True Blue (Madonna song) in the video. The video was released at a time when she was going through a failed marriage with then husband actor Sean Penn. During this period, Madonna focused on more traditional fashion and attitudes and tried to appear more respectful of traditional gender roles. After shedding her trampy sex-kitten and boy-toy image with the "Live to Tell" music video, Madonna again adopted a new look for this video. Madonna attended aerobics classes at Hollywood health centre "The Sports Connection", which was responsible for her toned down look in the video. Sire Records decided to opt for a promotional device
Secret (Madonna song) and explained that she was "drawn to the rawness of [McDaniel's] film". Madonna wanted to tone down her image and according to McDaniel: Before meeting with Madonna, McDaniel first listened to the song and found it inspiring. When asked by the singer about her references for the video, McDaniel presented her with pictures from her favorite 1970s photographer, Bill Burke, who took pictures of people considered as freaks or inbred. Another reference was the photography book, "East 100 Street" by Bruce Davidson, which showed pictures of people in Spanish Harlem. Madonna let the director live in her New York apartment