Rihanna Accused of Ripping off Photographer in S&M Video

Rihanna has been in the news quite a bit lately. Her leaked nude photos, then even MORE leaked nude photos, plus her latest video for “S&M” has stirred up a lot of controversy and the video has even been banned in 11 countries. Now famed photographer, David LaChapelle, is accusing Rihanna of ripping off his distinct style. 

But it wasn’t LaChapelle’s people who noticed this similarities first. It was the fans who were sending him messages on Twitter and Facebook that made the first accusations. 

Interns told us that fans were buzzing about the video and wanting to know if David had directed it, said a source from LaChapelle’s studio. Then the phone in the office started ringing off the hook, everyone was like ˜wow it’s amazing “ it’s the exact same.’

Turns out, when placed side-by-side, the images from LaChapelle’s past work and Rihanna’s “S&M” video had almost identical sets, scenarios and styling. To make matters worse, “S&M” director, Melina Matsoukas has actual photographs from LaChapelle that were shot for Italian Vogue and have a very similar style of what can be seen in Rihanna’s music video. 

Even Perez Hilton, who has a small role in the “S&M” video doesn’t seem too happy with the final product. 

The next time you make a David LaChapelle music video you should probably hire David LaChapelle,” he tweeted. 

Of course it is possible that Matsoukas was simply inspired by LaChapelle’s style for Rihanna’s “S&M” video and had no intention of blatantly ripping off his past work. No legal measures have been made yet, so we’ll have to wait and see if these accusations can be held up in a courtroom.