Madonna met Carlos Leon portion connected a jog successful Central Park successful September 1995 and fell accelerated for the Cuban American idiosyncratic trainer turned actor.

Production connected Evita—a relation Madonna fought bony and nail to play—had conscionable gotten underway the pursuing twelvemonth erstwhile she got pregnant. 

"This is not precisely however I envisioned starting a family," she told Vanity Fair in April 1996.

But she was referring to her aggravated filming schedule, not the information that she and the baby's begetter weren't married, oregon immoderate societal mores dictated astatine the time.

"Some radical person suggested that I person done this for daze value," Madonna said. "These are comments lone a antheral would make. It's overmuch excessively hard to beryllium large and bring a kid into this satellite to bash it for whimsical oregon provocative reasons. There are besides speculations that I utilized the begetter arsenic a stud service."

Having been joined to Sean Penn from 1985 to 1989, she expressed nary involvement successful retying the knot.

"I judge that astir radical would beryllium much comfy if I got joined and the matrimony failed," Madonna said. "I judge that divorcement is much socially acceptable than azygous motherhood."

She gave commencement to girl Lourdes Leon on Oct. 14, 1996 (and won a Golden Globe for champion histrion successful a philharmonic oregon drama a fewer months later).

Madonna and Leon did interruption up successful the autumn of 1997, but they made co-parenting work.

"He is ever contiguous successful Lola's beingness and we are friends," Madonna told Vanity Fair successful 1998, utilizing her daughter's nickname. "And I'm precise happy. It took a portion for america to get to this place."

As for being a mom, Madonna said, "I knew that having a kid would beryllium an unthinkable healing experience...because I didn't person a mother. I conscionable knew my karma was to person a girl, and I instinctively had a longing for her. But I didn't cognize what it was going to beryllium like."

Lourdes enjoyed a fewer breaks courtesy of her mom—pulling angiosperm girl-inspired show work astatine the 2003 MTV VMAs, singing backup connected "Superstar" disconnected of 2012's MDNA—but has besides made her ain career arsenic a model and singer, performing arsenic Lolahol.

After attending a performing arts precocious schoolhouse successful New York (where classmate Timothée Chalamet was a boyfriend), Lourdes paid her ain assemblage tuition, starting astatine Univerity of Michigan and graduating from NYC's Purchase College.

"We don't get immoderate handouts successful my family," she told her mom's BFF Debi Mazar for Interview in 2021. "Obviously, I grew up with utmost privilege. There’s nary denying that. But I deliberation my ma saw each these different kids of celebrated people, and she was like, 'My kids are not going to beryllium similar this.'"

On making her ain way, she told The Cut successful 2022, "I privation to consciousness similar I merit things and not conscionable similar I've been fixed things...Nepotism babies are beauteous atrocious usually, and my ma and my begetter raised maine to beryllium truthful overmuch smarter than that."

Madonna's British epoch began successful 1998 erstwhile she started dating filmmaker Guy Ritchie.

The vocalist had told VF earlier that twelvemonth that she would emotion to person different child, "but I'd similar to beryllium successful a unchangeable relationship. Sometimes you privation to look implicit astatine idiosyncratic and say, 'What bash you deliberation we should do?'"

She and Guy welcomed lad Rocco John Ritchie—named aft 1 of Madonna's Italian uncles and Guy's father—on Aug. 11, 2000.

Madonna came backmost astir to the thought of matrimony a fewer months later, swapping vows with Guy successful Scotland connected Dec. 22, the time aft Rocco was baptized.

After Madonna and Guy divorced successful 2008, they shared custody of Rocco, who often deed the roadworthy with his ma erstwhile she was connected tour.

He "threw himself" successful beforehand of her to get successful connected the act, Madonna said connected Good Morning America successful 2013, noting that Rocco had grown "a ft taller" successful a twelvemonth and, inactive shy of 13, was engaged "looking astatine girls' butts."

She added appreciatively, "He's the showboat successful the family."

Joining Madonna for an quality connected Ellen in 2012, Rocco called her "a bully mother" who was "very strict, but successful a bully way."

A fewer years later, however, Madonna and Guy reworked their custody arrangement to let Rocco much clip successful London with his begetter (who shares 3 different children with woman Jacqui Ainsley).

All grown up now, Rocco is simply a full-time creator and cofounder of the London assemblage Maison Rhed.

"Moving to London had a immense effect connected me," the Royal Drawing School alum told Vogue Hong Kong in 2022. "It was the cleanable moment; I was shifting gears from a teenage lad to a young antheral and it pushed maine to absorption connected my passionateness but to besides get retired of my comfortableness zone. I was fortunate capable to cognize what I wanted to bash astatine a young property and erstwhile I had settled into creation school, it kick-started my work."

Before announcing his beingness connected the creation scene, Rocco spent respective years coating and showing his enactment nether the moniker Rhed.

"It’s not that I don’t consciousness arrogant to beryllium who I am," helium explained. "On the contrary, I couldn't beryllium prouder of my parents and what they've achieved and successful crook taught me. I conscionable needed capable clip to make and acquisition my ain lessons conscionable similar they did, without the utmost nationalist judgement."

Rocco met woman Olivia Monjardin—his day to the March 2024 U.K. premiere of his dad's Netflix amusement The Gentlemen—while studying creation astatine Central Saint Martins successful London.

In October 2006, Madonna adopted David Banda (born Sept. 26, 2005) from the Home of Hope orphanage successful Lilongwe, Malawi.

Which, overmuch to her surprise, caused rather the commotion, with critics alleging she practically stole a kid who had a family.

"When I had my daughter, radical accused maine that I did it arsenic a publicity stunt," Madonna told NBC News successful an interrogation astatine the time. "I expected that. I didn't expect to beryllium accused of kidnapping, oregon of doing thing illegal. I didn't expect to beryllium demonized."

In the meantime, however, David was doing great. "He's got a unspeakable temper," the vocalist said. "He's precise flirtatious. And he's hysterically funny. Obviously he’s going to travel with his ain baggage and his ain DNA and I look guardant to being amazed by what he's going to connection the satellite and however he's going to crook out."

(In a connection to the BBC, David's biologic father, Yohane Banda, whose woman had died from childbirth complications, said helium was "very happy" David had been adopted, "because arsenic you tin spot determination is poorness successful this colony and I cognize helium volition beryllium precise good looked aft successful America.")

Meanwhile, though they enactment up a agreed beforehand portion going done the adoption process with David, Madonna and Guy had divided up by the clip she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame successful March 2008.

"We nary longer person the idealistic anticipation of a relationship," she told a German mag astatine the time. "I gave up the imagination that helium is the cleanable husband. He gave up the anticipation that I americium the perfect wife."

Unfazed by her archetypal experience, Madonna returned to Malawi to follow girl Mercy James—born Jan. 22, 2006—in 2009.

And she was enactment done her paces yet again.

Officials who opposed the adoption cited her caller divorcement arsenic a crushed wherefore the vocalist was "not susceptible of raising a child," Madonna told People in 2017, recalling however her lawsuit went each the mode to Malawi's Supreme Court earlier she could bring Mercy home. "The mode I was treated— that sexist behavior—was ridiculous."

But Madonna made definite that her children maintained a transportation to their location country, taking them backmost for visits and launching the foundation Raising Malawi.

"Beautiful Mercy James," Madonna wrote erstwhile the budding instrumentalist and gymnast turned 18 successful 2024. "You’re already a young woman! Beautiful African Queen!! You Surprised each of us!"

After gathering them astatine the aforesaid orphanage wherever she recovered David, Madonna adopted 4-year-old twins Estere and Stella (both names mean "star") from Malawi successful February 2017.

"Sometimes I would conscionable adjacent my eyes and conscionable think, 'Why isn't my room filled with dancing children?' There’s truthful galore children that request a home," she told People. "I thought, 'What americium I waiting for? Just bash it.'"

This time, she admittedly made it a radical decision, consulting her 4 older kids astir expanding their family.

"Mercy and David were excited," Madonna recalled. For Lourdes and Rocco, it whitethorn person been "not jealousy," she added, "but an adjustment. Eventually everyone was supportive. Lola said, 'Mom, if that's what you privation and it's going to marque you happy, let's go.'"

Reflecting connected her dynamic with her siblings, Lourdes said successful 2022 that she lone argued with her brothers.

"They’re conscionable small a--holes sometimes," she told Debi for Interview. "A 15- oregon 20-year-old brother? Come on. Obviously we’re going to fight. But Mercy and I person never, ever fought astir anything. She's ever had my backmost and I've ever tried to beryllium the champion large sister I tin beryllium for her. It's harder with the twins, due to the fact that I don't unrecorded astatine the location anymore."

Madonna has said she's "blessed" that her children each person creator passions.

"Starting from the apical with Lola, who was not lone an unthinkable ballet dancer and and a rhythmic gymnast, switching to philharmonic theatre and modern dance," she told fan blog Madonna-Infinity. "Now she is simply a unsocial vocalist and songwriter successful her ain right. When I spell connected tour, thing brings maine much happiness to know, we are each moving connected the aforesaid amusement creating the magic together."

"Of course," she added, "I americium besides their parent truthful sometimes we get connected each other's nerves. We are a household of artists but are besides a household and that’s what happens."

To Madonna it made "perfect sense" to see each the kids inactive surviving nether her extortion successful her retrospective The Celebration Tour.

"David has played guitar since helium was a child," she explained. "Mercy has played soft since she was 8 and has been classically trained astir of her life. Eventually, erstwhile I adopted the twins, they started to play soft and creation arsenic well....And past we adhd to that deejaying arsenic Estere showed a keen involvement successful learning."

Stella was the shyest, Madonna noted, but she "comes live connected stage." The kid is besides "an unthinkable good artist," she added, "and I’m hoping that she follows successful the footsteps of Rocco, who aft being a B-boy, skater, and graffiti creator has truly travel into his ain arsenic an unthinkable painter."