Last night a DJ (and Madonna) saved my life.

Yesterday night was the grand finale of Smirnoff’s Nightlife Exchange Project, a competition to find the next dancer on Madonna‘s upcoming world tour. After whittling down to 12 finalists, the remaining dancers came to NYC’s Roseland Ballroom last night to duke (and/or dance) it out in front of Madonna and her team, who would then select the ultimate winner. And I got the great pleasure to come and see (err, and live tweet, as many of you might have noticed last night.)

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After the demo for “Give Me All Your Love,” Madonna‘s rumored lead single from her upcoming twelfth studio album, leaked yesterday, Madonna‘s manager Guy Oseary took to Twitter today–first to rant a bit about the leak–and then to answer some questions from fans.

From his Twitter:

The plan was for new music to come out in the new year… and yet someone leaked a demo version of a song yesterday..Im very happy with the positive reaction to the demo, but we are very upset with whoever leaked the song!!!!!!!! we are asking that the fans please help us police any more leaks.. we have a lot in store for you.. but please respect the process..madonna told me this morning “my true fans wouldn’t do this”… whoever is responsible for this leak, we ask that you please stop!..

Afterward, Oseary cleared up a few details–though mostly remaining pretty vague:

+ Confirmed the album is not finished (but will be within the next month, as producer William Orbit also confirmed earlier).
+ Confirmed that the tracks floating around called “Dirty Liar” and “Love On Fire” are not Madonna demos.
+ Confirmed a “beautiful ballad” was written for Madge’s new movie, W.E.
+ Confirmed photos for the campaign have not yet been shot.
+ Confirmed that M will be appearing at the Smirnoff dance-off this Saturday at the Roseland Ballroom in NYC.

So now we know: “Give Me All Your Love” leaked way, way early. But is it still going to be the first single? Judging by the fact that it’s already out, it seems unlikely that they’d go forward with this single almost four months later…that is, if it was even meant to be a single at all.

All shall soon be revealed… Tick tock, tick tock!

Madonna’s twelfth studio album will be released in Spring of 2012. (iTunes)

Madonna has seen her fair share of leakage in her day, but this weekend has truly been a full-fledged torrent of leakage–from the 1983 demo of “Holiday” all the way to the Celebration sessions with Oakenfold.

While I don’t care to get into every song in detail (Hard Candy Music did an incredible job keeping up being the faithful Madge devotees they are!), there is one track that requires some serious attention: “Animal.”

The track, originally recorded during the Hard Candy sessions, finds Madge toying with a much smarter, snapping beat than any of the recycled hip-hop fodder that littered much of her misguided 2008 effort.

Like a mainstream interpretation of the whips-and-chains S&M play of Erotica, “Animal” has the stomping beat of a solid synth-pop scorcher, yet snarls with the bite of something much more sinister: “Might be hard to hear you with my bit in your mouth / If it starts to hurt, then you’ll have to scream out,” she declares. Good to know she’s still making good use of that riding crop.

Dark, smart, and dare I say forward thinking (especially if this were released two years ago), “Animal” is everything “Revolver” tried to be, but without a trace of that desperate aftertaste.

Are you listening, Guy Oseary? This should have been a hit.

Twitter can be so useful sometimes.

Take for instance that of Guy Oseary, Madonna‘s manager. After seeing signs (“back in the recording studio..”) that the Queen was readying new tracks for her upcoming Greatest Hits collection, my friends and I quickly took to swamping him with questions: What did it sound like? Who was producing? Was it more Confessions or Bedtime?

Alas, we have learned: Madonna has been in the booth with none other than Paul Oakenfold. It makes sense, as he’s done dozens of mixes for her over the years, as well as a few pre-shows on the Sticky & Sweet Tour.

I see this more as disaster avoided rather than opportunity lost. I mean, imagine all the producers we might have had to suffer through…Timbaland? Scott Storch? I don’t even want to think about it.

I’m an Oakenfold fan, a title cemented after his amazing collabo with Brittany Murphy called “Faster Kill Pussycat.” Call me a sucker for anything offering a nod to the Grindhouse era in film, but I was and still am quite smitten by the track.

So…what do you guys think about the choice in producer?

DL: Paul Oakenfold ft. Brittany Murphy – Faster Kill Pussycat

PS: How does Lady M remain so fucking cool even in text form? There’s something about her enticing little quips (“im cooking up something good for you to sing with me on… love, M”) that make her that much more interesting than the two dozen or so fembots trying to take her throne daily.