One night in early 1987, Madonna called Patrick Leonard, one of her go-to songwriting partners.

She was looking for music for her next film, “Slammer,” and needed a fast song and a slow song. So Patrick went to work.
A few nights later, Madonna stopped by to check on his progress…just when he was adding the chorus for the fast song on a cassette.

She took it into another room to look it over while Patrick worked on the lyrics.

A short time later, Madonna re-appeared and said, We’ll call it ‘Who’s That Girl.”
The backing track was recorded in one take and the song was completed the next day! Just like that!

“Slammer” was then re-named after the song…and although the movie was a box office bomb, Madonna got a lot mileage out of “Who’s That Girl.

 “It was a Top 5 hit in TWENTY-ONE countries–reaching #1 in 10 of them–including the US, where it topped the Hot 100,reached #2 on The Dance Singles Chart, and #5 on The Adult Contemporary Chart. She also made a ton of money on her subsequent “Who’s That Girl” World Tour.

So Who’s that girl that turned a bomb into a personal blockbuster in 1987? Madonna, that’s who!