"The Power of Good-Bye" is a song by American singer Madonna, taken from her seventh studio album Ray of Light (1998). It was written by Madonna and Rick Nowels, and was produced by the singer with William Orbit and Patrick Leonard. The song was released as the fourth single from the album on September 22, 1998, being additionally distributed as a double A-Side single in the United Kingdom with "Little Star". Lyrically, the track talks about how free and empowering saying good-bye or ending a relationship can feel. The melancholy electronica ballad features shuffle beats, acoustic guitars and sweeping strings arranged by Craig Armstrong.
Madonna playing chess in the music video for "The Power of Good-Bye". The scene was inspired by the 1968 heist film The Thomas Crown Affair.
Ray of Light is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Madonna, released in early 1998 by Maverick Records. A major stylistic and aesthetic departure from her previous work, Bedtime Stories, Ray of Light is an electronica and techno-pop record which incorporates multiple genres, including ambient, trip hop, psychedelic music and Middle Eastern music, while also seeing Madonna singing with greater breadth and a fuller tone. Mystical themes are also strongly present in both the music and lyrics, as a result of Madonna embracing Kabbalah, her study of Hinduism and Buddhism, and her daily practice of Ashtanga yoga.
Madonna wearing a red string, performing the album's opening track, "Drowned World/Substitute for Love", on the 2006 Confessions Tour
Madonna performing promotional single "Sky Fits Heaven", during the Drowned World Tour in 2001
Madonna performing the album's lead single "Frozen" on the Re-Invention World Tour in 2004.
Madonna performing "Ray of Light" during the 2008 Sticky & Sweet Tour. The song won an MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year and a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording.