MTV Music Videos - Then And Now

Over twenty years ago, a revolution in music programming formats hit the TV screen. This was the MTV music videos channel. Prior to the advent of MTV, music videos were played between certain shows or during television specials, as shorts or fillers. The MTV programming format was an entirely different concept, with the MTV music channel providing continuous, 24/7 music videos. Every day and at any time of day or night, people could tune in and see as well as listen to, a variety of bands and performers at their visually artistic best. The MTV music videos channel offered the otherwise unknown bands a chance at fame, while giving viewers new sounds and special-effects enhanced performances. The MTV channel was an instant hit in the music industry and with the public.

When I was a teenager, it took a lot to peel me away from watching MTV music videos. I loved music, and I couldn’t get enough of the flashy videos and the larger than life musicians that populated them. As time went on though, it became more and more apparent that though the M in MTV stood for music, it wasn’t really their main focus. After a while, I saw less and less music, and more and more game shows. I can’t even watch the station today, though I am aware that I am now out of their target age group.

Today, MTV music videos isn’t want it used to be, if you can find it at all. Their schedule is full of reality shows and specials, and finding actually music videos is hard to do. Even worse, the MTV music of today seem to be nothing more than noise, though I guess that just makes me old right? Most of it I wouldn’t even label as music, but I am aware that this is just my opinion. I know that those who are younger than me enjoy it; it’s just not for me.

At first, MTV broke its music segments up into several parts. Each one was hosted by a different person. The host would give insights into the bands' influences, interview band members and even give a short piece on fashions of the time. During its early years, MTV was one long continuous string of bands of all genres. No distinction was made between genres. Eventually, MTV started to separate the videos into their appropriate areas: Metal, Pop, Rap and Hip-hop.

While radio air time created the Rock god, MTV created the Rock super god. Bands were achieving more and more fame through their visual special effects. Not only could the melodic spirit of the idea be put into music, but it could now be both listened to and watched, much like attending a concert in the comfort of your own home.

As MTV music videos evolved, so did its programming schedule. Eventually the host's air time was expanded, very gradually. What began as just a short one or two minute blurb, became a 15 minute segment. This concept was expanded and eventually these small segments turned into a forum for the host, similar to the standard talk show. This was the beginning of the decline of 24-hour MTV music videos.

Today, only about half of MTV music videos airtime is devoted to music. The rest consists of reality or comedy shows, band exposes, band documentaries, and tours of musicians houses. Most shows are about an hour long, with the exception of Number One Countdowns, and the Headbangers Ball. With titles like these, MTV music had clearly resorted into a mass media dispensation of music trends.

Today there are Number One countdowns for several genres. There are specialty shows, like the Headbangers Ball in which heavy metal rockers are interviewed accompanied by the sounds of their music. Sadly, most of MTV music videos today consists very little actual music content.

From its humble beginnings as a 1980's channel devoted to continuous music, and its evolution to hosted talk shows, reality and comedy shows, MTV has still maintained its mission to bring new music videos into the popular culture.

I haven’t thought a lot about MTV music videos in a long time, but I have started to think about it again. My daughter is getting older and even though I hate the thought of it, I know she will outgrow groups like the Wiggles soon enough, and she will be listening to music that is made for older kids. What scares me is that I can’t find any MTV music videos that I would really want her watching. I guess you could call me over protective, but I think kids are growing up way to fast, and I want her to enjoy the freedom of childhood for as long as she can before she is aware of things like sex and trying to act and look older.

The content of most of the MTV music videos makes my skin crawl. Women have come a long way in the past decades, yet you would never know it by watching some of these videos. Self respect seems to have flown out the window, but to be fair, this has always been the case with most of the MTV music videos that have come and gone in the past. I guess it just seems to be getting worse, and the depravity seems to have gotten worse. I don’t want her identifying with these women. I know I can’t keep her from seeing it forever, but I hope I can hold her off long enough to show her how a real woman should live.

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