In the midst of suing her former accountants for what’s been described as gross mismanagement, Rihanna may be getting hit with a copyright infringement suit by photographer Philipp Paulus.
After failed attempts by Paulus’s lawyer to make an out of court settlement with Rihanna’s label Universal Music, Paulus will now be taking legal action against the music label.
The New-York based photographer claims scenes in Rihanna’s bondage-themed music video “S&M” were based on his fashion photography series ‘Paperworld.’
Paulus’s work includes a woman pinned against a wall using clear plastic wrapping, with black X-marks around her. Rihanna replicates this image in her video with no credit to Paulus.
In a statement, Paulus said: “Why a worldwide celebrity is not able to afford a creative director, who creates individual concepts and stagings, is uncomprehensible for me.”
He added, “While I really respect Rhianna’s [sic] talents as a musician, nevertheless it is important to respect the creations of others.”
“S&M” appears on Rihanna’s 2010 album Loud, and has sold nearly 6 million copies worldwide.
Wonder who on the video set thought of that idea? Safe to say they should be receiving walking papers.
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