Top 10 Music Videos That Caused Controversy

The music video for Miley Cyrus’ 2013 track “Wrecking Ball” opens with a close up of her performing. There’s nothing controversial there. But since the video has over 1 billion views on YouTube, there’s a good chance you know what happens next. From the close up, the video begins cutting to Cyrus as she breaks down walls, gets cozy with a sledgehammer, and rides a wrecking ball both scantily-clad and fully nude. The clip was controversial for its sexual content, which many saw as Cyrus trying to escape her Disney persona. There was also the online feud it led to with the late Sinéad O'Connor, after O’Connor wrote an open letter reprimanding her.

Now, at this point you might be asking yourself, what video are they talking about? That’s a legitimate question, given that there’s no official music video for “Do What U Want.” But did you know that there was supposed to be one? Lady Gaga and the record company hyped it up weeks before it was set to be released on BitTorrent along with photos, BTS footage and more. But a clip for a song called “Do What U Want” featuring predator R. Kelly as a predatory doctor would’ve been…problematic, to say the least. Plus, director Terry Richardson had also been accused of sexual misconduct. Long story short, this one never officially saw the light of day, though it’s unclear exactly why.

Kanye West has been no stranger to controversy throughout his career, namely for things like anti-Semitic remarks. In 2016, the scandal involved naked celebrities. Well, actually they were synthetic figures. The choice to present these famous folks’ likeness in such a way was the main impetus for much of the talk surrounding the clip. This was particularly true due to the fact that one of said celebrities was Taylor Swift, who you might remember West had a pretty public beef with. Combine the wax figure paired with some pretty demeaning lyrics about her that were scandalous all on their own, and you can see the controversy.

Russian duo t.A.T.u. courted controversy with the release of the video for their 2002 hit, “All the Things She Said.” It’s an English take on their song, “Ya Soshla s Uma” which translates to “I've Lost My Mind.” The track, which tells a story of young women who are falling for one another, generated a lot of discussion by itself. Its accompanying music video, which notably sees girls kissing, only amplified the attention, and it’s safe to say few were left indifferent by it. Indeed, there were protests, and the video was even banned in places, including MTV Russia.

With her fourth studio album, “Stripped”, Christina Aguilera was ready to put her teen pop persona behind her and venture into new musical territory, as evidenced by “Dirrty.” Not only did the song itself show us a different side of her, but the music video followed suit. Today, the image of Xtina in that boxing ring showing off her best moves in chaps is instantly recognizable. But while the video may be Aguilera’s favorite and is now considered among her most iconic, not everyone could handle the new era at the time. Nevertheless, the real Christina Aguilera was out, and there was no putting that genie back in the bottle.

Often mentioned among the greatest hip hop tracks of all time, Eminem’s “Stan” tells a powerful story about the obsessiveness that can accompany intense fandom. Its music video matches that theme, and literally brings the lyrics to life without pulling any punches. The only thing is that many of the lyrics are, shall we say, not very family friendly. Besides the curse words, there are references to dangerous and criminal acts, including everything from driving under the influence to mistreatment and murder. Perhaps unsurprisingly, networks like MTV censored many of the words and visuals in the versions of the video they aired more widely.

Jason Aldean’s country song, “Try That in a Small Town” was put out in May of 2023 and debuted at number 35 on the Hot Country Songs chart soon after. However, beyond the country music world, it wasn’t necessarily on many peoples’ radars. That changed when the music video was released a few months later in July. The clip is filled with disturbing imagery, not helped by the song’s lyrics. The ensuing finished product is one many have analyzed as both racist and glorifying violence. The CMT network went so far as to remove it from their slate.

We’ve come a long way when it comes to LGBTQIA+ rights and representation. Unfortunately, there’s still a lot that needs to be done, which brings us to this entry. Lil Nas X’s “Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” is a proud, queer song. The music video follows suit, never shying away from spotlighting queer imagery in tandem with religious iconography. Many folks have widely praised the video for its LGBTQIA+ themes, and the explicit, unashamed way in which it showcases them. However, it also became a lightning rod for controversy, particularly among conservative groups. Nevertheless, it won Lil Nas X multiple MTV Video Music Awards, including the coveted Video of the Year.

The “Blurred Lines” controversy started even before the music video, with critics calling the song degrading and claiming it was reinforcing misogynistic assault myths. If you’ve seen the video, you know that it does nothing to dispel those criticisms. The most controversial is the unrated video, which features the fully dressed Robin Thicke, T.I. and Pharrell alongside three almost completely naked models. Even though there’s a non-nude version of the clip, the clothing doesn’t really undo the objectifying imagery and misogynistic tones. The video has been the subject of lots of backlash over the years, especially since one of the models, Emily Ratajkowski, later spoke about how Thicke harassed her on its set.

In 1989, before the video for “Like a Prayer” had been released, Pepsi inked a multi-million dollar deal with Madonna to have her and her song appear in an ad for the company. But while the commercial was innocent, the video was much bolder. Indeed, the latter provided commentary on sexuality, religion, and race through the inclusion of elements like a Black saint. Pepsi might’ve prayed that the video wouldn’t hurt them, but Christian groups objected and even Pope John Paul II advised his followers to stop consuming Madonna’s art. Ultimately, Pepsi ended their contract with the singer as a result of the backlash. Nowadays though, “Like a Prayer” is widely seen as one of Madonna’s most iconic videos.

There’s nothing scandalous about leaving comments on YouTube videos. So go ahead and give us your take on some of these controversies below.