Britney Spears' rabid fans are petitioning online to have an alternative version of her just-released "Make Me" video released by her record label. The original video, directed by David La Chapelle, was scrapped amid conflicting reports as to the reason.
Some reports are stating that the original "Make Me" video was shelved because Britney and/or her differences centering around the lack of a direction and storyline for the clip, which seems a bit suspicious given some of Spears' prior video output.
In any case, her diehard fans are not pleased with the second version, which was directed by Randee St. Nicholas and features Britney and a group of her girlfriends being entertained by a dance and strip show from a group of shirtless male models, interspersed with clips of her performing the song.
"Since the music video for Britney Spears' lead single, 'Make Me ...' to her new album Glory has been released, we Britney fans find that the music video is not a suitable representation of the song and we are calling for the original video to be released (Yes, we know there was a video shot by David LaChapelle before this one, parts of it have already leaked). We ask that RCA Records/Sony Music Entertainment release the original video that was filmed by David LaChapelle for the song," the petition reads.
The petition already has over 14,000 signatures on Change.org, but don't expect RCA records, a subsidiary of Sony Music Group, to buckle to the pressure. Doing so would not only be an admission that the just-released video is in fact not a valid clip for the song as the petition's organizers charge, but it would muddy the campaign for Spears' new album Glory, which is set to be released shortly, on Aug. 26.
In fact, Britney has already released a second single from the album, "Private Show." Reaction to the first single has been tepid so far, and it looks as if she and the label are already moving on from it. "Make Me" briefly debuted at the top of the iTunes charts a few weeks ago, but after the initial sales surge from hardcore fans, it quickly dropped and sits in the no. 25 spot. The story on Billboard's charts is even worse. The song debuted at no. 17 last week and dropped in this week, only it's all the way down to the no. 52 spot. With attention turned to "Private Show," it is highly doubtful anyone at RCA is considering releasing a second video for "Make Me," despite the petition's large number of fan signatures.
