Elton John said he intends to apologize to Madonna following a profanity-filled outburst in which he condemned her for lip-synching during live performances. He made the remarks in an interview published in Entertainment Weekly, saying he had no desire to wound a fellow artist.
The episode began at a London awards ceremony earlier in October 2004, where John grew incensed upon finding Madonna shortlisted for best live act. He took the stage and unleashed an expletive-laden attack on performers who mime to pre-recorded vocals.
In the magazine interview, John accepted personal responsibility, saying he had "instigated the whole thing" and that his words were spoken in the heat of the moment. He also noted that Madonna had dined at his home and that he had no wish to deepen the dispute.
Madonna's American publicist Liz Rosenberg flatly rejected the original accusations, saying the singer does not lip-synch and does not make a practice of attacking other artists.
John added that the scale of the media response struck him as out of proportion to what was, in his view, a passing remark about stage performance.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in October 2004, in its own words.