Can MTV Return to the Glory Days of Music Videos?

By Jett Wells Posted Nov 7th 2010 02:30PM

Pop-Ed: When people talk MTV, they make it sound like a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde tale. Jekyll was the 1980s-to-late-1990s MTV, when it was still called "music television" and was about one thing only -- music. The impact it had on musicians' careers was revolutionary, and it made artists like Michael Jackson transform from pop star to legend.

Mr. Hyde is what you see today, a network without an identity and invested more in teenage humor, publicity stunts and 'Jersey Shore.' If you grew up watching MTV in the '90s, you probably don't watch MTV today because music videos and 'TRL' ('Total Request Live,' yeah, the days of Carson Daly) have been replaced by pregnant teenagers and indie redheads from Texas.

Now MTV wants us to believe that's all changing, that they can move back to the glory days of music videos. Read on.

Vulture reported that MTV has taken on a new series where they'll finance music videos to turn them into epic dramas -- in other words, really expensive, cool-looking music videos with good directors. The series is called 'Supervideo,' and it officially started with a new video for LCD Soundsystem's 'Pow Wow,' featuring Oscar-nominee Anna Kendrick of 'Twilight' and 'Up in the Air' fame.

Can this series revitalize the cultural relevance of music videos once again, or is it just a pet project to please MTV's older fans? Simple answer: MTV gave birth to the music video, it killed the music video, and it still won't resurrect the music video -- at least not to what it once was.

The effort is led by publisher of Mean Magazine, Kashy Kahledi, an old music video geek, who feels premium value is returning to the art form after Lady Gaga and Kanye West's successes. "It says that there's a certain nostalgia, that there's a sort of excitement for the music video again," Kahledi said.

MTV nabbed 'Training Day' writer David Ayer to run the first 'supervideo,' and it certainly looked pretty, but for music videos to rise back to the influential medium they once were, it's going to take a whole lot more than fancy cameras and MTV money. The main idea that made music videos so powerful back in the '80s and '90s was that MTV was built around them; they had a whole network vying for different ways to promote them. Sometimes it was the music video that made the artist, but today the clips' roles are more similar to album covers -- decorative art to promote digital tracks on iTunes. Videos play second fiddle.

'Supervideo' isn't going to change MTV's relationship with music videos because MTV worked too hard to leave them in the past, and while a lot of people moved on, new viewers have tuned in for Snooki and 'The Burial Life' instead.

The irony is that even if MTV wanted to ditch reality TV and bring back the music video, it wouldn't matter because the state of the music industry has flipped upside down. When music videos were in their prime, Napster didn't exist and YouTube was years away. Music videos haven't lost all relevance, but they've adapted to today's viral environment where everything is on Vevo/YouTube, and people only buy music because they don't know how to use Google correctly. Times have changed, and today's music video doesn't fit into the end-all be-all role it once had, because our attention spans have been divided by four -- there's too much information on the internet coming at us from all ends for us to value it as much anymore.

Although the role of the music video has changed dramatically, that doesn't mean we don't love them when they're good. Lady Gaga's 'Bad Romance' and Kanye West's 'Runaway' made music videos an artform once again, and their traffic on YouTube alone proves people still love them, but conversely, our behaviors have changed. MTV can't make money off music videos anymore because people only need a laptop, no more TV, to get what they want. People have the control. MTV can invest in high-quality music videos, and people will watch them, but this isn't by any means a return to the 1990s and they won't change the role of the video because our culture changed without them a long time ago.

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Tags: MTV, music video

Comments

(47)

Sunday 07 November

By ofalaska

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No. MTV is nothing but a Jersey Shore trash-tube has-been. The biggest video stations in regard to viewership now are GAC, (Great American Country) and CMT (Country Music Television) and MTV ain't goin' there. I suppose they could do endless Kanye with chest pounding, junk jewelery and bootie grinding, but how do you fill 24 hours with THAT?

By BOOMER

MTV came into it's glory in the mid 80's when music and music videos were watched by all age groups. MTV got away from that and targeted it to the younger audiences. Those who watched MTV in the 80's are not interested in what MTV has to offer now. If MTV goes back to it's roots and mix it up a bit and show older videos, that may bring back some interests from the older viewers. It is real easy to turn a channel that doesn't have anything to offer.

By BTDT

"Can MTV Return to the Glory Days of Music Videos?"

If anyone was making music these days, it might make sense.
But sampling old music and screaming obscenities over top may be some sort of art, but it certainly isn't music.

Monday 08 November

By kelldogg8

High Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

Video Killed The Radio Star, then M-T-V Killed The Video Star...

By mlamb88

I remember watching mtv soley to see the music videos. I miss that.

By speeddemon845

Why doesn't MTV move these crappy reality shows to MTV2?
Then just show videos?
I remember how great MTV was in the 80's and 90's.
Us older veiwers just might tune back in.

By Christina

I agree! MTV should be what it started out to be...Music Television....thats what the "M" stands for in MTV right? If it was ment for reality television then maybe they should change the name to RTV. Yes move the "reality" crap to MTV2 and keep the original MTV for the videos.....and maybe throw in some Beavis and Butthead..LOL..hey they even showed music videos!

By Zero

MTV is political, think about it, if you play M. Carey, a punker barfs, vice-versa.

By Shane

Lowest Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

Its called the Buried Life. You would know that if you did more than 10 minutes of research for the piece. Morons.

By me

Seems to me only a moron would even know of a show called 'Buried Life'.

By kbroome1969

I'll never understand why they went the way they did...they was gooood back in the

days when they had people like Martha Quinn and Downtown Julie Brown

By CondorRecords1983SJC&SanClemente

Absolutely. God, New Wave was the best. KROQ and Richard Blade. Downtown Julie Brown, "Wabawabawaba." Picture discs. Proud to be part of the era.

By knyghtprey

Vote down Vote up Report this

Yeah, I thought Martha Quinn was kinda cute in a hometown sorta way.

they had it going back in the days of Downtown Julie Brown and Martha Quinn

By Tiffany

I remember back when they actually played videos! And I remember they came out with MTV 2 that was supposed to play videos, then that went downhill. The only channel that plays videos is VH1 and BET. VH1 runs videos early AM-noon, and then they play reality shows and satirical shows (I

By Sekinu2

BET doesnt even play music or good music since they were bought by MTV years agao. Back in the days when Tigga was still in The Basement lol MTV was great I remember the day it first came on as a kid being glued to it. didnt matter what it was could have been Yo MTV Raps with Fab 5 Freddy or Dre and Ed or Head bangers Ball with Rikki or remote Control music games .Then came the reality shows and TRL and it was all down hill from there.They dont even play music videos at all anymore do they?..Bring back Th BOX on tv that was what it was about lol A phone number that cost you a quarter and you called in and they played your requested video

Yeah I don't really watch BET but, sometimes when I'm changing channels I swear I've seen music videos... But MTV has been going down hill for quite some time. I really have never liked it after they stopped playing video, I have been watching VH1 for about 11 years or so (early AM getting ready for school, then work as an adult) :)

By Dwayne

Mtv will NEVER be like it was in the 80's...

By mikemaj82

no. because the music sucks today, so who wants to see videos for it?

By donald

And there's nothing original anymore. All the music sounds alike.

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