10 Music Videos Banned By MTV
2. The Prodigy - Smack My Bitch Up (1997)
It probably wont come as a surprise that this track garnered a degree of controversy when it was released. The lyrics were accused of misogyny, resulting in lyrical versions being banned from many radio stations.
The video also caused far amount of outrage; even now it's fairly difficult to find in its entirety. Filmed from a first person perspective, it chronicles a sordid night out. The protagonist starts off in their apartment, getting their buzz on with a couple whiskies and a few lines of the white stuff. They then drive (presumably while intoxicated) to a bar, where they accost several women, fight several men and take intravenous drugs in a bathroom stall. Next on the night's agenda is a strip club, where our protagonist picks up one of the dancers, takes them home and has intercourse. The video ends with the reveal that the main character was a blonde female.
All the drug use, violence and sex resulted in a further ban from most stations. MTV opted to play the video only late at night until criticism led them to ban it outright. They did, however, cash in on the video's notoriety by featuring it on one of their specials entitled Most Controversial Videos.