When you asked if Madonna was naming off big models' names, that wasn't it.   She was  naming some of THE MOST famous, stylish and glamorous stars of Hollywood in the 20th  century:
Greta Garbo and Monroe [Marilyn], Dietrich and DiMaggio, Marlon Brando, Jimmy Dean on the cover of a magazine.  Grace Kelly, Harlow Jean, picture of a beauty queen, Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers danced on air.  They had style, they had grace, Rita Hayworth gave good face.  Lauren [Bacall], Kathryn [Hepburn],  Lana [Turner] too.  Bette Davis we love you. Ladies with an attitude, fellas that were in the mood, don't just stand there.  Let's get to it. Strike a pose, there's nothing to it.

Voguing originated in the Harlem ballroom scene of the 1960s to 1980s, created by Black and Latino LGBTQ+ individuals as a form of stylized dance battle. It evolved from an underground subculture into a global phenomenon in 1990 when Madonna released her chart-topping anthem "Vogue," which was directly inspired by the community's dancers. In the late 1980s, Madonna witnessed dancers voguing at an underground New York club called The Sound Factory. Captivated by the style, she decided to write a song about it. The track quickly transformed from a low-budget project into one of her most defining career landmarks. Recognizing the song needed a centerpiece, Madonna recorded a spoken-word bridge where she rapidly name-checked golden-era Hollywood legends like Greta Garbo, Marilyn Monroe, and Marlon Brando. Rather than merely copying the dance, Madonna hired Jose Gutierez Xtravaganza and Luis Camacho Xtravaganza from Harlem's renowned House of Xtravaganza to choreograph the routine and star alongside her. Each is featured in the music video.  Directed by David Fincher, the black-and-white music video became an instant MTV staple. Its stunning aesthetics and sharp, precise choreography captured the world's imagination.Madonna’s "Vogue" acted as the ultimate bridge that brought underground house music into the global pop mainstream. Before March 1990, house music was a deeply regionalized, subterranean genre primarily confined to gay, Black, and Latino clubs in Chicago, Detroit, and New York. By packaging these raw club rhythms into a radio-friendly pop structure, "Vogue" permanently altered the landscape of 1990s commercial music.Beyoncé directly infused the history of voguing and house music into "BREAK MY SOU­L (THE QUEENS REMIX)," a collaboration that officially samples Madonna’s 1990 classic. Released as part of her critically acclaimed project Renaissance, the song serves as a masterful intersection of pop royalty. While Madonna’s original track was heavily criticized for prioritizing white Hollywood elite over the minority creators of the dance, Beyoncé purposefully flipped the narrative. She utilized the iconic spoken-word bridge specifically to uplift, credit, and center Black and Brown women, alongside the foundational pillars of underground queer culture. In "The Queens Remix," Beyoncé replaces those names entirely. Instead, she uses the rhythmic, fast-paced rap to shout out 29 legendary Black female musicians who broke boundaries in the music industry. Her lyrical roll call spans genres and generations. I hope this summary helped.

Black & Latino gays in New York City  invented Voguing in the club scene, its a style of dancing. Madonna was inspired by it and made this song in 1990, shining a spotlight on a marginalised community and giving them globally visibitly. Very big deal. Madonna was always an advocate for the lgbt community.

Madonna pays homage to the Golden Age of Hollywood of the 1920s to the 1950s.
The celebrities listed in the song, in order of appearance, are:
Greta Garbo
Marilyn Monroe
Marlene Dietrich
Joe DiMaggio
Marlon Brando
James Dean (referred to as Jimmy Dean)
Grace Kelly
Jean Harlow
Gene Kelly
Fred Astaire
Ginger Rogers
Rita Hayworth
Lauren Bacall
Katharine Hepburn
Lana Turner
Bette Davis

Madonna is the most successful female artist of all time❤

Thanks for sharing your reaction! Most of the names she mentions are actors and actresses from the “Golden Age of Hollywood,” stars of black and white movies during an era when Hollywood was very glamorous!

Eddie thanks for the reaction!

Thank you for reaction Queen of Pop❤️😲👑

The names she called out hollywood legends as you perceived it.
I will never forget how cool Madonna was, she still is.

She started as a dancer a good one  of course she can dance she can sing dance and act shes a very talented woman

She's naming old Hollywood stars

Check out some of Madonna’s MTV VMA performances 💯😊☺️😜

Madonna Louise Ciccone was born on 16 August 1958 in Bay City, Michigan, to an Italian‑American father and a mother of French‑Canadian descent, giving her a mixed Catholic heritage.
She grew up as the third of six children in a strict Roman Catholic household in the Detroit suburbs, where early family life was marked by the death of her mother when she was five.
As a child, she attended Catholic schools and was known for her high grades, discipline, and rebellious streak.
Her artistic awakening came through dance: after convincing her father to let her take ballet lessons, she trained under Christopher Flynn, who exposed her to Detroit’s nightlife and encouraged her ambitions.
In high school, she remained academically strong while developing a growing passion for performance and self‑expression.
She earned a dance scholarship to the University of Michigan, where she continued intensive training before deciding that academic life could not contain her ambitions.
In 1978, she left college and moved to New York City with very little money, determined to build a career in dance.
Before her music career took off, she worked low‑paying jobs—including at Dunkin’ Donuts—and modeled for artists to support herself while performing with modern dance companies.
She learned how to play drums and guitar as a member of bands, "The Breakfast Club" f.e., and she became lead singer eventually. There's a bunch of punk like songs from that era on YouTube.
During this period, she recorded a homemade demo tape and personally handed it to club DJs, which helped her songs gain traction in New York’s underground dance scene.
This growing buzz eventually led to her first record deal with Sire Records, setting the stage for her rise as a global pop icon

Look up her catalog of music - she may not be the best singer but she is one of the greatest pop singers (Queen) of our time. Also look at her Ray of Light era - brilliant piece of music.

The people she mentioned in songs were actors and actresses of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. Legends

Yes, there was a world before you were born and it was pretty cool.

Menciona grandes leyendas de Hollywood y como todas tenían su máscara

Please check out " Oh, Father"  or " La Isla Bonita".  🙌

Those are famous founders of voguing in Harlem, NYC.

Madonna's 1990 hit "Vogue" is an anthem of escapism, self-expression, and freedom on the dance floor. The lyrics celebrate leaving behind everyday troubles, adopting a glamorous persona, and finding identity and community through the underground ballroom dance style created by Black and Latino LGBTQ+ communities
Name-dropping icons: In the middle-eight rap, Madonna lists 16 classic film stars:

Greta Garbo and Monroe
Dietrich and DiMaggio
Marlon Brando, Jimmy Dean
On the cover of a magazine
Grace Kelly, Harlow, Jean
Picture of a beauty queen
Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire
Ginger Rogers dance on air
They had style, they had grace
Rita Hayworth gave good face
Lauren, Katharine, Lana too
Bette Davis, we love you