Madonna has finally released her new album Confessions 2, with critics lauding the record for its blistering take on some of the challenges in her life.Of course, the star has never shied away from being candid with her fans, and has spoken openly on topics in her life ranging from mental health to her very turbulent personal life.This new record sees Madonna take swipes at her ex-husband Sean Penn and her late stepmother Joan, while also reflecting on her turbulent relationship with her daughter Lourdes.The album has also earned positive reviews from critics, with The Daily Mail's Adrian Thrills awarding it four stars.Madonna is no stranger to making headlines, and she recently reflected on the impact of her battle with sepsis, which left her 'near-death' and in a coma for two days.As Madonna's prepare to stream her album Confessions, here's some of the biggest tales from the star throughout her career... Madonna has finally released her new album Confessions 2, with critics lauding the record for its blistering take on some of the challenges in her lifeSecret Tupac Shakur romanceMadonna was previously rumoured to have had a brief romance with Tupac Shakur, but it wasn't until 2015 that the relationship was confirmed.Speaking on The Howard Stern Show, Madonna said: 'I was dating Tupac Shakur at the time, and the thing is... he got me all riled up on life in general.'Rosie Perez previously claimed she was the matchmaker for the pair, saying on The View in 2015: 'I went to the Soul Train Music Awards ... and then Madonna comes over and looks at me, and she goes, ''Girl.''''I said, [to Tupac] 'She wants to meet you,' and he goes, 'Hook that up.' And I hooked it up, and I was very happy about it.' Tupac alluded to his relationship to Madonna in a letter that was published in 2017, which he penned in 1995.He wrote: 'For you to be seen with a black man wouldn't in any way jeopardise your career, if anything it would make you seem that much more open and exciting.'But for me at least in my previous perception I felt due to my ''image'' I would be letting down half of the people who made me what I thought I was.' 'I don't know how you feel about visiting me, but if you could find it in your heart, I would love to speak face to face with you. It's funny, but this experience has taught me to not take time for granted.' Madonna was previously rumoured to have had a brief romance with Tupac Shakur, but it wasn't until 2015 that the relationship was confirmedDrugs dalliancesMadonna has confessed to her drug use in the past, telling MOJO Magazine: 'My problem is I don't have the stamina to take drugs. I feel terrible afterwards. I'm destroyed for days and days. 'I can't do anything and I don't want that inconvenience in my life. So I don't feel it's worth the price you have to pay. That's me.'Even when I was younger and in my 20s, trying this and that... I mean, I never really did that many drugs. I'm too big of a p***y. Also, I'm a dancer and I don't want to destroy my body. I want to feel physically good.'So it never came naturally to me to get out of my brains or get so high that I couldn't get out of bed for three days. And that's what happened to me if I did anything.'She also told Interview Magazine in 2014: 'It's about how people take drugs to connect to God or to a higher level of consciousness. I keep saying, ''Plugging into the matrix.'''If you get high, you can do that, which is why a lot of people drop acid or do drugs, because they want to get closer to God.'But there's going to be a short circuit, and that's the illusion of drugs, because they give you the illusion of getting closer to God, but ultimately they kill you.''I mean, I tried everything once, but as soon as I was high, I spent my time drinking tons of water to get it out of my system. As soon as I was high, I was obsessed with flushing it out of me. I was like, ''Okay, I'm done now.'''Madonna is never far from the headlines when it comes to her turbulent love life, and in 2024 it was revealed she had a steamy fling with Jenny Shimizu Madonna also dated comedian Sandra Bernhard, with the pair becoming 'inseparable' in 1988, before their bond fizzled out in the early 90sLesbian flingsMadonna is never far from the headlines when it comes to her turbulent love life, and in 2024 it was revealed she had a steamy fling with Jenny Shimizu.The star had caught the eye with her on-stage smooch with Britney Spears in 2003, but this was the first time that the romance had been full revealed.Jenny said in her memoir: 'It wasn't about an emotional bond, it was about taking each other to the heights of sexual ecstasy.'I loved the fact that I was at this woman's beck and call. It turned me on, being ordered to her room whenever she felt like sex.'Madonna also dated comedian Sandra Bernhard, with the pair becoming 'inseparable' in 1988, and she also had a fling with Cuban beauty Ingrid Casares. Of course Madonna has never been far from controversy, and the star sparked fury from the Catholic Church with the video for her song Like A Prayer in 1989Risking the Pope's wrathOf course Madonna has never been far from controversy, and in 2008 she risked the wrath of the Pope himself when she dedicated a song to him on stage.While performing her hit Like A Virgin, Madonna said: 'I dedicate this song to the Pope, because I'm a child of God. All of you are also children of God.'Corriere della Sera, Italy's bestselling newspaper, called the dedication a 'provocation', and Madonna is no stranger to causing upset from the Catholic Church.The star previously sparked backlash with the 1989 video for her song Like a Prayer, after it featured burning crosses and stigmata-afflicted statues. On her new album, one of Madonna's songs, titled Betrayal, sees her turn her disdain to her late stepmother Joan, who passed away in 2024'Betrayed' by her stepmotherOn her new album, one of Madonna's songs, titled Betrayal, sees her turn her disdain to her late stepmother Joan, who passed away in 2024 while the album was being made.Madonna, who did not attend Joan's funeral, lost her mother age five to breast cancer and three years later her father Silvio remarried. The song lyrics read: 'This is a story of betrayal. You couldn't see your fall from grace. So take the hammer, hit the nail. You'll never take my mother's place.'And later in the track, she adds: 'You betrayed me, you enslaved me.'Madonna had previously shared she had a fraught relationship with her father and stepmother, saying in 1991 she 'never' had a mother figure in her life.Speaking to the LA times, she said: 'When I see my girlfriends with their mothers even now I can't even imagine - it's unfathomable what that sort of nurturing would have done for me,' she continued.'Let's face it. I probably wouldn't be sitting on this couch here talking to you now if I'd had a mother. I really miss it. My role models who nurtured me when I was growing up were all men.'In 2002 she told Larry King she 'didn't accept' her stepmother growing up and 'in retrospect she was really hard on her even though she was trying.' In 2019, Madonna shared that she was forced to tolerate 'flirtatious and forward' advances by the disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey WeinsteinHarvey Weinstein ordealIn 2019, Madonna shared that she was forced to tolerate 'flirtatious and forward' advances by the disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein.The singer shared her experience working with him in her 1991 documentary Truth or Dare, after a string of other Hollywood stars claimed they'd been sexually harassed by him.In wide-ranging interview with the New York Times Magazine, the singer recounted how she worked with Weinstein on her 1991 documentary Truth or Dare.'Harvey crossed lines and boundaries and was incredibly sexually flirtatious and forward with me when we were working together; he was married at the time, and I certainly wasn't interested', she said. 'I was aware that he did the same with a lot of other women that I knew in the business. And we were all, 'Harvey gets to do that because he's got so much power and he's so successful and his movies do so well and everybody wants to work with him, so you have to put up with it.' But she makes clear how she didn't delight in his downfall when the #MeToo movement began.'I was really like, 'Finally.' I wasn't cheering from the rafters because I'm never going to cheer for someone's demise... But it was good that somebody who had been abusing his power for so many years was called out and held accountable.' Madonna's new album also sees her take aim at her ex-husband Sean Penn., which was a surprise as it was thought that relations between the pair were cordial Blasting Sean PennMadonna's new album also sees her take aim at her ex-husband Sean Penn.The singer talks about her 'movie star with deep blue eyes' in her track Bizarre, which is likely a reference to Sean, who she was married to for three and a half years in the eighties.The lyrics accused Sean of being 'threatened by her' level of fame, suggesting the Hollywood actor wasn't prepared to 'share the red carpet' with her.She also name checks the 1968 Shelby GT500 convertible she gave him as a wedding gift and his conviction for reckless driving in 1987.Madonna has portrayed her relationship with Sean as intense and often turbulent, but she has consistently spoken of him with warmth in later years.At a 2016 charity gala for his Haiti relief work, Madonna told him from the stage: 'I love you from the moment that I laid eyes on you. And I still love you just the same.'So her new jibe may take the star by surprise, as it was previously understood that they still had a mutual respect and liking for each other. Despite marriages to stars including Sean Penn and Guy Ritchie, Madonna has admitted in the past that John F Kennedy Jr was 'the best sex of her life'Calling JKF Jr the 'best sex of her life' Despite marriages to stars including Sean Penn and Guy Ritchie, Madonna has admitted in the past that John F Kennedy Jr was one of her best liaisons.In a video for Grindr, the star was asked about who she'd had the best sex with, and she said: 'I'm only going to name dead people' before covering her mouth and saying: 'John Kennedy Jr.'Madonna did have a short fling with he business man in the 1990s, but a source in the 2024 book JFK Jr: An Intimate Oral Biography said it was 'all about physical attraction' and 'it wasn't going to be anything beyond that.' The hitmaker has offered insight into the state of her mental health when she revealed she contemplated suicide after losing custody of her son Rocco Ritchie Contemplating suicideHaving had her own ups and downs in the industry, Madonna offered insight into the state of her mental health when she revealed she contemplated suicide after losing custody of her son Rocco Ritchie.Madonna became embroiled in a custody battle with ex-husband Guy Ritchie in 2016 over Rocco, who was 16 at the time, after he chose to leave her during her Rebel Heart Tour to relocate to London to live with his father.At the time, Madonna had primary custody of her son, but following a lengthy legal war, a settlement was reached which saw Rocco able to remain in the UK.Speaking on the On Purpose With Jay Shetty podcast, Madonna admitted that she was 'suffering' before beginning her spiritual journey.'There were moments in my life I wanted to cut my arms off… I actually contemplated suicide,' she said.'I would say probably one of the most painful moments in my life where I honestly couldn't see the forest for the trees was when I went through a custody battle with my son.'Even though my marriage didn't work out…I mean a lot of people's marriages don't work out. They marry the wrong people. They're not aligned. They're not meant for each other. Someone trying to take my child away from me was like, they might as well just kill me.'That's really how I was thinking. And I was on tour at the time, so I had to go on stage every night. I would just be lying on the floor of my dressing room sobbing. I really thought it was like it was the end of the world. I couldn't take it. I just couldn't take it.'Madonna, who split from Rocco's father Guy in 2008, said she's now 'good friends' with her son, and credited her spirituality for helping her through the difficult time.