"S&M" is a song by the Barbadian singer Rihanna from her fifth album Loud (2010). The song was released on January 23, 2011, as the fourth single from the album. American songwriter Ester Dean wrote "S&M" in collaboration with the producers Stargate and Sandy Vee. Backed by bass beats, a keyboard and guitars, it is an uptempo Hi-NRG and Eurodance track with lyrics about sexual intercourse, sadomasochism, bondage, and fetishes.
Critical response to "S&M" was mixed; some critics praised its sound and composition, while others criticized its overtly sexual lyrics. After it reached number 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, a remix featuring Britney Spears was released. When combined with sales of the solo version, it became Rihanna's tenth and Spears' fifth number 1 single on the chart. It has been certified sextuple Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and in Australia. "S&M" peaked at number 1 in six other countries while peaking within the top ten in twenty-two additional countries.
To promote "S&M", Rihanna performed a shortened version at the 2011 Brit Awards and sang the remix with Spears at the 2011 Billboard Music Awards. Melina Matsoukas directed the song's music video, which was, in part, Rihanna's response to disparaging critics. It portrays softcore sadomasochist acts and fetishes. The music video was banned in many countries and restricted to nighttime television in others. Critics complimented Rihanna's sensuality and the vibrant colors. Photographer David LaChapelle filed a lawsuit alleging that the video incorporates ideas from his photographs. Rihanna settled the case for an undisclosed sum of money.
Concept and development
"S&M" was written by Ester Dean in collaboration with the song's producers, Stargate and Sandy Vee. Dean explained its conception and the sexually suggestive lyrics to Gail Mitchell of Billboard: "The first thing that came to me was 'Come on, come on.' I'm thinking, 'I don't know what in the hell this is about to be.' And I remembered I'd seen something that said, 'Sticks and stones may break my bones.' Then came 'But chains and whips excite me.' When people have a great track that speaks to me, it feels like it already has a story in it". Dean states that she originally wrote the song for Britney Spears. Rihanna told Rolling Stone about her interest in bondage and other sadomasochism activities, themes central to "S&M": "I like to take charge, but I love to be submissive ... being submissive in the bedroom is really fun. You get to be a little lady, to have somebody be macho and in charge."
"S&M" was recorded during Rihanna's Last Girl on Earth tour: the instrumental parts for the song were recorded by Eriksen and Miles Walker at Roc the Mic Studios in New York City and the Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles, and by Vee at The Bunker Studios in Paris. Rihanna's vocals were recorded by Kuk Harrell and were produced by Harrell, Josh Gudwin and Marcos Tovar; Bobby Campbell assisted in the singer's vocal recording. Veronika Bozeman provided additional vocal production. The song was mixed by Vee at The Bunker Studios and by Phil Tan at The Ninja Beat Club in Atlanta, Georgia; additional and assistant engineering was carried out by Damien Lewis. All instrumental production was completed by Eriksen, Hermansen and Vee.
Composition and lyrical interpretation "S&M" is an uptempo hi-NRG-Eurodance song that lasts four minutes and three seconds. The song is composed in the key of E-flat minor using common time and a moderate dance tempo of 128 beats per minute. Instrumentation is provided by synthesizers, a keyboard and a guitar. Chris Ryan of MTV described the song as a "steady-rocking dance track, with ominous, snarling keyboard sounds."
During the track, Rihanna's vocal range spans one octave, from the low note of B♭3 to the high note of D♭5. Proposing illicit acts, she uses a "sexually aggressive tone" in her vocal performance. The lyrics are about sex, sadomasochism, bondage and BDSM fetishes, including the sexual fantasies and turn-ons of its protagonist. The song opens with the hook, "Na, na, na, c'mon". During the chorus the lyrics include, "'Cause I may be bad, but I'm perfectly good at it / Sex in the air, I don't care, I love the smell of it." The post-chorus features an interpolation from The Cure's 1982 song "Let's Go to Bed". In the song, Rihanna describes herself as "bad" and openly praises her own sexual prowess; lyrics include, "Sticks and stones may break my bones / But chains and whips excite me." Rihanna told Spin magazine that the lyrics are metaphoric. She said that she thought the song was mainly about having confidence in one's identity, and about being impervious to rumors and criticism. According to Jake Conway of Q Magazine at Yale, the lyrics are guilty of "divesting sex of emotion" and re-envisaging violence as fetish; he went on to say that Rihanna pays homage to the sexual acts in an empowered dance and club mood. Chris Ryan described the song as being about "dirty, naughty, illicit bedroom activities".
Release and remixes
"S&M" was the fourth single from the album Loud to be released in the US and the third in other countries. It was sent to contemporary hit and rhythmic radio stations in the US on January 23, 2011,"S&M" was released for Mainstream/Rhythmic airplay on January 23, 2011:
and to urban playlists on February 27, 2011. The single was released on iTunes Stores throughout Europe and South America on February 11, 2011."S&M" was released as a single in Europe and South America on February 11, 2011:
In Argentina, Brazil and certain territories throughout Europe, the song was released as an extended play (EP) on February 18, 2011; this consisted of the single version of "S&M" and two remixes by Audé and Samson."S&M" was released as an EP worldwide on February 18, 2011:
On February 28, 2011, a compilation was released worldwide as a digital package consisting of remixes by disc jockeys Audé, Samson and Joe Bermudez."S&M" was released as a remix package on February 28, 2011:
"S&M" was released as a CD single in Germany on March 18, 2011. On April 11, 2011, the remix single featuring Britney Spears was made available to download worldwide."S&M" was released as a remix single featuring Spears on February 28, 2011:
In the United Kingdom, "S&M" was deemed too explicit for daytime airplay; it was edited to remove references to sex, chains and whips, and was renamed "Come On" for BBC Radio 1.
A remix of "S&M" featuring rapper J. Cole was released on the internet on January 17, 2011. After the release of the song's album version, Rihanna asked her followers on Twitter about potential collaborators, of which Spears was the most popular choice. Twitter messages between the two artists caused speculation that they had recorded a remix of the song. The remix, featuring guest vocals and a verse written by Spears, was released on April 11, 2011.
Critical reception "S&M" received mixed responses from music critics. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine described "S&M" as an ode to sadomasochism that compares to Janet Jackson's The Velvet Rope. Conner felt that "S&M", as well as other Loud tracks "What's My Name?" and "Skin", were songs which allowed Rihanna to boast about how good she is in certain situations, as she did on Rated R. He chose the lyrics "I may be bad/ but I'm perfectly good at it... Chains and whips excite me" as an example of her vaunt. USA Todays Steve Jones opined that "Louds pulsating opener, 'S&M,' makes it clear from the jump where [Rihanna is] headed as she acknowledges that 'chains and whips excite [her]'", while Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly called "S&M" an "explicitly carnal opener" with "late-night-Cinemax naughtiness".
Digital Spy's Nick Levine gave the song a rating of four stars out of five, and wrote that the song makes the listener as "up-for it" as Rihanna herself; he went on to say that "S&M" consists of "ear-frotting" hooks, synths and pounding beats. James Skinner of BBC Music wrote that Loud lacked the "chart-friendly moments" of Rated R and criticized the overtly sexual lyrics which he found "at odds with" the flirtatious appeal for which Rihanna was aiming. Skinner described the singer's vocal delivery as "forced" and criticized her for not projecting a "daring" or convincing sound on "S&M".
Chart performance
"S&M" made its first chart appearance in the United Kingdom on November 15, 2010, at number 55. It peaked at number 3 on March 5, 2011, where it remained for three consecutive weeks."S&M" spent three consecutive weeks at number 3 on the UK Singles Chart:
It was more successful on the UK R&B Chart, where it was number 1 for five consecutive weeks."S&M" spent five consecutive weeks at number 1 on the UK R&B Singles Chart:
The song was the second-biggest selling R&B or hip hop single of 2011 in the UK: by December that year, "S&M" had sold 643,000 copies in the UK and was certified quadruple Platinum by the BPI in February 2026. Elsewhere in Europe, "S&M" was a massive commercial success and peaked within the top three in many countries, including number 1 in Poland, number 2 in Denmark Germany, Sweden and Switzerland; number 3 in France, becoming her tenth top ten, and Spain, number 4 in Austria, Finland, and Spain, and number 7 in the Netherlands and number 8 in Czech Republic.
"S&M" debuted on the Australian Singles Chart at number 87 on November 29, 2010, upon the release of Loud. When it was released as a single, it returned to the singles chart at number 27 on January 30, 2011. The song peaked at number 1 on February 13, 2011, for five non-consecutive weeks. It has since been certified six times Platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association, denoting shipments of over 420,000 copies of the single. The song debuted on the New Zealand Singles Chart at number 6 on February 7, 2011. It peaked at number 2 the following week for two consecutive weeks, and returned to its peak position again in its fifth week on the chart. "S&M" was subsequently certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand, denoting sales of over 15,000 copies.
In the US, the song debuted at number 53 on the Billboard Hot 100 on December 4, 2010. On the week of February 23, 2011, "S&M" jumped from 31 to 8. After climbing up the chart, the song reached number 2 on March 30, 2011, and stayed for two consecutive weeks, behind Katy Perry's song "E.T.". Following the release of the official remix featuring Spears, the song reached the top of the chart, with the album version of "S&M" and the remix selling a combined total of 293,000 downloads. "S&M" became Rihanna's tenth US number 1 single on the chart, tying her with Janet Jackson in fourth place for female soloists who have topped that chart; with only four years, eleven months and two weeks between her first and tenth number 1 on the chart, Rihanna achieved the milestone faster than any other solo artist. It became Spears' fifth number 1 single on the Hot 100. "S&M" became Rihanna's eighth number 1 song on the Mainstream Top 40 chart and she became the artist with the most number 1 songs in the chart's nineteen-year history. The song was number 1 on the Dance Club Songs chart and number 33 on the Hot Latin Songs chart. It debuted at number 80 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs in the February 26, 2011 issue of Billboard, and peaked at number 59. "S&M" peaked at number 24 on the Adult Pop Airplay chart, and at number 14 on the Latin Pop Songs chart. The song has since received a 6× Platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for sales and streaming equivalent-units of 6 million, and has sold 3,837,000 digital copies in the US . "S&M" ranked at number 2 on Billboards Dance Club Songs year-end chart, and number 15 on its Mainstream Top 40 year-end chart. In Canada, the song peaked at number 1 for the week of April 21, 2011.
Music video