Madonna calls her children her 'ride or dies' after wrapping up The Celebration Tour with record-setting Rio de Janeiro show
- Singer, 65, drew 1.6 million fans to oceanfront show in Brazil on Saturday
- Concert was finale of The Celebration Tour, which kicked off last autumn
- The Grammy-winning singer is mother to six kids, ranging in age from 27 to 11
Madonna called her children her 'ride or dies' in a series of Instagram Stories posts on Wednesday.
The 65-year-old pop superstar, who drew an estimated 1.6 million people to Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with her free concert this past Saturday, posted a series of images in which she was posed with her kids as she finished her Celebration Tour.
The Grammy-winning singer, whose full name is Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone, is mother to six kids: Lourdes Leon, 27, Rocco Ritchie, 23, David Banda, 18, Mercy James, 18, and twins Stella and Estere, 11.
The artist of hits including Vogue, Material Girl and Papa Don't Preach began the series of images with a black-and-white shot of her son David Banda as he toted a guitar case down the hallway of a hotel.
David Banda wore a white tank top and black patterned wide leg pants, as Madonna was seen in the background donning a black leather ensemble with sunglasses.
![Madonna, 65, called her children her 'ride or dies' in a series of Instagram Stories posts on Wednesday. Pictured with son David Banda, 18](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/09/05/84644553-13398621-image-m-4_1715229813358.jpg)
Madonna, 65, called her children her 'ride or dies' in a series of Instagram Stories posts on Wednesday. Pictured with son David Banda, 18
![In the second shot in the series, Madonna posed alongside daughter Mercy James, 18, who matched her in a black ensemble](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/09/05/84644555-13398621-image-m-6_1715230063382.jpg)
In the second shot in the series, Madonna posed alongside daughter Mercy James, 18, who matched her in a black ensemble
![The third image in the series featured her twins Stella and Estere, 11, with their names in hashtags](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/09/05/84644557-13398621-image-m-8_1715230125990.jpg)
The third image in the series featured her twins Stella and Estere, 11, with their names in hashtags
She captioned the single image, 'My Ride.............' and added his Instagram handle @senzacacona.
In the second shot in the series, Madonna posed alongside daughter Mercy James, 18, who matched her in a black ensemble. She added Mercy's Instagram handle and the text, 'OR...,,,,,,,,,,,,,'
Mercy James, who was seen taking in her mother's rehearsals for the banner show in South America, wore a black sweater top with gold buttons and black slacks.
She toted a black leather purse and accessorized with hoop earrings and multiple necklaces.
The third image in the series featured her twins Stella and Estere, 11, with their names in hashtags, with the final portion of the text that read 'Dies' with four heart emojis and a period.
In the image, the twins flanked their famed mother as they donned matching white Mexican-style dresses embroidered with floral patterns.
David Banda and Mercy James were photographed separately, ahead of the last weekend's big event, at the Belmond Copacabana Palace Hotel, where the music icon and her family stayed.
Madonna two weeks ago took to Instagram with a series of images of herself and her kids taken at different points of the along her concert tour, which they performed on during select shows.
![Mercy James attended a May 2 rehearsal ahead of the concert in Rio de Janeiro](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/03/04/84402679-13377983-Madonna_s_daughter_Mercy_James_attends_the_rehearsal_ahead_of_th-a-97_1714708468832.jpg)
Mercy James attended a May 2 rehearsal ahead of the concert in Rio de Janeiro
![David Banda played the guitar onstage during Madonna's May 4 show on the oceanfront](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/09/06/84646399-13398621-image-a-27_1715233240434.jpg)
David Banda played the guitar onstage during Madonna's May 4 show on the oceanfront
![Madonna two weeks ago took to Instagram with a series of images of herself and her kids taken at different points of the along her concert tour](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/09/06/84112067-13398621-Madonna_shared_a_heartwarming_behind_the_scenes_album_of_her_wit-a-9_1715232445127.jpg)
Madonna two weeks ago took to Instagram with a series of images of herself and her kids taken at different points of the along her concert tour
![She said of her children, 'They never stopped practicing¿ they never stopped cheering me on and supporting me'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/09/06/84112077-13398621-Her_children_have_accompanied_her_during_her_globetrotting_strin-a-10_1715232474073.jpg)
She said of her children, 'They never stopped practicing… they never stopped cheering me on and supporting me'
![The pop icon said she wanted to 'acknowledge my incredibly talented children who carried me through this Journey each of them bringing their own unique talent to the stage'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/09/06/84112075-13398621-_They_never_stopped_practicing_they_never_stopped_cheering_me_on-a-11_1715232512417.jpg)
The pop icon said she wanted to 'acknowledge my incredibly talented children who carried me through this Journey each of them bringing their own unique talent to the stage'
![The musical mainstay was seen working on material with her son](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/09/06/84112069-13398621-The_65_year_old_pop_superstar_adopted_David_Banda_right_18_Mercy-a-12_1715232546377.jpg)
The musical mainstay was seen working on material with her son
She credited them for keeping her spirits high in the wake of a health scare last June, when she spent multiple days hospitalized in an intensive care unit with what her rep dubbed a 'serious bacterial infection.'
'On the day before our 80th show of the Celebration Tour I need to acknowledge my incredibly talented children who carried me through this Journey each of them bringing their own unique talent to the stage,' she said in an April 25 post.
She added, 'Rehearsals began over a year ago with almost a 2 month break waiting for me recover from a near death experience. They never stopped practicing… they never stopped cheering me on and supporting me.'
She said that the 'enthusiasm' they displayed kept her going, as 'they were also going to school and rehearsing every night.'
Madonna said she was 'so very proud of all of them' and the lessons they learned on the concert tour.
'I think what my children learned the most this year of rehearsing and performing is that if you want to follow your dreams, you have to work hard for them,' she said. 'And if all of them choose something different later in life, they will never forget this year of blood, sweat, and tears. Nor will I.'
The Express Yourself singer previously took to Instagram this week with multiple snaps from the eventful weekend, posing with DJ Diplo, actor Alberto Guerra and members of her ensemble of backup dancers.
'A Few Memories from the end of my tour…………… The rest are forever in my heart!' Madonna said.
![The pop superstar drew an estimated 1.6 million people to Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Saturday](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/09/06/84644779-13398621-image-a-14_1715232662496.jpg)
The pop superstar drew an estimated 1.6 million people to Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Saturday
![](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/09/06/84646369-13398621-image-m-30_1715233964098.jpg)
In her concert Saturday, Madonna underwent a series of costume changes as she performed hits from her catalogue such as 1998's Nothing Really Matters, 1984's Like A Virgin, 2005's Hung Up and 1989's Like a Prayer
In her concert Saturday, Madonna underwent a series of costume changes as she performed hits from her catalogue such as 1998's Nothing Really Matters, 1984's Like A Virgin, 2005's Hung Up and 1989's Like a Prayer.
Notable Brazilian entertainers including Anitta and Pabllo Vittar joined the music icon on the stage for the finale of The Celebration Tour.
The 1.6 million people attendees - which Rio City Hall's tourism agency confirmed, according to G1 - was tenfold the amount of Madonna's previous one-show total of 130,000 concertgoers, which came in August of 1987 at the Parc des Sceaux in Paris.
Madonna kicked off the Celebration Tour last October at the O2 Arena in London, and made it to a number of prominent European locales throughout December, when she ventured back to the U.S. with a December 13 concert in New York City.
Madonna revealed in March she was concluding her trek with the oceanfront concert as 'a thank you to her fans for celebrating more than four decades of her music over the course of the epic global run of the tour.'