Rihanna is undoubtedly one of this generation's greatest, most-fascinating pop stars, and a lot of that interest has been inspired by her music videos. She seems to deal exclusively in striking visual imagery that is colorful, racy and pushes boundaries. Her latest clip, for "S&M," which premiered Tuesday (February 1), is no exception.
In the video, Rihanna puts herself in a number of suggestive situations, both as the dominated and the dominatrix. But rather than simply titillate, the clip is attempting to say something meaningful about Rihanna's sometimes-contentious relationship with the media, a topic that many pop stars have addressed in their videos over the years.
While "S&M" doesn't make a whole lot of explicit references to images of the past, the roots of the clip run deep and are extremely eclectic.
Perez Hilton
The celebrity blogger appears in two different places in the clip, but the one that leaves the biggest impression puts Hilton on the end of a leash held by Rihanna. Dressed as a glamorous housewife and walking across a perfectly manicured lawn, Rihanna leads Hilton to a fire hydrant, where he mimes urinating, then lowers to the ground to have his belly rubbed. Hilton is a perfect example of Rihanna's complicated relationship with the media, as he has said some negative things about the singer on his blog but will still appear in the video (and in a subversive role, no less).
The celebrity blogger appears in two different places in the clip, but the one that leaves the biggest impression puts Hilton on the end of a leash held by Rihanna. Dressed as a glamorous housewife and walking across a perfectly manicured lawn, Rihanna leads Hilton to a fire hydrant, where he mimes urinating, then lowers to the ground to have his belly rubbed. Hilton is a perfect example of Rihanna's complicated relationship with the media, as he has said some negative things about the singer on his blog but will still appear in the video (and in a subversive role, no less).
The Newspaper Dress
In the press conference scene (which finds Rihanna bound behind a wall of plastic wrap), the star is wearing a dress made of newspapers that looks an awful lot like the John Galliano creation Sarah Jessica Parker wore on an episode of "Sex and the City." Is it a comment on the limited usefulness of the press or simply a fashion statement?
The Circle of Microphones
In the same scene, Rihanna is surrounded by a circle of microphones — an image that keeps popping up in recent music videos. R. Kelly used it in his clip for "When a Woman Loves," and Britney Spears recently tweeted a similar image that will be appearing in her upcoming clip for "Hold It Against Me." Interestingly, both of those artists have had extremely volatile public lives and have been both boosted up and burned by the press — as has Rihanna herself.
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In the same scene, Rihanna is surrounded by a circle of microphones — an image that keeps popping up in recent music videos. R. Kelly used it in his clip for "When a Woman Loves," and Britney Spears recently tweeted a similar image that will be appearing in her upcoming clip for "Hold It Against Me." Interestingly, both of those artists have had extremely volatile public lives and have been both boosted up and burned by the press — as has Rihanna herself.