Who Is Estere Ciccone, Madonna’s Adopted Daughter?

Estere Ciccone is the adopted daughter of Madonna Ciccone, the globally acclaimed singer and actress. Alongside her twin sister, Stella Ciccone, Estere was adopted from the Malawian children’s home known as Mchinji orphanage in 2017.

The girl’s adoption raised a lot of dust after their biological father, Mr. Adam Mwale, said that he did not know that it was a permanent arrangement. However, the dust soon settled after Madonna’s legal team and Malawian locals accused him of neglecting his children after the death of their mother. Estere and her twin are now residents of the United States and can be found on Instagram.

Summary of Estere Ciccone’s Biography

  • Full Name: Estere Ciccone
  • Gender: Female
  • Date of Birth: 24th of August, 2012
  • Estere Ciccone’s Age: 11 years old
  • Ethnicity: African-American
  • Nationality: American
  • Zodiac Sign: Virgo
  • Religion: Christianity
  • Marital Status: Single
  • Estere Ciccone’s Biological Parents: Adam and Patrice Mwale
  • Estere Ciccone’s Adoptive Parent: Madonna
  • Siblings: Lourdes Leon, Rocco Ritchie, David Banda Ciccone Ritchie, Mercy James, and Stella Ciccone
  • Famous For: Being the daughter of Madonna
  • Estere Ciccone’s Instagram: cicconetwins

Estere Ciccone is Malawian By Birth

Estere Ciccone is a twin. Madonna’s adopted daughter came into the world with her sister, Stella Ciccone, on the 24th of August, 2012. She was born in her home country of Malawi to a peasant farmer named Adam Mwale and his full-time housewife, Patricia Mwale, who passed on after giving birth to the twins.

Originally called Estere Mwale, Estere Ciccone is a Malawian citizen by birth. Alongside her twin, they were abandoned by their father at a local orphanage called Mchinji orphanage. The children’s home location is towards Malawi’s western border with Zambia. Adam went ahead to get married to a new wife, leaving his newborn twins at the facility.

Estere Ciccone
Adam Nwale image source

Her Mother Died While Giving Birth to Her

According to reports, the twins’ biological mother, Patricia Mwale, was giving birth in one of the local hospitals in the country when she ran into a lot of complications. Reports said Patricia had to resort to a caesarian section as the only means when the natural one failed. Things turned out for the worse when, after delivery, the poor woman started bleeding profusely.

The bleeding was so excessive that it proved difficult for the medics to stop. Besides, it was alleged that there was a dearth of qualified health workers to take care of such cases in the health facility. Patricia continued to bleed until life slipped out of her. Following her death, Adam Mwale, the peasant farmer father of the children, took his twin daughters to an orphanage and promised to be visiting them every single day.

A couple of years after the twin’s mother had passed away, Adam decided to remarry, and knowing that the twins were still in an orphanage, one would expect Adam to bring the little girls home and put them in the custody of his new wife, but he never did that.

Madonna Adopted the Twin Girls in 2017

Estere Ciccone
Madonna Louise Ciccone image source

Madonna Louise Ciccone is a globally acclaimed vocalist, music composer, and actress. The queen of pop, as she is popularly called, is also revered for her big heart that has led to so many charitable courses. This includes the adoption of abandoned children from orphanages in Africa, especially Malawi.

It was Madonna’s philanthropic escapades across Malawi that led the pop star to adopt Estere Ciccone and her twin, Stella, who lost their mother and were in dire need of motherly care. The twins had already clocked four years old in the orphanage where their biological dad took them when Madonna came to the rescue.

When the adoption rumors of the twins started making the rounds, Madonna was quizzed about it, and the singer denied having such plans. Given that Madonna has so many philanthropic projects in Malawi, she usually visits the country to check up on them, especially the children’s health facility in Blantyre and her organization. This was exactly what she claimed to be doing in the African country while processing adoption papers for Estere Ciccone and her twin. Madonna totally declared all speculations of adoption to be false, but it turned out the other way round.

After finalizing the adoption of the girls, Madonna took to her official Instagram handle to announce the good news. According to what the singer wrote, her joy knew no bounds that the girls were now part of their Family. Madonna also remembered to express gratitude to the Malawians who contributed to making the adoption process a success. With their adoption done and dusted, the identical twin girls earned recognition as citizens of the US.

That was obviously not the first time that the music star would go to Malawi to adopt children. Her first and second adoptive children, David Banda and Mercy James, also came from the same country.

Estere Ciccone’s Father Denied Giving His Daughters To Madonna Permanently

In February 2017, following Madonna’s announcement that she had successfully completed adoption procedures for Estere Ciccone and her twin sister, rumors started making the rounds that the girls’ biological father, Mr. Adam Mwale, didn’t understand exactly what transpired during the process for adoption.

Daily Mail went to interview the peasant farmer to confirm. When quizzed, Mr. Adam said he never realized that Madonna was taking his daughters away permanently. Trying to buttress his point, the peasant farmer also denied consenting to a permanent arrangement with the pop singer.

According to Mwale, he first met representatives of the singer who told him that the twins had caught their boss’s attention and she liked them. The reps also told him Madonna would love to take them back with her to the United States and, after putting them through school, would bring them back home to Malawi. Going on, Adam insisted he was convinced that it was a case of fostering and not permanent adoption. When quizzed on his reason for consenting, the Malawian farmer said he saw it as a wonderful opportunity for Estere and Stella.

There was subsequently a court hearing on the case, and Madonna’s legal team put the blame on Adam for abandoning the twins after the death of their mother. The locals obviously agree with Madonna’s team as they also blamed their kinsman for the same reasons. A few others, however pointed out that the process was flawed because the Malawian government gave Madonna a special exception to laws that would otherwise thwart the efforts of non-residents from adopting kids to take abroad.

In Mwale’s defense, the farmer said he was the one who took the girls to the orphanage and never abandoned them. Adam also narrated how he made sure to visit them on a daily basis. Madonna seemed to be less concerned about the man’s claim of ignorance and those who questioned her actions, as she never responded to any of the allegations.

Why Did Madonna Decide To Adopt More Kids

The multiple Grammy laureate is the type of woman that loves to hear the patter of tiny feet in her home and that was exactly her answer when quizzed about her reason for bringing more children into her household. According to the musician cum actor, she needed to feel enough kids “dancing in her kitchen.”

Talking to PEOPLE in 2017, Madonna said it is akin to asking why people fall in love with the people they fall in love with. Going on, the singer said she also realized that there are so many children out there who are in dire need of a place to call home and she would just ask herself “what are you waiting for? Just go ahead and do it.”

Even her older children gave her their full support for adopting the twins from Malawi, the superstar singer said.

Madonna Shares a Strong Bond With Estere Ciccone

After the girls came to live with the rest of the family in the singer’s Beverly Hills mansion, the bonding commenced. Madonna would celebrate all their birthdays and for the twin’s eighth anniversary, the award-winning music superstar took it all the way to Jamaica where she organized a lavish event in celebration of the girls. The ensuing video footage showed the pop star enjoying with her twins.

The proximity between mother and children is really strong and many have described it as unbreakable. While trotting the globe for performances and tours, Madonna takes her little girls along. In fact, Estere Ciccone and Stella were spotted among the singer’s background dancers during her Madam X tour in 2019.

Madonna’s social media handles are suffused with pictures of the twins and from what is obvious, the pop star enjoys spending quality time with the girls. The female singer once tweeted a snapshot she took with the twins while traveling to Portugal on the 3rd of June 2018. The girls were adorned in identical attires, looking spectacular with their adoptive mother.

We can only say that Estere Ciccone and her twin Stella Ciccone are fortunate to end up with a mother like Madonna. Now, they have the opportunity of growing up in a caring and loving home, including a healthy environment. In fact, the girls couldn’t have wished for a better mum.

Estere Ciccone Has a Total of Ten Siblings

From her birth family, Estere Ciccone has five biological siblings, some of who she never met. This includes her identical twin sister Stella Ciccone. In her adoptive home, she has four siblings; two are Madonna’s biological children while the other two were adopted.

Lourdes Maria Ciccone Leon is the first child of the world-famous artist who she had from her relationship with actor and personal trainer, Carlos Leon, in 1996. Madonna’s other biological child, Rocco Ritchie, was born when the singer was married to Guy Ritchie. Rocco was welcomed into their family on the 11th of August 2000, making him four years younger than his big sister, Lourdes.

Madonna’s first adopted child, David Banda who is now known as David Ciccone Ritchie, hails from Malawi. He was adopted from the Home of Hope orphanage located in the capital of Lilongwe. David came into the singer’s family in 2006 when he was barely one year old. The last of Estere Ciccone’s adoptive siblings is Mercy James who is also from Malawi. Madonna adopted her from an orphanage located in Blantyre, the country’s business capital.

Meet Estere’s Twin Stella Ciccone

Stella is Estere’s identical twin from Adam and Patricia Mwale. The little girl is very close to her twin as they are seen everywhere together. Though they are still below the age of ten, the twins are already social media users. They operate a single social media account on Instagram. They can be found @cicconetwins where they share pictures taken with Madonna and their siblings among others.

The identical duo appear to be doing great. Up to now, they have never been enmeshed in any of their mother’s scandals and controversies.

Quick Facts

Category Information
Full Name Estere Ciccone
Date of Birth August 24, 2012
Place of Birth Malawi
Nationality Likely holds dual nationality: Malawian and American
Adoption Adopted by Madonna in February 2017
Sibling Twin sister, Stelle Ciccone
Notable Information Estere, along with her twin sister Stelle, was adopted from Malawi by Madonna. Madonna has four adopted children from Malawi, including Estere and Stelle, David Banda, and Mercy James. Estere and her sister have appeared on Madonna’s social media channels, sharing moments from their lives with their famous mother.

When Did Estere Ciccone Become Madonna’s Adopted Daughter?

While Estere Ciccone was born in 2012, Madonna adopted her in 2017.

Who is Estere Ciccone’s Twin Sister?

Estere’s twin sister is named Stella Ciccone.

Is Estere Ciccone’s Biological Father, Adam Mwale, Still Alive?

Mr. Adam Mwale is still very much alive and resides in Malawi with his new wife.

How Old is Estere Ciccone When Madonna Adopted Her?

Estere Ciccone was five years old when Madonna adopted her and her twin sister, Stella. The superstar singer commenced the adoption process when they were four years old.

How Old Are Madonna’s Twins When She Adopted Them?

Madonna’s twin daughters were five years old when she adopted them in 2017. The girls were born on the 24th of August 2012.

How Many Siblings Does Estere Ciccone Have?

Estere Ciccone has five siblings. They are her twin sister, Stella, elder sisters, Lourdes (Madonna’s biological daughter) and Mercy (Madonna’s adopted daughter), and elder brothers, Rocco (Madonna’s biological son) and David (Madonna’s adopted son).

Who is Estere Ciccone’s Biological Mother, and Where is She?

Estere Ciccone’s biological mother is Patricia Mwale, and she is dead. She died while giving birth to Estere and her twin sister Stella on the 24th of August 2012.

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