Queen: How They Never Gave Up After Freddie Mercury's Failing Health and Death

Queen frontman Freddie Mercury became HIV positive in Easter 1987.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Good Songs from Albums That Alienated Fans

Some albums are usually criticised, yet some critics praise songs as highlights from the album. So here my twelve examples of 30 good songs from albums that alienated fans.

1. "Bad Girl" and "Rain" by Madonna from Erotica (1992)

Despite the album's bad publicity, the third and fifth singles from the Queen of Pop's 1992 album, "Bad Girl" and "Rain" were pop ballads and critically praised. However those two songs did not become Top 10 hit in Madonna's homeland America, with the former barely became a Top 40 hit and the latter became a Top 20 hit. 

Had Erotica's lead single been "Deeper and Deeper", then "Bad Girl" would have been a number-one hit, plus "Erotica" would never been a single at all, a theory started by some fans. The music video for "Bad Girl" also starred Christopher Walken as an angel, a role that he would later play in the 1995 supernatural horror The Prophecy and the "Rain" music video had a cameo role by Koichi Sakamoto from the Japanese synthpop trio Yellow Magic Orchestra as the director.

Here's a video for "Bad Girl":

Here's a video for "Rain":

2. "Enter Sandman", "The Unforgiven", "Nothing Else Matters" and "Sad but True" by Metallica from Metallica (1991)

Though it has been considered as one of the heavy metal band's greatest works, it alienated longtime fans when it was released in 1991. The best-selling black album had good hits such as "Enter Sandman", "The Unforgiven", "Nothing Else Matters" and "Sad but True". "Enter Sandman" has remained one of the most-played songs by the band since its 1991 live debut.

"The Unforgiven" and "Nothing Else Matters" are heavy rock ballads, with the former being a reverse of their previous ballads (melodic verse with a heavier chorus) and the latter being a usual rock ballad. The first three singles were US Top 40 hits, while the last was a Top 100 hit.

Though I'm not a fan of heavy metal music, these songs are truly hard rock classics.

Here's a video for "Enter Sandman":

Here's a video for "The Unforgiven":


Here's a video for "Nothing Else Matters":


Here's a video for "Sad but True":

3. "Warped", "My Friends" and "Aeroplane" by Red Hot Chili Peppers from One Hot Minute (1995)

Who could remember Dave Navarro from Jane's Addiction replaced John Frusciante as the guitarist of alt-rock legends Red Hot Chili Peppers. Well, One Hot Minute received backlash from fans and most songs from the albums are no longer played by the band.

However, "Warped" is an alt-metal meets Queen, with "My Friends" being a continuation of "Under the Bridge" and "Aeroplane" is a feelgood funk rock song.

Here's a video for "Warped":


Here's a video for "My Friends":
 

Here's a video for "Aeroplane":

4. "Ava Adore" and "Perfect" by The Smashing Pumpkins from Adore (1998)

The Smashing Pumpkins' fourth album Adore alienated several fans as they went through a new phase, switching from hipster alt-rock to more darkish gothic rock. Not only that, it became the only album by the band as a trio due to the firing of drummer Jimmy Chamberlain. 

However, the two singles from the album, "Ava Adore" and "Perfect" became Top 40 hits in the UK and you gotta love the one-shot music video for "Ava Adore" followed by the sequel to "1979", "Perfect".

Here's a video for "Ava Adore":

Here's a video for "Perfect":

5. "Androgyny", "Cherry Lips" and "Shut Your Mouth" by Garbage from Beautiful Garbage (2001)

Remember when Garbage lead singer Shirley Manson cropped her mid-length red hair and later dyed it platinum blonde? The alternative rock band's third album Beautiful Garbage alienated fans with their new pop-influenced sound, so much that several songs from the album is no longer played by the band.

Still, the highlights are "Androgyny" (Blondie-meets-Eurythmics), "Cherry Lips" (as if Madonna wrote that song) and "Shut Your Mouth" (proto-Bleed Like Me era). All were UK Top 40 hits.

Here's a video for "Androgyny":

Here's a video for "Cherry Lips":


Here's a video for "Shut Your Mouth":

6. "New", "Ex-Girlfriend" and "Simple Kind of Life" by No Doubt from Return of Saturn (2000)

Remember when No Doubt lead singer Gwen Stefani dyed her platinum blonde (ironically, she is a natural brunette) pink sometime in 1999? The result was the band's fourth album Return of Saturn, which like Beautiful Garbage, was a fan-alienating album. 

"New" was the taster for the album and also promoted the 1999 film Go, "Ex-Girlfriend" and "Simple Kind of Life" were moderately successful. The first two were UK Top 40 hits, while the latter was the album's only US Top 40 hit.

Here's a video for "New":

Here's a video for "Ex-Girlfriend":

Here's a video for "Simple Kind of Life":

7. "Daysleeper" by R.E.M. from Up (1998)

Several fans of alt-rock pioneers R.E.M. were angered with the band's new electronic sound after the departure of drummer Peter Buck in 1997. The band's first album as a trio, Up met with unfavourable response. However, "Daysleeper" was a Top 40 hit in the UK.

Here's a video for "Daysleeper":

8. "You Rock My World" and "Cry" by Michael Jackson from Invincible (2001)

The King of Pop's highly-anticipated Invincible album was released in October 2001, however its hopes of success was cut short due to 9/11. Because of this, Jackson did not tour at all except doing a concert celebrating his 30 years as a performer and blamed his record company Sony on the album's failure to become a bigger hit. 

Still, "You Rock My World" and "Cry" had moderate success and became one of his last hits in his lifetime, also if he was still alive then he would've performed those songs for his This Is It concert series. The former is last to feature the singer.

Here's a video for "You Rock My World":


Here's the video for "Cry":

9. "Feel Good Time" and "Trouble" by Pink from Try This (2003)

Remember when Pink went more punkish with Try This? Well say no more. American pop rocker Pink (real name Alecia Moore) released "Feel Good Time" as a collaboration with producer William Orbit, which was included in Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle soundtrack and the lead international single for her 2003 album.

The next single "Trouble" was also a hit, however like "Feel Good Time", it was a moderate hit in the Billboard Hot 100. Because of this, it resulted with Try This becoming a commercial failure. However, during from this album to end of the Funhouse era, Pink would sport a nose ring.

Here's the video for "Feel Good Time":



Here's the video for "Trouble":

10. "Russian Roulette", "Rude Boy", "Rockstar 101" and "Te Amo" by Rihanna from Rated R (2009)

Not completely alienated fans, but it wasn't successful as her 2007 million-seller Good Girl Gone Bad. "Russian Roulette" and "Rude Boy" were big hits in the UK and the US, while "Rockstar 101" never charted in the UK and "Te Amo" never charted in the US at all. 

Still some longtime fans like the rockier image of the Barbadian singer.

Here's a video for "Russian Roulette":



Here's a video for "Rude Boy":


Here's a video for "Rockstar 101":


Here's a video for "Te Amo":

11. "The Dope Show" by Marilyn Manson from Mechanical Animals (1998)

You know when industrial shock rocker Marilyn Manson briefly changed his gothic industrial look to more Bowie-esque look in 1998? Say no more, as fans were very alienated with the glam rock-inspired album Mechanical Animals, which became his eponymous band's most successful album, with over 15 million copies sold worldwide. 

There's two songs that is considered to be the highlights of the album and they are "The Dope Show" and "Coma White".

Here's a video for "The Dope Show":

Here's a video for "Coma White":

12. "Did It Again" and "Breathe" by Kylie Minogue from Impossible Princess (1997)

The Aussie Queen of Pop tried to go less pop with the trip hop-influenced Impossible Princess album (though in the UK, it was the third self-titled album by her due renaming it after the death of Princess Diana of Wales), which actually predated Madonna's 1998 trip hop-influenced album Ray of Light (which came out on March 1998) by four months. 

Though it was a critical and commercial success in her native Australia, the critical and commercial reception of the album in Britain when it came out on May 1998 was negative, with popular magazines Q and NME gave it two-star rating and a four out of ten rating, respectively.

However, Q has since praised the album in 2003, when it was called a "hidden gem" and considered it as a lost pop masterpiece. Despite this, Minogue went disco with the 2000 comeback Light Years after departing from Deconstruction Records. Two songs that can be considered one of the highlights are the singles "Did It Again" and "Breathe".

Here's the video for "Did It Again":

Here's the video for "Breathe":

Beyonce Releases New Album Earlier Than Expected

You know about the highly anticipated fifth album by Beyonce Knowles that was going to come out in 2014, well you're a little early as the R&B singer made a surprise release of the new album with no announcement or promotion yesterday on the iTunes.

The new album, which is self-titled, consists of 14 tracks and 17 music videos with three from songs that did not make on the album. One notable track that did not make it, but the video did was "Grown Woman", which appeared in a Pepsi advert earlier this year.

The new album is out now and the CD release comes out on Friday 20th December, courtesy of Columbia Records.

Almost 13 Years of How ITV Introduced Music Reality TV

Gosh, not only Britain's third television network ITV had a bunch of talent shows airing which were not like any other shows airing nowadays.

Since 2001, ITV has had "music reality" shows in chronological order: Popstars (2001-2002), Pop Idol (2001-2003), The X Factor (2004-present), Soapstar Superstar (2006-2007), Britain's Got Talent (2007-present) and Popstar to Operastar (2010-2011)

Popstars (2001-2002)

The British version of the Popstars franchise was launched on 13 January 2001, which proved to be a big hit for ITV. The series was won by pop group Hear'Say, which featured then-unknown Myleene Klass, Kym Marsh and Susanne Shaw. The runner-up group Liberty (later Liberty X) proved to be a bigger success as they would have Top 20 hits. The show decided to change the image after the chart rivalry between Hear'Say and Liberty X in 2001 and you guessed it. 

Liberty X won the rivalry and Kym Marsh left Hear'Say sometime in 2002 and the new line-up of the 2001 winner proved to be unfavourable by the public, resulting in their split in mid 2002. Liberty X continued success until their 2007 breakup. They finally reunited in 2012 for ITV2's The Big Reunion, which also reunited pop groups Atomic Kitten, 911, Five, B*Witched, Honeyz and Blue.

The second series Popstars: The Rivals, became more of a serious talent show than a Making the Band-esque show. The show decided to do a battle of the sexes theme, by having a boyband and a girl group competing against each other for the Christmas number-one spot.

One True Voice became the winning boyband, while Girls Aloud became the winning girl group. Girls Aloud became the true winner of the rivals as they became more successful than Liberty X. One True Voice released one more single before breaking up in August 2003.

Girls Aloud would outlive Liberty X by lasting for ten years, despite a 2009-2012 hiatus. The band broke up in spring 2013.

Despite the success, a third Popstars series never materialised as elements of it was added to what would later become The X Factor.

However the Popstars franchise has continued, with the German version becoming the most successful.

Winners: Hear'Say (2001), Girls Aloud (2002)

Runner-ups: Liberty X (2001), One True Voice (2002)

Judges: Nigel Lythgoe (2001, also known as "Nasty Nigel", now a judge on So You Think You Can Dance), Nicki Chapman (2001, later became a judge in Pop Idol), Paul Adam (2001), Pete Waterman (2002, veteran music legend known for introducing Kylie Minogue, Jason Donovan, Rick Astley and Sonia to the charts, then Pop Idol judge), Louis Walsh (2002, known for managing Westlife, future X Factor judge) and Geri Halliwell (2002, formerly known as Ginger Spice)

Presenters: Davina McCall (2001-2002)

Pop Idol (2001-2003)

This show was created by ex-Spice Girls manager Simon Fuller and introduced Simon Cowell (who was already known for managing Robson and Jerome and Sinitta) to the television audience, plus it featured former Popstars judge Nicki Chapman, music producer Pete Waterman and Capital FM radio presenter (I don't use the term "radio DJ") Neil Fox, also known as "Foxy" and "Dr. Fox", now on Magic 105.4.

The first series was won by Will Young, beating Gareth Gates to triumphant victory. Darius Campbell finished third. All three finalists became successful in the UK charts. The second series, which was aired in 2003, was won by Michelle MacManus, beating Mark Rhodes. Sam Nixon finished third. All three had moderate success, with the latter two becoming well-known presenters on CBBC.

The third series failed to materialise due to the development of The X Factor. There has some attempts to revive it, but failed to happen.

The X Factor (2004-present)

Soapstar Superstar (2006-2007)

Britain's Got Talent (2007-present)

Popstar to Operastar (2010-2011)

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

New Sound Albums

You know when singers and bands usually get bored with their usual sound and that they would like to alter their sound on their album. The result is... a new sound album.

Here's my examples of artists with a new sound album:

The Beatles (main canon and in chronological order only, excludes American-only releases and Magical Mystery Tour)

• Please Please Me (1963) - Rock and roll (proto-rock)
• With the Beatles (1963) - Pop rock
• A Hard Day's Night (1964) - Pop
• Beatles for Sale (1964) - Folk rock
• Help! (1965) - Pop rock
• Rubber Soul (1965) - Folk rock
• Revolver (1966) - Psychedelic rock
• Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967) - Baroque pop
• The Beatles (1968) - Hard rock
• Yellow Submarine (1969) - Psychedelic rock
• Let It Be (recorded 1969, released 1970) - Rock
• Abbey Road (1969) - Blues rock

Madonna (excludes Who's That Girl despite being credited, she only sings in four of nine songs in the soundtrack)

• Madonna (1983) - Dance-pop
• Like a Virgin (1984) - New wave
• True Blue (1986) - Dance rock
• Like a Prayer (1989) - Pop rock
• I'm Breathless (1990) - Swing
• Erotica (1992) - New jack swing
• Bedtime Story (1994) - R&B
• Evita (1996) - Pop ballad
• Ray of Light (1998) - Electronic
• Music (2000) - Dance-pop
• American Life (2003) - Folk pop
• Confessions on a Dance Floor (2005) - Disco house
• Hard Candy (2008) - Dance
• MDNA (2012) - EDM

Albums releasing in December 2013

Release date	Artist	Album	Genre	Label	Ref.
December 3	Boston	Life, Love & Hope	Hard rock	Frontiers	[641]
December 6	Childish Gambino	Because the Internet	Hip hop	Glassnote, Island	[642]
December 9	Exo	Miracles in December	Christmas, R&B, ballad	SM	[643]
	Ithilien	From Ashes to the Frozen Land		Mighty Music	[644]
December 10	E-40	The Block Brochure: Welcome to the Soil 4	Hip hop		[645]
	E-40	The Block Brochure: Welcome to the Soil 5	Hip hop		[645]
	E-40	The Block Brochure: Welcome to the Soil 6	Hip hop		[645]
	Evergreen Terrace	Dead Horses	Metalcore, melodic hardcore	Rise	[646]
	Girls' Generation	Love & Peace	Electropop, dance-pop	Nayutawave, Universal	[647]
	R. Kelly	Black Panties	R&B, hip hop	RCA	[648]
	Shila Amzah	Shila Amzah	Pop	Shila Amzah Entertainment	[649]
December 13	Beyoncé	Beyoncé	Electro, R&B	Columbia, Parkwood	[650]
December 17	B.o.B.	Underground Luxury	Hip hop		[651]
December 18	Skálmöld and the Iceland Symphony Orchestra	Skálmöld & Sinfóníuhljómsveit Íslands	Heavy metal	Sena	[652]
December 23	Justin Bieber	Journals	Pop, R&B	Island, RBMG, Schoolboy

25 Bands and Singers That Would've Done Terrific Performances on The X Factor

There's a lot of well-known singers and bands that have never performed on The X Factor. Some were close such as according to reports in March 2009 that Michael Jackson was going to perform on the show and would mentor the finalists, after the announcement that he would be doing a finale concert series called This Is It, which sadly cancelled after his death in June of the same year. Some wouldn't do it, such as Sting, Elton John, Steve Brookstein, Beady Eye, Moby, La Roux and V.V. Brown. since they criticise the show. Obviously, Prince wouldn't do it, cause he's Prince.

There are some that finally made such as Whitney Houston, No Doubt, Black Eyed Peas, Bon Jovi, Duran Duran, Celine Dion, Beyonce, Britney Spears, Mariah Carey, Rihanna, Jessie J and many more.

25. Garbage

Reason: It would be great if the band had performed "Tell Me Where It Hurts" in 2007 for the fourth series, which would actually help the single become a Top 40 hit.

Why it never happened: The band was busy demoing new tracks for their fifth album before going on hiatus again in 2008.

24. Red Hot Chili Peppers

Reason: The band would be cool if they performed "Brendan's Death Song" in 2012 and that would be a chart comeback.

Why it never happened: The band was too busy to perform in the show, as usual they have very lengthy one-to-two-year tour to promote their albums. 

23. Selena Gomez

Reason: She has

22. Paramore

21. Evanescence

20. Eminem

19. Justin Timberlake

18. Ariana Grande

Reason: You probably know her as the redheaded Cat Valentine in Victorious, but she is the first successful Nickelodeon alumni to have a US Top 40 hit.

Why it never happened: Her singles have not charted in the UK Top 40, but have been moderately successful.

17. McFly

Reason: They're still active and their new single "Love Is On the Radio" is available now.

Why it never happened:

16. Psy

15. Sade

14. 

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Top 20 Best Music Comebacks of All Time

Remember when bands and singers make comebacks, it becomes 

20. 

10. Madonna - "Frozen" (1998)

After a four-year hiatus from recording new music due to releasing ballad compilation Something to Remember in 1995 and starring in the critically-acclaimed film adaptation of the musical Evita in 1996, then 39-year-old Madonna released this electronic-meets-dream pop ballad "Frozen" in 1998. The single was a complete departure from the Queen of Pop's usual dance-pop sound to more electronic. Not only that, this single became Madonna's first number-one in the UK in eight years and became a number-two hit in her native America.

The music video for the song is considered one of her best videos as it features a raven-haired Madonna having a witch-like personage. Unlike the videos for "Open Your Heart", "Rain" and "Human Nature", which she wore a wig, Madonna dyed her blonde hair black for this video. She already did it for "Like a Prayer" and "I'll Remember" and would dye it again for "The Power of Good-Bye", "Nothing Really Matters" and the original video for "American Life".

9. Cher - "Believe" (1998)

Top 50 Most Controversial Music Videos of All Time

You know when music videos sometime gets controversial, I mean really controversial because some of them get banned by MTV and other channels due to nudity, homophobia, violence and many more. So here's my list of 50 music videos of what consider it as controversial. Just to let you know, some music videos are NSFW.

Also, "Somebody That I Used to Know" by Gotye featuring Kimbra, "Thank U" by Alanis Morissette, "Fjogur piano" by Sigur Ros have nudity, but these aren't controversial as the nudity is treated as art in those videos. Plus the video for "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix-a-Lot isn't controversial enough in this list, despite the song having a dirty rap influence. Not all music videos in this list are banned, but have had been edited for daytime showings.

50. Garbage - "Cherry Lips" (2001, video link) 
Concept: This Joseph Kahn-directed video showed the band invisible and it marked a new look for lead singer Shirley Manson, who dyed her red hair platinum blonde.
Controversial scene: Shirley stamping on lightbulbs and urinating while standing up.
Banned by MTV?: None, though the video did get edited, removing the lightbulbs scene, by MTV. However the video was shown uncensored by VH1. In an recent interview, Shirley has regretted making the video, though it is considered to be one of the band's best videos by longtime fans.

49. Marilyn Manson - "The Dope Show" (1998, video link)
Concept: An androgynous alien rockstar (played by Manson) is captured by scientists who is studied at the laboratory and then flees the laboratory where he goes inside a limousine in order to get ready for a concert. This marked a new phase for Manson and his band, departing from dark industrial to more glam rock.
Controversial scene: Some nudity scenes involving Manson, however this was not controversial enough to allow MTV ban the video, hence he was actually wearing prosthetics for the video. Ironically the album cover which depicted a nude Manson was banned by several Walmart stores.
Banned by MTV?: None.

48. George Michael - "I Want Your Sex" (1987, video link)
Concept: Michael emphasises that he is in a monogamous relationship. Co-starring his then-girlfriend Kathy Jeung.
Controversial scene: The video itself due to its taboo-ish content.
Banned by MTV?: Daytime only, as it was censored for that. Due to its sexual content, the uncensored version only aired during nighttime and the video release was rated 15 in the UK.

47. The Smashing Pumpkins - "Try, Try, Try" (2000, video link)
Concept: Two drug addicts steal money and a car in order to buy heroin to inject themselves.
Controversial scene: The characters inject heroin in the penultimate scene. Also the theme of prostitution is controversial too.
Banned by MTV?: The uncut version was banned, however the censored version had heavy rotation, but at night-time.

46. Hilary Duff - "Reach Out" (2009, video link)
Concept: Duff is surrounded by almost-naked people.
Controversial scene: There's a heavy use of sexual content: nudity, S&M, thumb sucking and humping.
Banned by MTV?: Daytime only as it was aired during night-time. Plus some countries banned it as well.

45. Pink - "So What" (2008, video link)
Concept: Pink decides to move on from her relationship with her boyfriend (played by her husband Carey Hart, as at the time they were separated) by chainsawing a tree with a carving of a heart saying "Alecia (her actual first name) + Carey".
Controversial scene: Pink tries to light a fire on her cigarette, which causes it to burn her hair. Another scene sees Pink taking off her clothes while paparazzi takes pictures of her and she streaks naked (black bars covers the nudity).
Banned by MTV?: None, as the hair burning scene was edited out in the UK.

44. Madonna - "Like a Prayer" (1989, video link)
Concept: Madonna plays a witness at a murder and encounters a black man, who later gets arrested for the murder. She goes to a church, where she prays and then sees a saint, who resembles the same black man accused of murder. This marked a new image for the Queen of Pop, as she dyed her blonde hair brown for the video.
Controversial scene: Madonna cuts her hands at a church, showing stigmata.
Banned by MTV?: None, despite that the video was condemned by the Catholic Church for the depiction of stigmata. Pepsi however, decided to pull Madonna out of a campaign, though she did retain the initial fee. Not only it was controversial, it is considered to be one of the greatest music videos of the Eighties.

43. Britney Spears - "...Baby One More Time" (1999, video link)
Concept: Spears plays a schoolgirl at a Catholic school who dances during a lesson.
Controversial scene: Spears exposing her midriff in a schoolgirl uniform.
Banned by MTV?: None, as it was a number-one hit in the US and the UK.

42. Pink - "Perfect" (aka "F**kin' Perfect", 2010, video link)
Concept: A young woman (played by 90210's Tina Majorino) experiences flashbacks of her past childhood, where she was a wild child. 
Controversial scene: Majorino's character self-harms herself in the bathtub.
Banned by MTV?: The bathtub scene was edited for daytime airings to avoid any people copying the scene.

41. Bjork - "Cocoon" (2002, video link)
Concept: A naked Bjork cocoons herself using red strings out of her nipples.
Controversial scene: Nudity in the video.  
Banned by MTV?: In America only, as it was aired on MTV2 instead. However, it did get heavy rotation in Europe, especially Portugal.

40. The Cardigans - "My Favourite Game" (1998, video link)
Concept: Lead singer Nina Persson joyrides through a highway.
Controversial scene: There are five endings. Ending one: Persson dies. Ending two: Persson manages to move, only to knocked out by a stone. Ending three: Persson manages to move and leaves the crash site. Ending four: Persson is decapitated. Ending five: Omits all four endings and it is a one-shot video.
Banned by MTV?: Three versions of it were banned. Only versions three and five were allowed to air.

39. Metallica - "Nothing Else Matters" (1992, video link)
Concept: Uses heavy footage of the band's "making of" documentary on their 1991 black album, A Year and a Half in the Life of...
Controversial scene: Pin-up posters of Playboy centerfolds appear in the recording studio.
Banned by MTV?: None, however the Playboy posters were censored for the 2006 music video compilation The Videos 1989-2004. It has since been relegated to night-time showings.

38. No Doubt - "Ex-Girlfriend" (2000, video link)
Concept: Based on the controversial anime Kite, the video shows lead singer Gwen Stefani (who had a new image, by dyeing her platinum blonde hair to pink) cross-dressing and going to a men's bathroom where she confronts bassist Tony Kanal (concidentally, both were in a relationship prior to the band's breakthrough, their breakup inspired the song "Don't Speak").
Controversial scene: Stefani becoming violent with several men and in the end, is grabbed by Kanal and they plummet in the end.
Banned by MTV?: None, but it did cause a backlash from fans, which is one of the reasons why the album that accompanied it, Return of Saturn flopped.

37. Blink-182 - "What's My Age Again?" (1999, video link)
Concept: The pop punk band runs away naked, which attracts a lot of attention.
Controversial scene: The band are naked while walking.
Banned by MTV?: None, as the naked parts were pixelated.

36. Duran Duran - "Girls on Film" (1981, video link)
Concept: The band performs on an elevated stage surrounded by women doing controversial stuff.
Controversial scene: Sexual BDSM, fetishism and fantasy
Banned by MTV?: This video was made before MTV was launched on August 1981 and it was edited for daytime airings when the newly-formed channel aired it. It was however banned by the BBC. With this, it became the band's first major hit.

35. Cher - "If I Could Turn Back Time" (1989, video link)
Concept: The singer sings to a flock of sailors.
Controversial scene: Cher wears a revealing one-piece bathing suit with fishnet stockings.
Banned by MTV?: For a brief time until the singer agreed to do shoot new scenes for the censored version. The uncensored version was relegated to night-time.

34. Nirvana - "Heart-Shaped Box" (1993, video link) 
Concept: The band are sent to a Wizard of Oz-esque world.
Controversial scene: An elderly man climbs on a Christian cross and a platinum blonde-hair girl wearing an Ku Klux Klan outfit.
Banned by MTV?: None. However, the channel refused to air a proposed "Rape Me" video due to the song's content and this video became Nirvana's last before Kurt Cobain's apparent suicide by gunshot in 1994.

33. Daft Punk - "The Prime Time of Your Life" (2006, video link)
Concept: A girl watches television with people as living skeletons.
Controversial scene: The girl slits her right hand to remove her skin, revealing her muscles, which causes her to collapse.
Banned by MTV?: None, however the video was rated 15 in the UK.

32. Justin Timberlake - "Tunnel Vision" (2013, video link)
Concept: Timberlake stares at topless women wearing g-strings.
Controversial scene: Moderate nudity
Banned by MTV?: None, however as the video was deleted by YouTube, though it was resubmitted to be age restricted.

31. Garth Brooks - "The Thunder Rolls" (1991, video link)
Concept: A woman who is abused by her antagonistic husband, confronts him at gunpoint.
Controversial scene: The woman is affected by domestic violence.
Banned by MTV?: None, however the video was banned by CMT (MTV's sister channel known for country music) for a certain time until a group of female people praised as it was against domestic violence, which lead the video to return on TV.

30. Red Hot Chili Peppers - "Warped" (1995, video link)
Concept: The band become more rowdy. This was the first video to feature new guitarist Dave Navarro. 
Controversial scene: Dark scenes, plus lead singer Anthony Kiedis kisses Navarro in the end. Kinda ironic, as it was actually part of the video. Also, Kiedis is wearing S&M-style trousers.
Banned by MTV?: None, however the band's label Warner Bros. considered it unmarketable until they changed their minds after it was shown to the band's fanbase to positive reception.

29. Pearl Jam - "Jeremy" (1992, video link)
Concept: In this MTV VMA-winning video, a bullied Jeremy begins to suffer from visions which causes him to kill himself in front of his school class.
Controversial scene: The titular protagonist puts a gun on his mouth, pulling the trigger, killing himself.
Banned by MTV?: None, as the gun suicide was cut for a good reason. Due to this, the band did not promote their singles with videos until 1998 with the animated video for "Do the Evolution" (though "Oceans" was the last single to be promoted with a video, but it was never released in the US). However after the Columbine High School massacre in 1999, MTV relegated the video to late-night showings. 

28. Rihanna - "Russian Roulette" (2009, video link)
Concept: Rihanna is interrogated in a gas chamber, where she visits her lover.
Controversial scene: The end of the video shows Rihanna's lover apparently killing himself.
Banned by MTV?: None.

27. Maroon 5 - "This Love" (2004, video link)
Concept: The band perform, juxtaposing scenes of lead singer Adam Levine passionately kissing his then-girlfriend.
Controversial scene: Nudity in the passionate kissing scene.
Banned by MTV?: None, as the nudity was censored with flowers covering it.

26. Mylene Farmer - "Je te rends ton amour" (1999, video link) 
Concept: Farmer is abused by a man in black, who is the Devil. 
Controversial scene: Blasphemous material, alongside with nudity, rape and blood.
Banned by MTV?: None, however the French singer's video was censored by popular French channel M6.

25. Miley Cyrus - "Wrecking Ball" (2013, video link)
Concept: Cyrus crushes blocks of steel as the song progresses.
Controversial scene: Cyrus is naked on a wrecking ball, where she licks the pole.
Banned by MTV?: None, however due to the recent MTV Video Music Awards controversy, the video had three versions: One with nudity, one without nudity and one which is a one-shot video. This controversy actually helped the song to be a number-one hit in her native America and her second in the UK.

24. Rihanna - "S&M" (2011, video link)
Concept: Rihanna confronts paparazzis by gagging them.
Controversial scene: The video itself.
Banned by MTV?: Relegated to night-time showings. It has been banned in 11 countries. You must be 18 to watch it on YouTube. This actually helped the song to become a US number-one hit.

23. Eminem - "The Real Slim Shady" (2000, video link)
Concept: Eminem is in a mental hospital, where he raps against gay marriage, Britney Spears, Fred Durst, boybands and people copying him.
Controversial scene: Like the song, the video was also controversial due to being homophobic.
Banned by MTV?: None, the video was heavily edited for daytime showings. This became the Bad Boy of Hip Hop's first UK number-one.

22. Michael Jackson - "Black or White" (1991, video link)
Concept: Jackson sings through different areas, plus a guest appearance from Macaulay Culkin.
Controversial scene: Though most of the video remains not controversial as it was one of the first videos to have a morphing sequence in the end of the video. The last four minutes shows Jackson vandalising after morphing from a panther. 
Banned by MTV?: None, as the edited video got heavy rotation. The uncut version however was put into night-time showings. Jackson said after the uncut version was banned for daytime showings, that the last four minutes was not meant to be controversial. To make it more understandable, the four minutes were altered with four racist graffiti messages added on the windows in order to show that Jackson was vandalising the windows as a sign of against racism.

21. The Prodigy - "Baby's Got a Temper" (2002, video link)
Concept: Based on founder Liam Howlett's dream, the video shows the band (first time as a trio after Leeroy Thornhill's departure in 1999), dressed as businessmen, going to a funfair, where they change into their usual clothes.
Controversial scene: Drug content, plus topless strippers.
Banned by MTV?: None. However the video got a lot of negative reception. Since then, Howlett has disowned the song.

20. Michael Jackson - "They Don't Really Care About Us" (1996, prison version, video link)
Concept: The video shows Jackson in a prison with other cellmates
Controversial scene: It was controversial due to real footage of police attacking African Americans, the military crackdown of the protest in the Tiananmen Square, the Ku Klux Klan, war crimes, genocide, execution, martial law, and other human rights abuses.
Banned by MTV?: The video did not get heavy rotation, so the more-popular second version, shot in the Brazilian favelas did.

19. M.I.A. - "Born Free" (2010, video link)
Concept: A military squad capture a group of redheads.
Controversial scene: The redheads are executed by the military squad, showing genocide.
Banned by MTV?: None, the video was pulled by YouTube a day after it premiered. The artist herself blamed her record label Interscope for the ban.

18. Eminem featuring Dido - "Stan" (2000, video link)
Concept: Eminem-obsessed fan Stan (played by Devon Sawa) writes a letter to Eminem about he loves him and wants to kill himself in his car with his girlfriend (played by Dido), crashing in a bridge.
Controversial scene: Stan dies in the end when his car crashes in a bridge, drowning him.
Banned by MTV?: None, the video was cut from eight minutes to six minutes for daytime airings. Both the eight-minute and the six-minute versions received heavy rotation. There is a ten-minute version where Dido's character is gagged and trapped at the back of Stan's car. 

17. Robbie Williams - "Rock DJ" (2000, video link)
Concept: Williams tries to get attention from a female DJ.
Controversial scene: Williams strips off his skin and muscles near the end.
Banned by MTV?: The stripping off scene was cut for daytime airings and the video was banned in the Dominican Republic. It became a number-one hit in the UK.

16. Christina Aguilera featuring Redman - "Dirrty" (2002, video link)
Concept: Aguilera goes in a foxy boxing tournament. This introduced the new image of the then 21-year-old singer, who changed from a "girl next door" image to a more sexier image.
Controversial scene: Raunchy scenes.
Banned by MTV?: Nope, but it was banned in Thailand. Plus ITV launched a night-time version of CD:UK for this reason.

15. Rammstein - "Ich will" (2001, video link)
Concept: German metal sextet Rammstein star as robbers, who steal money from the bank.
Controversial scene: Like most Rammstein videos, this video is indeed controversial.
Banned by MTV?: As the single came out a day before 9/11, the American debut of the video was scrapped by most channels, alongside with MTV.

14. Soundgarden - "Jesus Christ Pose" (1991, video link)
Concept: The alt-metal-grunge band wander around in a desert.
Controversial scene: Blasphemous scenes showing a girl in a cross.
Banned by MTV?: After it was debuted in October 1991, the video was met with a lot of controversy, which lead the channel to ban it outright.

13. Incubus - "Megalomaniac" (2004, video link)
Concept: The band are in a surreal area where they encounter several controversial figures.
Controversial scene: A lookalike of then-U.S. president George W. Bush spill oil to the audience and then becomes a eagle-headed human, who then eats the audience, who have been turned into fish.
Banned by MTV?: Relegated to night-time showings.

12. Britney Spears - "Toxic" (2004, video link)
Concept: Spears plays an air hostess, who is actually a secret agent that is trying to get revenge against her ex-boyfriend.
Controversial scene: Spears is naked, but covered in diamonds.
Banned by MTV?: Relegated to night-time showings after the Super Bowl XXXVIII wardrobe malfunction controversy. However the video had heavy rotation during daytime outside North America.

11. Erykah Badu - "Window Seat" (2010, video link)
Concept: Badu strips off her clothes, showing her naked during the video and is then assassinated in the end. 
Controversial scene: The nudity scenes.
Banned by MTV?: Indeed, the nudity caused the network to pull the video and the singer herself was fined $500 by the city of Dallas, Texas.

10. Madonna - "Erotica" (1992, video link)
Concept: Madonna plays a dominatrix in the video, which is interspersed with the footage of the photo shooting from the controversial Sex book. 
Controversial scene: S&M, nudity, bondage and fellatio.
Banned by MTV?: After night-time heavy rotation three times, it was banned. The singer herself accepted the ban explaining that some of the channel's audience are children and the video was not suitable for children. 

9. The Bloodhound Gang - "The Bad Touch" (1999, video link)
Concept: The pop-punk band dress up as monkey-rats who tranquillise people and trap them in a cage.
Controversial scene: Homophobia, zoophilia, sexual content and offence to French people
Banned by MTV?: The video was put into night-time showings due to its controversial nature.

8. Robin Thicke featuring Pharrell and T.I. - "Blurred Lines" (2013, video link)
Concept: Thicke, Pharrell and T.I. causally stands in front of a light-pink background, where they flirt with three models.
Controversial scene: The three models are topless in the uncensored version.
Banned by MTV?: None, however the uncensored version was banned by YouTube and it was uploaded by Vevo instead. Recently, the song has been banned in several universities in the UK. It was a number-one hit in the US and the UK.

7. Lady Gaga - "Judas" (2011, video link)
Concept: Gaga stars as Mary Magdalene in this modernised retelling of how Judas betrayed Jesus.
Controversial scene: Gaga is stoned to death in the end.
Banned by MTV?: Relegated to night-time showings in the US after the Catholic League condemned it.

6. 30 Seconds to Mars - "Hurricane" (2010, video link)
Concept: The band explore a violent and sexual world.
Controversial scene: Sexual content and blasphemy.
Banned by MTV?: After the premiere, the video was banned by the network and the two scenes containing sexual content and blasphemy were censored for MTV2 airings.

5. Madonna - "Justify My Love" (1990, video link)
Concept: Madonna plays a woman who is tired and enters her hotel room where she encounters a mysterious man, followed by several couple cavorting in BDSM clothing.
Controversial scene: Nudity and S&M
Banned by MTV?: Yes, North America only. However, Madonna decided to release a video single of the provocative song, which helped the single to become a number-one hit in the US. Not only that, it foreshadowed her 1992 Erotica album. The video single was rated 18 in the UK.

4. Jay-Z - "99 Problems" (2004, video link)
Concept: Jay-Z walks through his native New York state where the video shows the lifestyle in the town of Brooklyn.
Controversial scene: Dogfighting and Jay-Z is shot dead in the end.
Banned by MTV?: None, however the channel left the video uncensored with an introduction by reporter John Norris explaining that the video should remain uncut. Due to this, the rapper himself said that the death marked the end of him as Jay-Z and the beginning of him as Shawn Carter (his actual name).

3. Aphex Twin - "Windowlicker" (1999, video link)
Concept: The DJ plays a pimp whose limo crashes a Mazda, in a parody of gangsta rap videos.
Controversial scene: There are 127 uses of profanity, alongside with 44 uses of the f-word, in the uncensored version.
Banned by MTV?: The uncensored 10-minute version was put in night-time showings as the censored version had heavy rotation. The video was rated 15 in the UK.

2. Nine Inch Nails - "Closer" (1994, video link)
Concept: Frontman Trent Reznor is in a 19th century-style mad scientist's room where he is fantasised with dark imagery.
Controversial scene: Nudity, animal cruelty and S&M
Banned by MTV?: The video was censored for daytime airings and the uncensored version had more heavy rotation than the censored version.

1. The Prodigy - "Smack My Bitch Up" (1997, video link)
Concept: POV of a person who goes on a night out and after addicted to heroin and cocaine, the person fights with men, verbally attacks women, drink and drive, hit-and-run and drug abuse. In the end, the person is actually a woman. The only video not to feature the dance punk band.
Controversial scene: Sex, drugs, vandalism, nudity and violence
Banned by MTV?: After a week, the video was banned due to protests of feminist groups. The video later aired during night-time with an MTV News warning. Also, the song was refused to play by several radio stations because of the controversial lyrics "Change the pitch up, smack my bitch up.", which were considered misogynistic, however the band themselves denied this song was ever misogynistic. The song is banned by the BBC.