31 sexy music videos you definitely shouldn't watch at work

Art is one of the few venues where unabashed displays of sexuality are explored, welcomed, and encouraged. And as satisfying as it is to embrace a cheeky late night feeling with a sultry R&B song, or a down-and-dirty pop track, there’s something to be said of actually seeing the interpretation of these feelings being played out by the artists we admire so much. So next time you’re in the mood to get a little saucy, feast your eyes on these music videos featuring your favourite artists taking off their shirts, thrusting their hips, and shaking a little something. From black-and-white interpretations of love and lust, to flirting on the beach, and raunchy in-bed antics, here are our picks for the steamiest music videos of all time.

“I’m a Slave 4 U” by Britney Spears

It’s Britney—at her most scandalous to date, produced by Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo of The Neptunes. Released when she was 19, “I’m a Slave 4 U” marks Spears’ transition from good girl next door to total sex bomb status, complete with sweaty gyrating dancers and no shortage of midriff-bearing looks.

“Fade” by Kanye West

In this video, off the 2016 album 'Life of Pablo', Teyana Taylor is feeling the beat while working up quite the sweat in the gym. There’s also a steamy shower scene to top it all off. If this is Kanye West’s new workout plan, we’re here for it. It’s hot.

“Partition” by Beyoncé

Undeniably one of the standout songs from Beyoncé’s self-titled album, the 'Partition' video doesn’t disappoint either. It takes place at the Parisian cabaret Crazy Horse (where Bey and Jay got engaged!) and features our seductive songstress turned sexy showgirl.

“Wicked Game” by Chris Isaak

This video brought Chris Isaak into the spotlight and it has been topping sexiest video charts since its release in 1991. It’s starring model Helena Christensen, topless as she kisses Isaak and frolics in the ocean waves. These two prove sex on the beach never looked so good and it’s never too late for a summer romance.

“Drunk in Love” by Beyoncé

“Drunk in Love” is not your typical Beyoncé video, often characterised by larger than life dance productions. Instead we get Queen Bey stripped down (quite literally), raw and sensual, frolicking in the waves as if each and every body roll is just for Jay-Z and well… us.

“Hands to Myself” by Selena Gomez

Selena Gomez gets seductive, albeit criminally so, in her sultry video for “Hands to Myself.” In it, she stalks a former flame—rolling around in his bed in lingerie, taking a steamy bubble bath in his tub—all to end up in handcuffs. Not a bad end to the night.

“I Just Don’t Know What to do With Myself” by The White Stripes

Two words: Kate. Moss. Pole dancing. In lingerie. Okay, fine—six words. This moody black and white video was directed by Sofia Coppola, who told the New York Times about the video concept: “I said, ‘I don’t know—how about Kate Moss doing a pole dance?’ I said that because I would like to see it. That’s the way I work: I try to imagine what I would like to see.”

“Telephone” by Lady Gaga ft. Beyoncé

Lady Gaga gives us a whole nine-and-a-half minutes in the hottest women’s prison ever, including studded bikini clad inmates and tattoos galore. At times, the pop queen is concealed by only crime scene tape. Not to mention she gets picked up by Beyoncé in the “Pussy Wagon” from Kill Bill, before the two continue on their crime spree.

“Dirrty” by Christina Aguilera

Christina Aguilera, well Xtina, gives us the quintessential dirty, sexy music video we’ve always wanted. Perhaps inspired by Britney Spears’ turn to the dark side, Aguilera brings out her inner bad girl with highly suggestive dance moves in a grimy dance club. “Sweating ‘til my clothes come off” is right.

“Justify My Love” by Madonna

The slightly controversial Madonna video is a classic, in all its black and white glory. Originally banned on MTV, it features the star in a Marilyn-esque getup getting down and dirty in her lingerie, surrounded by religious iconography. Sacrilege!

"Anytime, Anyplace" by Janet Jackson

Jackson's 1994 slow jam was seductive enough already as a standalone track, with its smooth rhythm and Janet's whispery vocals. But with the video, it only gets even hotter, featuring a next-door neighbor affair that involves couch hookups, seductive strawberry-eating, and vinyl slow dances.

"S&M" by Rihanna

The visuals for this Loud-era Rihanna single are equal parts crazy, fun, and sexy, just like the singer herself. But the video isn't only about how "chains and whips excite me," there's an underlying message as RiRi ties up and teases members of the press.

"Anaconda" by Nicki Minaj

Nicki gets her twerk on, from the jungle to the gym, in the famous video for her hit 2014 single. She's as fierce as ever in the clip—so much so that she leaves Drake speechless with a lap dance.

"Booty" by Jennifer Lopez feat. Iggy Azalea

JLo and Iggy slip into leotards and get oiled up for a video so hot, it even comes with a warning. What else would you expect for a song titled "Booty?"

“Ride” by Ciara feat. Ludacris

In the mid 2000s, Ciara was queen of MTV’s early morning TRL video rotation. Her mind-boggling washboard abs and impeccable choreo made her an omnipresent visual sensation, with “Ride” being just one of a handful of sex-soaked hits.

“Lady Marmalade” by Christina Aguilera, Lil Kim, Mya, and Pink

The sheer power alone of this quartet of pop culture’s leading women makes the “Lady Marmalade” video sexy. But of course, the girls added something extra to the visuals. Wearing campy burlesque lingerie, they alternate from verse to verse with Missy Elliott as emcee, making for an absolute dream of a night out.

“Untitled” by D’Angelo

“Untitled” was the definition of a cultural reset, and a fascinating study on the larger topic of male objectification. For nearly five minutes, an incredibly close camera films a naked D’Angelo from all angles, showing absolutely everything from the waist up. The video, which now has about 19 million views on YouTube, became a fast phenomenon as fans obsessed over someone who could both look and sing like that at the same time.

“Dip It Low” by Christina Milian

Leaning into the male gaze that permeated all aspects of early 2000s music video imagery, Christina Milian performs for a group of spectators in small black leather outfits, hitting complex choreography before dipping herself into a pool of slick black oil.

"Bartier Cardi" by Cardi B

Dripped in suction-cupping latex lingerie and costume jewelry, Cardi brings the retro glamour for "Bartier Cardi," the raunchy ode to her husband, rapper Offset. With an equally opulent girl gang behind her, Cardi runs some sort of underground money laundering scam that lands 21 Savage duct-taped to a chair. Foggy storyline aside, Cardi's power and aesthetic have never been more present.

"Tommy" by Tommy Genesis

"Tommy" without a video is already adulterated, smooth, and unapologetic eroticism. As the track opens, a propulsive trap beat swells beneath the rapper as she taunts matter-of-factly: "She drive a Ford, Tommy/She can’t afford Tommy." The video only ups the hypersexualised anti, as images of Tommy in bed—fully clothed in schoolgirl garb—flash between shots of her teasing from a bathtub and from inside a cage. It's fantasy done right as Tommy takes explicit ownership of her own sexuality.

"Motivation" by Normani

Normani's "Motivation" music video was truly a turning point for the singer’s trajectory. It was a moment that not only fed the internet's collective thirst for early 2K nostalgia, but also solidified her place as the certified pop star of the new era. Adorned in an airbrushed mini skirt and tank top set, she breezes through four minutes of unparalleled choreo, churning out move after move, as marching band horns underline her every lyric.

"Papi Pacify" by FKA Twigs

In a black-and-white close-up shot in “Papi Pacify,” FKA Twigs outstretches her neck backwards towards a looming male figure above her, as a pair of large, masculine hands begin to make their way across her face and into her mouth, as Twigs’ hauntingly soft voice sputters atop synths that sound dark and evil in comparison. The video is almost like a moving portrait of submission and domination, though Twigs later revealed that the idea came from a much darker place. “In the relationship I couldn’t communicate. The person I was with was stopping me from explaining how I felt. So the physical manifestation is someone putting their hand in your mouth. But there’s an element, too, of liking that as well. It’s messed up. It’s addictive,” she explains.

Montero (Call Me By Your Name) by Lil Nas X

Lil Nas X thrives off of controversy. Where others might fold, Lil Nas X leans in, embracing scandal with signature troll-like charm. After upsetting the masses for being a black gay country musician, he upped it a notch with his music video for “Montero.” The video finds the pop star relaxing on the Tree of Life in a pink and purple, galactic-style Garden of Eden, before riding a stripper pole into the depths of hell, where he twerks on the devil upon arrival. The entire thing is an artistic, literal, hilarious, and hot interpretation of “dancing with the devil.” Inevitably, the video led to both religious uproar and illuminati accusations, which Nas answered by dropping a literal blood-infused, pentagram-adorned Nike shoe inspired by the hubbub.

“Call on Me” by Eric Prydz

In the 1985 movie “Perfect,” a 23-year-old John Travolta plays a journalist collecting information on the health craze of the 80’s. The research leads him to an aerobics class led by none other than Jamie Lee Curtis. The two lock eyes as they thrust their spandex-adorned hips, finding love amongst a studio of fellow sweaty gym heads. “Call On Me” reinterprets the iconic scene, adding a reimagined 2000’s aesthetic to things (read: no tights under the thong one-pieces).

“Stacy’s Mom” by Fountain of Wayne

“Stacy’s Mom” is one of, if not the only, songs dedicated to MILFS. So when Fountains of Wayne took on the task of making a music video, they obviously didn’t take the honored distinction lightly. The video pulls a page out of the teenage daydream red bikini scene in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, but subs in New Zealand supermodel Rachel Hunter as the object of sexual awakening in a prepubescent boy’s eye.

“Physical” by Olivia Newton John

Obviously, there’s something about a gym setting that really gets people going. “Physical” is yet another sexually-charged 80’s workout video fantasy, but this time around, the video is very much so made with the female gaze in mind. Olivia Newton John struts between aisles of men, pushing them to transform their bulging bellies into greased and tanned washboard abs.

“Doin It Well” by LL Cool J

Without any visuals, LL Cool J’s “Doin It Well” already has tons of sex appeal to work with. The rapper’s verses are inters-paced with exaggerated female moans and the excited, euphemistic promises of “candy rain.” The video follows gracefully with LL Cool J putting the moves on iconic video vixen Pillar Sanders, whom he shares a bed with by the video’s closing.

“Beautiful” by Snoop Dogg feat. Pharrell

For the iconic collaboration between Snoop Dogg and Pharrel, the two self-proclaimed “players” flew to Brazil to capture the effortless, island beauty of Brazilian women. The pair saunter the beach, serenading bikini-clad women lying on beach towels before hosting a packed house party at somebody’s mansion.

“Juicy” by Doja Cat and Tyga

Like any female pop star, Doja Cat’s body has been discussed, scrutinized, and torn apart by the masses for as long as she’s been in the public eye. Perhaps that’s why “Juicy” is such a satisfying video, as she cheekily transforms herself into nature’s most suggestive fruits (apples, watermelon, etc.), making a cartoon-like mockery and embrace of the objectification that never seems to go away.

“Confessions Pt. II” by Usher

In the face of an infidelity scandal, Usher responds in the only way he sees fit: by taking off his shirt to reveal his washboard abs. "Confessions’" success as an album is mind boggling, given that it’s essentially a full concept album about getting, what Usher calls, “a chick on the side” pregnant. Yet, Usher’s good looks and undeniable charm, paired with an incomparable writing ability, seem to get him out of the bind … at least for now.

Story also written by Natalie Maher

This piece originally appeared in Harper's Bazaar US