FROM a naked Emily Ratajkowski in the infamous Blurred Lines video to stars shedding their squeaky-clean image – pop has always pushed the boundaries when it comes to sex appeal.
This week, Katy Perry released a teaser for her epic comeback music video, which has already set tongues wagging.
Known for pushing the envelope in pop videos, fans are now calling her latest effort her sexiest yet.
The provocative clip for Woman’s World features Orlando Bloom’s missus dancing seductively with a number of scantily clad women.
Posing as a sexy worker, she brandishes a diamond-studded drill and one shot sees the bikini-clad singer, the daughter of Pentecostal pastors, stick a petrol pump into her backside to ‘refuel’.
According to sources, Katy’s aim with the video was to “shock and remind people why she has so many hits under her belt and was at the top of her game for so long.”
Following the clip’s release, we look back at some of the sexiest music videos ever.
When Madonna dropped her music video for Justify My Love in 1991, it was met with an avalanche of public outcry and criticism.
Many people were up in arms about the raunchy nature of the video, which featured sexually ambiguous characters and images that critics claimed were borderline pornography.
The black-and-white video shot in Paris was slapped with a ban on MTV and several other channels.
It opens with an upset Madge carrying a suitcase down a hotel hallway and transitions to her engaging in sexual acts with a man she meets.
The clip ends with her leaving the hallway and looking back with glee after the encounter with the man.
To say that Chris Isaak’s Wicked Game music video is a predictable entry to every countdown would be an understatement. It has topped several – including one by Rolling Stone.
The steamy clip, released in 1989, followed a simple format – Chris, model Helena Christensen, black and white cinematography, and a beach.
Chris and Helena seemed to have real chemistry as they made out topless for the duration of the video.
Directed by Herb Ritts, it captured the song’s essence, which is about love, passion, and desire.
Although Selena Gomez made a name for herself on Barney & Friends and the Disney Channel, there was nothing PG about her 2021 music video, Hands To Myself.
In the song, the star sings about her constant need to touch her lover. The accompanying video shows the singer breaking into the home of the guy she fancies.
While there, she strips off to her lingerie and heels, tries his clothes, and suggestively gyrates around on his bed while wearing only underwear.
The video also shows model Christopher Mason in a passionate sex scene with Selena, touching and kissing her body.
Convincing supermodel Kate Moss to pole dance while in her underwear is an incredible feat but that is what the White Stripes did in 2003.
In the I Just Don’t Know What to Do With Myself clip, Kate starts on a stool and seductively dances her way onto a nearby pole.
She then shows off her impressive skills as she slides up and down the pole.
As the song fades, Kate can be seen enticingly falling to the ground. In order to make the most of their coup, the band makes no appearance and gives Kate the whole clip.
Before the release of her album Stripped in 2002, Christina Aguilera was seen as the squeaky-clean pop princess who could do no wrong.
Releasing hits such as Genie In a Bottle and Come On Over, she established a strong teen following and was seen as a leading figure of the bubble gum pop era.
But that image was shattered following the release of Dirrty, a hip-hop and R&B song that had one of the sexiest music videos of Christina’s career to date.
Filmed in an abandoned newspaper print building transformed into a boxing ring, it showed Christina in a dramatic makeover, wearing a micro skirt that showed off her underwear.
She can be seen gyrating and performing seductively with a troop of dancers wearing lingerie and crop tops. The shocked fans who were unfamiliar with her new Xtina persona.
The chaps Christina wore in the video have become synonymous with her career. She even recreated the iconic look for the People’s Choice Awards in 2021.
When Rihanna released her album Good Girl Gone Bad in 2007, she stuck to that sentiment for most of her subsequent releases.
But when she released the visuals for the extremely suggestive song S&M, which was about her liking chains, whips and BDSM, critics said she had gone too far.
In the clip, she can be seen tied up in leather bondage gear as she performs suggestive dance moves with her dancers.
The video even proved too hot for YouTube – it was restricted and banned in 11 countries. UK TV regulators Ofcom also said the video and ruled that some scenes “could have potentially dangerous consequences if imitated by children”.
A year later, her music video for Pour It Up was pulled down just 10 minutes after it was uploaded on Vevo.
This time, the singer was seen writhing around in a thong and diamante bra while pole dancers dancers twerked around her.
The song was titled Booty and was sung by two of the curvaceous women in pop music: Jennifer Lopez and Iggy Azalea.
It was no surprise then that the accompanying music video focused on their derrieres throughout.
Dressed in barely-there swimsuits, the pair twerk, splash water on each other and playfully touch each other’s bodies.
The 2014 sexually charged clip did not go down too well with some social media users who took to their keyboards to vent their disapproval.
One fan raged: “J-LO you’re talented but come on really? You’re playing the BUM card to sell records! It’s not about the voice anymore.”
When Duran Duran met with directors Kevin Godley and Lol Creme to talk about the music video for Girls On Film, they didn’t have TV in mind.
They were making the clip for nightclubs where there was no limit on what could be shown. The directors have said in interviews that they were instructed to make “something erotic”.
With that directive in mind, they curated a “night version” that many people say was softcore pornography. It showed some models wearing see-through lingerie while others had on much less.
There was mud wrestling, pillow fights and sumo wrestling. Some even rubbed ice on their bare boobs. Needless to say, this didn’t go down too well with the newly formed MTV.
The video was slapped with a ban but thanks to its racy nature, the song was kept in the charts for ages.
Godley recently claimed: “I don’t honestly think it would get made today. The system that operates today, it’s not as free and easy as it used to be. … I think everybody would possibly be too scared to do it because they may get torn apart on social media.”
Britney Spears‘ I’m a Slave 4 U music video was a far cry from the innocent days of her debut, Baby One More Time.
The song spoke about how Brit is willing to do anything to please her lover. When the music video premiered, fans were shocked that the star had transformed into a sex icon.
In the clip, shot by The Hunger Games director Francis Lawrence, Britney grinds and whines alongside sweaty dancers in an apocalyptic building.
One scene shows the singer licking the face of one of the dancers as they touch her suggestively. The video paved the way for her iconic MTV Video Music Awards performance, in which she dances with a 7-foot albino python.
In 2000, D’Angelo released his song Untitled (How Does It Feel) with a headline-grabbing music video.
The single shot featured the soul crooner singing about passionately making love to his partner, while wearing nothing but a crucifix.
It showed close-up and long shots of D’Angelo’s ripped body and, at times, would pan down as if it was about to expose his nether region.
The video, which continued with shots of sweat tricking down his abs and arms, split public opinion – while some praised him for his bravery and artistry, others said it was too sexual.
It has since been named one of the best music videos shot by several publications.
