Audio By Carbonatix
MTV has gotten some flack for censorship over the course of its 30 years on the air. The station, in addition to helping proliferate the music video concept, is equally known, it seems, for bleeping words, playing only censored versions of certain videos, relegating racy videos to late-night play only and, on occasion, banning videos entirely.
This practice was more prevalent in the station’s ’80s and ’90s heyday; nowadays, artists are happy to produce alternative versions of their videos to get some much-needed airplay.
Back in the day, though, getting banned by MTV was something of a badge of honor: The media, predictably, would have a field day whenever such censorship was announced.
These days, most music video consumption happens via the Internet, and MTV’s content is mostly made up of bottom-barrel reality programming. So it’s easy to forget that some really awesome music moments happened courtesy of the hubbub surrounding MTV censorship.
Thus, we’ve collected the top 10 music videos banned on MTV. Click on the jump, and shield your eyes if you’re sensitive. Although some of these videos are over 20 years old, they’re still not safe for the kiddies.
10. Soundgarden, “Jesus Christ Pose.” The video for the first single
off Badmotorfinger (1991) shows a bunch of stuff (girls, skeletons,
vegetables) nailed to crosses. Entry No. 1 in the list of surefire ways to
get your video banned? Put stuff on crosses. Best supporting actor
nomination? Chris Cornell’s abs.
9. Tool, “Prison Sex.” Gee. Why ever would a song with a name like
“Prison Sex” get banned? But seriously, folks: Even when acted out by
puppets, molestation is a topic with major squick factor. This was
Tool’s first single off their debut album, and the stop-motion animation
in this video set the precedent for many more stop-motion Tool videos.
Despite the ban, the video was nominated for an MTV Video Award for
best special effects.
8. Megadeth, “In My Darkest Hour.” MTV banned this one because they
thought the lyrics referred to suicide. In fact, Dave Mustaine wrote
this song upon former bandmate Cliff Burton’s untimely passing. The
video itself is a bunch of live clips; it was featured in Decline of
Western Civilization II, and the song is a regular feature of
Megadeth’s live shows. Best supporting actor nomination goes to
Mustaine’s luscious locks.
7. MIA, “Sunshowers.” The video itself isn’t offensive; MTV banned it
when MIA refused to release a censored version of the lyrics, which
allude to sociopolitical tensions in Sri Lanka. Specifically, the line
“Like PLO, I don’t surrendo” ticked off the censors at MTV. MIA’s been
known to prickle when the censors do their thing; she reportedly wasn’t
too happy when MTV censored the gunshots in her hit “Paper Planes,” either.
6. Lady Gaga, “Alejandro.” This video wasn’t completely banned; it was just relegated to the midnight hours on one of MTV’s endless sister
channels that actually play videos. The fact that MTV proper doesn’t
really play videos renders the video’s “banned” status basically moot. This
one got the censors all fired up, though, because of the usual reasons: bondage,
simulated sex, religious imagery, dudes in vinyl Nazi outfits, Gaga in a
vinyl nun outfit. We’ve been through this before, right?
5. Marilyn Manson, “Coma White.” Remember when ol’ Marilyn strapped on a
set of fake boobs and struck fear into the hearts of parents
everywhere? Those were the good old days, indeed! Banned because of
the scene where Marilyn gets shot in a car JFK-style (check out Rose
McGowan in Jackie O getup) and is then paraded through the streets on a
cross while singing about drugs. Best supporting actor nomination:
Twiggy Ramirez’s stripy tights. The ’90s were truly a more
innocent time, when a 35-year-old man in stripy tights was considered
threatening and spooky.
4. Skid Row, “18 and Life.” Skid Row’s self-titled album is one of the most
underrated albums of the ’80s, and this is one of that album’s best
tracks. The video is pretty corny. But it got banned because of the
violent subject matter (the mulleted protagonist accidentally shoots his
friend). Best supporting actor nomination goes to Rachel Bolan’s
nose-ring-to-earring chain. We want to know if he ever snagged anything
on it.
3. Nine Inch Nails, “Closer.” This gross-out fest (bugs, butchered
animal parts) was pretty groundbreaking for its time. This video
clearly got banned because of the naked ladies in bondage masks, which
is a shame, as Trent Reznor is cuter than a pile of puppies in it. Fun
fact: Rhe guy who directed this video also directed Jay-Z’s “99
Problems.”
2. Prodigy, “Smack My Bitch Up.” In which our epically unlovable
protagonist goes to a club, gets schwasted, does a bunch of really
unadvisable stuff (like getting into fights and assaulting women) and then,
at the end, turns out to be a girl. Which, of course, doesn’t excuse
her behavior. One of the most cringe-tastic videos of all time, for sure.
1. Madonna, “Justify My Love.” Madge’s black-and-white hotel room
shenanigans may have been shocking enough to get her banned, but we
can’t watch this video without giggling and thinking of the “Wayne’s
World” version. Sorry, nameless backup dancer, but Garth totally owns
the leotard-and-spiky-gloves look. Schwing!
