizarre,” whose lyrics reference a “movie star with deep blue eyes” and a Shelby Cobra. Reviewers and early listeners highlight songs that mix candor and camp, spiritual fortification and libidinous release, and several posts and reviews singled out “Danceteria” as a vivid autobiographical moment about how Madonna got discovered. Early rankings and reviews (including a full track ranking) place Confessions II as her most compelling release since her mid-2000s peak.
