Madonna is looking back on the difficult years she spent moving from one apartment to another before becoming a global music star.

The Queen of Pop, 67, looked back on 1982 in a recent talk with the Interview Magazine, detailing a time when she had little money and no permanent place to live.

"I had no money. I was really a scavenger," she told the news outlet.

The singer explained that she stayed wherever she could, even moving between friends' apartments and short-term rentals.

"I lived in people's apartments. They would let me stay for a few months, then I would sublet someplace for six months, then I would move again. I was constantly getting kicked out," she recalled.

Madonna also revealed she lived in illegal lofts in New York's Garment District, where many artists and designers rented rooms inside commercial buildings.

She said the area was full of creative people making clothes, fabrics and artwork, which made it an exciting place to be.

However, she often had to move because some neighbours made her feel unsafe.

"If there was a weirdo living on one floor, I'd go to the next floor," she said.

Madonna also recalled living near a man who made adult films and repeatedly asked her to appear in them.

"He was constantly knocking on my door and freaking me out," she said. "I had to go to another floor."

The singer eventually found success after releasing her self-titled debut album in 1983.