Nearly 20,000 fans helped Madonna celebrate her daughter Mercy's 18th birthday.
The Material Girl, 65, brought her dancers on stage to join her and Mercy, who played piano, during a show on Monday, January 22, at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Madonna led her party inside Singing Happy Birthdayand the whole audience joined in the joyful occasion.
Mercy shouted “Oh my God” as the sold-out crowd sang. “Thank you to the people,” Madonna said before telling her daughter: “Get up, get up, beautiful girl. Look at this queen. This is what a beautiful queen looks like,” she added.
Her daughter was then given a cupcake with a lit candle while her mother told her to “make a wish.” Mercy closed her eyes and then blew out the candle as the crowd cheered.
Madonna held a drink and asked Mercy, “Would you like a sip?”
She then jokingly added: “Oh no, 18 is not the drinking age here.”
As Mercy beamed as she appreciated the special moment, she told the crowd, “I love you all!” Madonna then hugged her and added, “That's my girl.”
Madonna also paid tribute to Mercy with a slideshow and a loving message via Instagram on Monday.
The video featured Mercy playing the piano and included numerous photos of her over the years, including a photo of her Beyonce kiss her.
“Beautiful Chifundo James! you are 18 years old [sic] old today!! Beautiful Mercy James. You are already a young woman! Beautiful African Queen!! You surprised us all!” Madonna wrote.
“That hand that was once frozen in your mouth as a child now creates magic when you play the piano,” she continued. “To hear you play Chopin with such confidence every night in my show is so exciting to watch you unfold from a chrysalis to a butterfly. Beautiful Chifundo James Nothing gives me more pleasure than watching you grow. You are truly a miracle.”
The “Express Yourself” singer previously celebrated Mercy's birthday in a special way. Last year, for Mercy's 17th birthday, they enjoyed two separate family dinners. For her 16th birthday in 2022, they enjoyed a day at Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park in Valencia, California.
Chifundo “Mercy” James was born in Malawi, South Africa. In May 2009, Madonna tried to adopt her from an orphanage, but her application was initially rejected by the judge.
“She told me, as a divorcee, that I was not fit to raise children and that Mercy would be better off growing up in an orphanage,” she said when she opened the Mercy James Institute for Pediatric Surgery and Intensive Care, the first children's home. surgery and intensive care center in Malawi in 2017, according to People.
Madonna had successfully adopted son David Banda in Malawi in 2006, when she was married to him Guy Ritchie.
She hired a team of lawyers and took her case to adopt Mercy to the High Court of Malawi. Her application was eventually accepted.
“I fought for Mercy, and I won. It wasn't easy,” Madonna continued. “So I'm here to say never give up on your dreams. Never stop fighting for what you believe in. And finally, love conquers all.”