Madonna currently resides primarily in England - with a $6.8 million home in Marylebone and a $13 million mansion (Ashcombe) in Wiltshire. Despite spending markedly less time within the United States, Madonna publicly endorsed Wesley Clark for the United States Democratic Party 2004 presidential nomination in December 2003.In 2004, Madonna embarked on her 'Re-Invention World Tour', during which she played 56 dates across the United States, Canada, and Europe. The tour explored social, political and religious themes, and included images of yoga, sacred geometry, tarot cards and astrology, as well as Judeo-Christian iconography such as the tree of life.The tour became the highest earning tour of the year 2004, grossing 125 million dollars according to Billboard.
Once again proving Madonna was still present and at the top. The tour ended with the Palestinian and Israeli flags side by side. Many believe that Madonna's next passion is protecting the children of Israel and Palestine from continuous fighting. Her musical horizons also expanded as she added a cover version of the John Lennon favorite 'Imagine' to her live repertoire. Madonna met Fahrenheit 9/11 filmmaker Michael Moore backstage for a photo opportunity during the tour and openly embraced political commentary in her act, which included a scathing indictment of George W. Bush and the 2003 Iraq war.
Also, in 2004 Madonna became one of the five founding members of the UK Music Hall of Fame, joining Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Bob Marley, and U2 as automatic inductees.After a brief battle with Warner Brothers Music (with whom she shared her record label Maverick at a percentage of 40/60 respectively), Madonna sold her shares in the label and announced that she is no longer involved in its dealings.
In the same month, Madonna announced that she had adopted the name Esther, a tribute to the ancient Persian Queen who helped the Jewish people. In an interview with ABC, she said: 'This is in no way a negation of who my mother is. In a metaphysical world, I wanted to attach myself to a different name.'This decision and much of the artistic imagery used in her recent work have been driven by Madonna's intense study of Kabbalah at the controversial Kabbalah Centre, and her abandonment of Catholicism. The faith is popular among a number of other celebrities, some of whom were introduced to it by Madonna herself. Devotees include Elizabeth Taylor, Britney Spears, Demi Moore, Ashton Kutcher, Winona Ryder, Roseanne Barr, Jerry Hall, Jeff Goldblum, Courtney Love and Paris Hilton.