Madonna's spotlight of influential leaders embodying the "rebel heart" spirit she promotes on her new album has caused controversy across the web.
The pop superstar posted photos of Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela and Bob Marley with black ribbon crisscrossed on their face in the same fashion as her face on the cover of her new album "Rebel Heart."
Madonna is reposting the fan-altered photos, which also included Jesus Christ, Marilyn Monroe and John Lennon. She wrote on her Instagram that the photos show her fans "are celebrating and in admiration of these great freedom fighters."
Others disagree and have taken offense to Madonna using the bondage images of King and Mandela as a cheap way to promote her music.
Madonna defined what kind of rebel heart King, Mandela and Marley represented in separate Instagram posts. She called Jesus Christ "one of the first #rebelhearts."
"Rebel Heart" is Madonna's 13th studio album and is expected to drop in March. The "Material Girl" singer released six songs early on Dec. 20 due to demo tracks leaking online.