While we’re waiting for the smoke to rise from the Vatican with news of a new Pope, we’ll look back at a song, whose video infuriated the church and caused the cancellation of a multimillion soft drink endorsement. With all of the ruckus, “Like A Prayer” topped seventeen charts all over the world. Madonna is a master at promoting music through controversy. 

Madonna turned 30 in 1989 and was going through a divorce from Sean Penn. Through her turmoil came creative energy and a plan to write lyrics with dual meanings. The mixture of religious and sexual themes added greatly to the war chest of arguments amongst critics.

The video also added a mixed-race romance and burning crosses to stoke the fires of protest. After a boycott of Pepsi and its subsidiaries from religious groups, the endorsement deal was over, but the awareness of the song now increased one hundred fold.  This was just the beginning of a period that included games of Truth or Dare, naked hitchhiking and swearing at Letterman. Controversy sold more records.