--- description: The Internet was up in arms after Madonna gave a tribute to the late Aretha Franklin that focused more on Madonna's career than the singer. title: The Internet Is Upset By Madonna's Aretha Tribute at VMAs image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7b8a86a2e97c2e8d/69893836e76ad2c5e5632c83/madonna-vmas-aretha-franklin.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # People Are Puzzled By Madonna's Aretha Franklin Tribute at the VMAs ## Video: This Video Is No Longer Available [Watch (HLS stream): This Video Is No Longer Available](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/fKodeUO6.m3u8) (0:10)  _Published 2026-06-23. "Madonna gave herself a tribute featuring Aretha."_  by [Cady Lang](/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 21, 2018 4:08 AM CUT  by [Cady Lang](/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 21, 2018 4:08 AM CUT [Madonna](http://time.com/3721312/madonna-history/ "undefined") is no stranger to [controversy at the MTV Video Music Awards](http://time.com/4713812/vma-2003-britney-photos/ "undefined")—and the [2018 show](http://time.com/5347009/2018-mtv-video-music-awards-guide/ "undefined") is no exception. Before presenting the night’s biggest award, “Video of the Year,” the entertainer paid tribute to the legendary Queen of Soul, [Aretha Franklin, who passed away late last week](http://time.com/5369587/aretha-franklin-civil-rights/ "undefined"). Much of Madonna’s sprawling tribute seemed to focus on the influence that Franklin had on Madonna’s career trajectory, as opposed to Franklin’s life and music. This did not sit well with many of Franklin’s fans, who took issue with Madonna focusing so much on herself, as opposed to Franklin. Many fans took to social media during the VMAs to sound off about Madonna’s tribute. > [](https://twitter.com/ScottieBeam/status/1031745144322711553) > [](https://twitter.com/ReignOfApril/status/1031746841791086594) > [](https://twitter.com/desusnice/status/1031745363718430721) > [](https://twitter.com/SowmyaK/status/1031743612617412608) > [](https://twitter.com/o%5Fobbrit/status/1031743767030706176) > [](https://twitter.com/youngsinick/status/1031744328350277632) > [](https://twitter.com/JeffJSays/status/1031745408589017089) Read the full Madonna VMA speech below. --- > “” --- ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5372833/madonna-aretha-franklin-tribute-2018-vmas-internet-reactions/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5372833/madonna-aretha-franklin-tribute-2018-vmas-internet-reactions/"},"headline":"People Are Puzzled By Madonna's Aretha Franklin Tribute at the VMAs","datePublished":"2018-08-21T04:08:41.000Z","dateModified":"2026-06-24T06:56:37.166Z","description":"\"Madonna gave herself a tribute featuring Aretha.\"","url":"https://time.com/5372833/madonna-aretha-franklin-tribute-2018-vmas-internet-reactions/","keywords":["Newsfeed","awards"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7b8a86a2e97c2e8d/69893836e76ad2c5e5632c83/madonna-vmas-aretha-franklin.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Cady Lang","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/cady-lang/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7b8a86a2e97c2e8d/69893836e76ad2c5e5632c83/madonna-vmas-aretha-franklin.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"2018 MTV Video Music Awards - Show","caption":"Madonna speaks onstage during the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall on August 20, 2018 in New York City.","creditText":"Michael Loccisano—Getty Images for MTV","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5372833/madonna-aretha-franklin-tribute-2018-vmas-internet-reactions/","name":"People Are Puzzled By Madonna's Aretha Franklin Tribute at the VMAs"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"This Video Is No Longer Available","description":"\"Madonna gave herself a tribute featuring Aretha.\"","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/fKodeUO6/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2026-06-23T15:00:44.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/fKodeUO6.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5372833/madonna-aretha-franklin-tribute-2018-vmas-internet-reactions/","duration":"PT10S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5372833/madonna-aretha-franklin-tribute-2018-vmas-internet-reactions/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```