Madonna jokes about 'swelling from surgery' after Grammy criticism

After responding earlier this month to a torrent of online criticism about her look at the Grammy Awards, where her face appeared to have undergone plastic surgery, Madonna is now shrugging it off with humor.

"Look how cute i am now that swelling from surgery has gone down," the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, 64, tweeted Monday with a photo of herself sitting with arms crossed and a casually defiant expression, dressed in an oversized blue jacket, ripped jeans and a baseball cap reading "Spiritually Hungry." She added, "Lol," the abbreviation for "laughing out loud," and a laughing-till-I'm-crying emoji.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the post had garnered more than 9.9 million views.

The pop star had weathered often demeaning commentary that descended into insults and blatant ageism upon her presenting the award for best pop duo/group performance to Sam Smith and Kim Petras at the televised Grammys ceremony Feb. 5. Her face appeared visibly changed from the recent past, sparking speculation of extensive plastic surgery.

Two days later, in a tweet viewed 23.8 million times, the seven-time Grammy winner responded that, "The world is threatened by my power and my stamina. My intelligence and my will to survive. But they will never break me[. T]his is all the test."

The same day, in a long Instagram post, she wrote, "Instead of focusing on what I said in my speech which was about giving thanks for the fearlessness of artists like Sam and Kim," the latter being the first out transgender artist to win a major-category Grammy, "[m]any people chose to only talk about Close-up photos of me Taken with a long lens camera By a press photographer that Would distort anyone’s face!!"

She added, "Once again I am caught in the glare of ageism and misogyny That permeates the world we live in. A world that refuses to celebrate women past the age of 45 And feels the need to punish her If she continues to be strong willed, hard-working and adventurous."

Saying she has "never apologized for any of the creative choices I have made nor the way that I look or dress," Madonna maintained she has "been degraded by the media since the beginning of my career but I understand that this is all a test and I am happy to do the trailblazing so that all the women behind me can have an easier time in the years to come. … I look forward to many more years of subversive behavior -pushing boundaries- Standing up to the patriarchy - and Most of all enjoying my life."

The star, who over the decades has released 38 Billboard top-10 singles, including 12 no. 1 hits, embarks on her worldwide Celebration Tour on July 15, including four dates at Madison Square Garden in August and two at Barclays Center in December.