Scientists from the University of Copenhagen analyzed interviews with singer Madonna spanning the past forty years and concluded that her voice has not deepened over time, reports infohub.kz.
According to Phys.org, the researchers found that the singer's pitch and vowel pronunciation changed regularly, making it nearly impossible to determine her real age from her speech alone.
Normally, a woman's voice deepens during menopause — this is linked to declining estrogen levels and changes in the vocal cords. Madonna did experience a temporary drop in pitch around 2013, when she was 55, but her voice soon rose again.
The authors of the study believe the singer deliberately controlled her vocal range and timbre to maintain a young and attractive image. In particular, she made active use of front vowels, which listeners associate with youth and attractiveness.
Moreover, the scientists were unable to determine the singer's geographic origin from her accent. Madonna grew up in Michigan and lived in New York for a long time, yet her pronunciation does not reflect the speech features of those regions.
The researchers concluded that this manner of speech helped the singer craft the image of a global artist, unbound to any particular age or place.