Background and synopsis The director
Melina Matsoukas filmed the music video for "S&M" in Los Angeles on January 15 and 16, 2011. Matsoukas explained
Billboard that the video was inspired by Rihanna's "sadomasochist relationship with the press ... it isn't just about a bunch of whips and chains." On January 27, 2011, a behind-the-scenes clip was posted on Rihanna's
YouTube channel, and the full music video premiered on
Vevo on February 1, 2011. As the video opens, Rihanna is arrested into a press conference, where she is covered with plastic wrap and taped to a wall. Microphones and gagged reporters surround her. Drag queens
Willam Belli,
Detox Icunt, and
Morgan McMichaels appear in the video.
Reception and ban The music video was generally well received. A journalist for
The Huffington Post wrote, "Rihanna is perfectly good at being bad – and this video proves it", while a reviewer for
OK! called the video "red-hot, kinky and totally tongue-in-cheek". Willa Paskin of
New York similarly described it as a "goofy" take on the S&M-themed music videos typical of
Madonna and
Lady Gaga, while Matthew Perpetua of
Rolling Stone described the video as a "visual onslaught of candy-colored kinkiness" that viewers would enjoy despite its bright colors and sexually suggestive activities. Brad Wete of
Entertainment Weekly stated that Rihanna delivered the risque video he was expecting based on the song's lyrical content, and Jason Lipshutz of
Billboard praised the video's "exquisite set pieces that offer a twisted take on hardcore sexuality". It was flagged and age-restricted on YouTube for having mature content, although this restriction has since been lifted. On May 2, 2011, the
French Superior Audiovisual Council, after having received several complaints from viewers over the broadcasting of the video during the day due to its content, banned the music video from being broadcast before 10 p.m. along with
Tonight (I'm Lovin' You) by
Enrique Iglesias on all music channels and then was only broadcast the night without warning or with warning
Not advised to kids under 10 years old (in French:
déconseillé aux moins de 10 ans) or
Not advised to kids under 12 years old (
déconseillé aux moins de 12 ans) (depending on the channels) because of many sexual and sadomasochistic scenes. Rihanna responded to the news via Twitter, writing, "They watched '
Umbrella' ... I was full nude". Melina Matsoukas responded to the news in an interview with
MTV News, stating: "When I go out to make something, I kind of go out with the intention to get it banned – [well] not to get it banned ... but to make something provocative ... it's making an effect and people are having a dialogue about it, so, to me, that's successful."
Copyright infringement lawsuits The video was involved in further controversy when photographer
David LaChapelle sued Rihanna,
Island Def Jam and related parties for
copyright infringement. The lawsuit included claims of
trade dress infringement under the
Lanham Act,
unfair competition under New York state law and
unjust enrichment, all of which were later dismissed.Federal Judge
Shira A. Scheindlin of the
Southern District of New York denied Rihanna's motion to dismiss the copyright violation allegations, noting similarities between the works that a
trier of fact such as a jury should decide whether they were
substantial enough to be infringing: Rihanna and LaChapelle settled the case out of court for an undisclosed sum. Afterwards, he said the lawsuit was "not personal, it's strictly business", and that "musicians commonly pay to sample music or use someone's beats and there should be no difference when sampling an artist's visuals." ==Live performances and covers==