Madonna was raped at the start of her career.
The pop legend has opened up about her traumatic ordeal for the first time in nearly two decades, revealing she was sexually abused by a stranger at knifepoint shortly after arriving in New York City from Rochester, Michigan, to pursue her dreams of stardom.
Writing in the November issue of Harper's Bazaar magazine, the 55-year-old singer recalled: "New York wasn't everything I thought it would be. It did not welcome me with open arms. The first year, I was held up at gunpoint. Raped on the roof of a building I was dragged up to with a knife in my back.
"I had my apartment broken into three times. I don't know why; I had nothing of value after they took my radio the first time."
The 'Like a Prayer' singer was determined to survive in the Big Apple in spite of her terrible experiences and was all the more "hell-bent" on making a name for herself, even if it meant doing jobs she didn't like.