This post is dedicated to all of us cool kids who remember what it used to be like when the 1st Music network actually showed…you know, MUSIC!! To all of those who are under a certain age demographic, please allow me to explain. See MTV, actually stands for something: Music Tele-Vision. For those of you that still don’t get it, that means a channel that is dedicated to playing…. well, music. So can someone please inform me “what in the hell happened?? How is it that now, after 30 years of this groundbreaking channel being in existence....that somehow our existence is now probably better off without it? As a kid of the 80’s and early 90’s, I used to love watching MTV growing up. From Yo! MTV Raps; to Dial MTV; to Headbangers’ Ball, and everything in between. MTV used to be the place to see all of the latest styles, music, and trends.
Now there were other shows, like “Remote Control,” “Daria,” and “Liquid Television,” but they never overshadowed the most important thing of all: The Music. So where did the shift begin? Who do we have to blame for all of this reality-show crap; three words: THE…. REAL ….WORLD. See, this was MTV’s first reality show, and quite possibly, the 1st reality show…period. Since then, we have had to sit through 19 years, and 25 seasons of this gut-wrenching torture. Since then we have had to endure a slew of reality programming, each one quite possibly getting dumber than the one before it. Things has gotten so bad now that because of the popularity of shows like “The Jersey Shore,” that old-schools shows like “Beavis and Butthead” are being brought back as smart programming. BEAVIS AND FRIGGIN' BUTTHEAD!!! I want you to just stop and let that sink in for a moment!
To further drive my point, here is the listing for the TV schedule for MTV, as of today, 9/11/11:
6am- Jersey Shore
7am- Jersey Shore
8am- 2011 MTV VMA's
10am- Mr. Deeds
12:00pm- Ridculousness
12:30pm- Ridiculousness
1:00pm- Teen Mom (Season 3)
2:00pm-Jersey Shore
3:00pm- Jersey Shore
4:00pm- True Life
5:00pm- True Life
6:00pm- True Adventures of True Life
7:00pm- True Life: Best and Worst Moments Ever
8:00pm- Jersy Shore
9:00pm- Jersey Shore
10:00pm- Teen Mom (Season 3)
11:00pm- Awkward
11:30pm- Awkward
12:00am- Ridculousness
12:30am- Ridiculousness
1:00am- Death Valley
1:30am- Cuff'd
2:00am-Jersey Shore
3:00am- Jersey Shore
4:00am- Rob Drydek's Fantasy Factory
4:30am- Rob Drydek's Fantasy Factory
5:00am- Rob Drydek's Fantasy Factory
5:30am- Rob Drydek's Fantasy Factory
I have only one question: Where’s the Music?? The only thing on this schedule that has anything to do with music is the replay of “The VMA’s” (which if you actually took the time to watch, hoping for talent and good performances….my sincerest condolences). I watched it the 1st time around, and I can honestly say, “That’s 2 hours of my life that I wish I could take back.” But in either case, who cares about watching a show about tanned-oompa-loompas, who claim to be from the Jersey Shore…..I can tell you, I grew up on the REAL Jersey shore my whole life, and I’ve never seen orange people….On that note, "Who in the Hell is Rob Drydek, and why are we looking at his Fantasy Factory??……Why are we watching a show about “teen moms??” I just don't understand.... I highly doubt that teenage pregnancy is so taboo of a topic in this day and age, that the plight of it has to be formatted in an hour-long broadcast for the world to see.
Again, I ask: where’s the music? Do these kids today even know what a VJ is (or was, for that matter)? No, of course not. Remember Downtown Julie Brown, Daisy Fuentes, Kennedy, Dr. Dre & Ed Lover, and Fab 5 Freddy?? Now for some of you, say…under the age of 20, may not have a clue as to who the hell I am talking about….Don’t worry, I will explain….these are people that introduced the videos before they came on…henceforth, VJ’s. Music is one of the main factors that helps to shape and define a generation, and while technology has changed drastically around us, the need for music videos in our society hasn’t. "Remember the time" when Michael Jackson (see what I did there!) did a world-wide premiere of his newest video? WORLD-WIDE!! That means that for 4 minutes the world stopped and every head was systematically glued to the TV set. Remember when the VMA’s were actually something really cool to look forward to…with new and innovative performances, and displays of talent……..instead of the popularity circus that it has become in recent years. I think I speak for all of us who in the over-25 crowd, when I strongly say, “I Want My MTV….BACK!