If you are in the Los Angeles area, don't miss the Material Girl Madonna fashion pop-up tonight at Macys in Century City from 6-8pm!

The nominees for the 2013 Billboard Music Awards were announced today and Madonna is nominated in 3 different categories including Top Touring Artist, Top Dance Artist and Top Dance Album (MDNA).

The ceremony will be held at Las Vegas' MGM Grand Garden Arena on May 19 and will air live on ABC starting at 8pm ET.

Congratulations Madonna!

Madonna, Material Girl and Macy's are offering consumers the ultimate insider experience with the unveiling of a thrilling one day pop-up fashion exhibit, "Madonna's Fashion Evolution" at Macy's in Century City, California. On Thursday, April 25th, from 6-8pm, several of Madonna's most iconic fashion items including her infamous Jean Paul Gaultier cone bra corset from her Blonde Ambition Tour, her Reinvention Tour ensemble by Christian Lacroix, her "Like A Virgin" wedding dress, and other legendary pieces will be on display for fans to get a firsthand view of the evolution of Madonna's fashion. The exhibit will take place surrounded by the hugely successful fashion forward Material Girl line that Madonna created exclusively for Macy's with her daughter, Lola.

Madonna personally handpicked eight of her favorite costumes from a vast archive of tour costumes and her personal collection for the one day pop-up exhibition. Madonna and the Material Girl team went to great efforts to gather these iconic pieces for the exhibition, which marks the first time these items have been displayed together for the public to view. The cone bustiers were flown in from a Jean Paul Gaultier exhibit in Amsterdam, her "Like A Virgin" wedding dress is on loan from the legendary Hard Rock, while the remaining items are from Madonna's personal archives.

"The pop-up exhibit at Macy's perfectly exemplifies the inspiration and spirit of the Material Girl line and will give my fans a great opportunity to see the evolution of my style over the years," commented Madonna.

Arianne Phillips, Madonna's longtime collaborator, styled and helped to curate the exhibit. About the "Like A Virgin" wedding dress Madonna wore to the MTV VMA's in 1984, Phillips commented, "This was one of the most shocking, liberating and influential moments in pop culture/fashion history." "Fashion has never been the same. Bold and unforgiving, humorous and shocking, we can depend on Madonna to challenge us to rethink fashion. Madonna has taken sacred garments like the wedding dress and religious embellishments, and re-contextualized them," she added.

"It's a magical thing to bring all these iconic pieces together in one place," said Dari Marder chief marketing officer at Iconix Brand Group, Inc. "This will show customers how influential Madonna has been to fashion and how that influences Material Girl today," she added.

"We are so thrilled to bring this unique experience exclusively to Macy's customers," said Martine Reardon, Macy's chief marketing officer. "An homage to Madonna's revolutionary style and influence on our Material Girl collection, 'Madonna's Fashion Evolution' pop-up exhibit offers a rare opportunity to see some of her most iconic looks curated together in a never-before-seen display."

There have been many reports regarding Madonna's recent visit to Malawi. Some of these reports include inaccurate information and accusations by the Malawian Government on Madonna's character and the work of her foundation Raising Malawi. Despite the accusations, Madonna and her organization Raising Malawi remains committed to the health and education of the children of Malawi.

"I was very happy to visit with the children of Malawi earlier this month and to see with my own eyes the ten new primary schools in Kasungu province that Raising Malawi and buildOn completed this past year. These schools are now educating more than 4,800 children with girls attending in equal numbers. These children who were formerly learning outside on the ground, in unsafe buildings or not at all, now get to attend classes on a daily basis. My children and I were overjoyed to visit these schools and see what amazing progress has been made. I will continue to follow through on my commitment to help educate the children of Malawi. I'm saddened that Malawi's President Joyce Banda has chosen to release lies about what we've accomplished, my intentions, how I personally conducted myself while visiting Malawi and other untruths. I have no intentions of being distracted by these ridiculous allegations. I came to Malawi seven years ago with honorable intentions. I returned earlier this month to view the new schools we built. I did not ever ask or demand speial treatment at the airport or elsewhere during my visit. I will not be distracted or discouraged by other people's political agendas. I made a promise to the children of Malawi and I am keeping that promise" commented Madonna.

Madonna originally planned on building a Girls Academy in the impoverished country but realized that a more sustainable model would be to build smaller schools in villages around the country with buildOn who have had 20 years of success building schools in Africa. The original team that Raising Malawi first put in place included Anjimile Oponyo, the sister of Malawi's current President Joyce Banda. Due to major organizational problems that occurred during that time, the original team was disbanded. President Banda has since appointed her sister to a senior post within the Ministry of Education. Madonna's decision to change course on her education projects has subsequently been met by deep resistance from Oponyo, the President, and the Ministry of Education. But Madonna is not letting politics stand in the way of her deep commitment to help build schools there and educate as many children as possible.

In addition to the school projects, Raising Malawi has spent millions of dollars in Malawi to support orphans and vulnerable children through multiple community-based organizations. This includes Home of Hope which supported 595 beneficiaries including orphans, vulnerable children and their caregivers in 2012 alone. Raising Malawi also supports Dr. Eric Borgstein, one of three pediatric surgeons in Malawi. Dr. Borgstein performed more than 500 surgeries in 2012 alone and he sees thousands of children each year.

RM have just updated their Facebook page with photos of all of the 10 schools that were completed with buildOn in 2012 to serve more than 4,800 children in Malawi.

Make sure to check them out now!

Madonna concluded her visit to Malawi this week at Consol Homes Orphan Care Center in Namitete. Raising Malawi, a nonprofit organization founded by Madonna, has supported Consol Homes for more than five years, including the recent construction of a power grid that provides electricity at the orphan care center for the first time. Consol Homes supports orphans, vulnerable children and their caregivers through more than 100 childcare centers serving more than 30,000 individuals.

Earlier in the week, Madonna visited two of the 10 schools funded by Raising Malawi and constructed by partner buildOn. The schools are currently supporting more than 4,800 children in Kasungu Province. She also visited long-standing Raising Malawi grantees Crisis Nursery and Home of Hope, community-based organizations that provide critical support to orphans in Malawi.

Additionally, Madonna visited the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Blantyre and met with Dr. Eric Borgstein, one of the only pediatric surgeons in Malawi, and one of his pediatric surgery trainees, both of whom are supported by Raising Malawi.

'I am so grateful to the people of Malawi for their hospitality towards me and my family during our time here,' Madonna said. I am proud of the programs we support here to assist orphans and vulnerable children, and look forward to continuing to provide them with the resources they need to thrive.'

In addition to her work in Malawi, Madonna will continue to expand her philanthropy worldwide. On 3 April 2013, it was announced that she will auction a painting from her personal collection to support girls' education in Afghanistan, Pakistan and other countries. The painting is expected to raise $5 to $7 million.

Madonna arrived in Malawi on Monday to visit the ten new schools that were constructed by Raising Malawi in partnership with buildOn. The schools are currently educating 4,800 students per year, with more projects in the works.

For more information please visit Raising Malawi and buildOn

Sotheby's is honored to announce that it will auction a painting from Madonna's collection in its Impressionist & Modern Art Evening Sale on 7 May 2013. Proceeds from the sale of Fernand Leger's Trois femmes a la table rouge, which is estimated at $5/7 million, will benefit the Ray of Light Foundation to support girls' education projects in Afghanistan, Pakistan and other countries.

In Afghanistan, just 12% of women are literate and it is estimated that only seven girls to every ten boys are able to attend school. In Pakistan, which has one of the largest populations of out-of-school children in the world, it is estimated that there are more than 3 million primary school-aged girls unable to attend school.

'I have a great passion for art and a great passion for education. In conjunction with Sotheby's, I would like to share these two passions. I have chosen to auction this painting called Three Women by Fernand Leger and donate all the proceeds to support girls' educational projects in Afghanistan, Pakistan and other countries where female education is rare or nonexistent. I cannot accept a world where women or girls are wounded, shot or killed for either going to school or teaching in girls' schools. We don't have time to be complacent. I want to trade something valuable for something invaluable - Educating Girls! Knowledge is power. Let's change the world!' commented Madonna.

The work will be on view at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre from April 3rd to April 7th and in London from April 12th to April 16th, before returning to New York for exhibition in Sotheby's York Avenue galleries beginning May 3.

For more information about the Ray of Light Foundation, visit therayoflightfoundation.org