Madonna has paid a heartfelt tribute to music executive Seymour Stein, who helped launch her pop career in the early 1980s.
On Monday, it was confirmed by Stein’s family that the music mogul – who signed artists including Madonna, Talking Heads and The Ramones to his Sire record label – had died of cancer, at the age of 80.
Following the announcement, the Material Girl singer shared an emotional post on her Instagram page, writing: “Seymour Stein has left us! I need to catch my breath.
“He was one of the most influential men in my life!! He changed and shaped my world.”
Madonna went on to recall her infamous first meeting with Stein, which took place when she inked her record deal in the hospital with him while he recovered from a heart infection.
“I stalked a DJ named Mark Kamin for a year at a club called Danceteria in the early 80s,” the Grammy winner wrote.
“He finally agreed to play my demo of a song called Everybody on a Saturday night. The club was packed. An A&R man from Sire records was there – Michael Rosenblatt. He heard the music and asked me if he could bring me to meet his boss Seymour Stein. I couldn’t get the words ‘hell yes!’ out of my mouth fast enough!”
The Grammy winner noted that “unfortunately Seymour was in the hospital for a heart ailment!”.
She added: “I didn’t care. Lets goooooo! When I met him he was laying in a hospital bed wearing his boxer shorts and a wife beater! He had a cannula up his nose and a saline Drip in his arm! He was grinning like the Cheshire Cat.
“I was carrying my giant boombox ready to play my cassette for him immediately! He smiled and laughed when he saw me and asked me if I was related to the Virgin Mary! I knew we would hit it off. I played him the song a few times. He signed me to his record label that day!!
“This moment changed the course of my Life Forever. And was the beginning of my journey as a Musical Artist. Not only did Seymour hear me but he saw me and my potential! For this I will be eternally grateful!”
Revealing she was “weeping as I write this down”, Madonna concluded: “Words cannot describe how I felt at this moment after years of grinding and being broke and getting every door slammed in my face.
“Anyone who knew Seymour knew about his passion for music and his impeccable taste. He had an Ear like no other! He was intense – wickedly funny, a little bit crazy and deeply intuitive. Dearest Seymour, you will never be forgotten!! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”
Stein previously wrote about this first meeting with Madonna in his 2018 memoir Siren Song.
“She was all dolled up in cheap punky gear, the kind of club kid who looked absurdly out of place in a cardiac ward. She wasn’t even interested in hearing me explain how much I liked her demo,” he wrote, revealing that Madonna was insistent that: “The thing to do now… is sign me to a record deal.’”
Known for his deep knowledge and appreciation of music, Stein proved an astute judge of talent during the 1970s era of New Wave, a term he helped popularise, signing record deals with Talking Heads, the Ramones and the Pretenders.
Sire artists also included Ice T, the Smiths, Depeche Mode, the Replacements and Echo and the Bunnymen, along with the more-established Lou Reed and Brian Wilson, who recorded with Sire later in their careers.