Is This Goodbye to MTV?!? #MusicMonday
Did streaming kill the video star?
Source: MTV
I was there to witness the birth of MTV, Music Television, in August of 1981 with a debut video called “Video Killed the Radio Star” by The Buggles. It was a clear first choice because music videos were about to explode and watching music videos on TV was indeed replacing listening to music on the radio. It was the beginning of a defining era in entertainment and pop culture.
And here we are in 2025, watching the demise of music television, MTV, being replaced by new venues such as Spotify and Netflix.
What happened?!?
Yes certainly, as a viewer I was an MTV devotee fueled by the likes of Madonna and Michael Jackson, two superstars made superstars by MTV. Would there have been a Madonna without MTV? Hmmm.
Also as a marketer I was well connected to MTV. I orchestrated the very first MTV partnership with Johnson & Johnson when we launched Clean & Clear skin care as MTV started branching out into programming and they created “House of Style” with Cindy Crawford. I was a frequent programmer with MTV through the years on multiple brands with my clients because I believed in the power of music to engage consumers and the power of MTV to uniquely draw in their viewers.
Alas like many, time has run its course and we will likely soon see MTV turn off its videos, unless someone jumps in and gives it a save. It’s a lesson learned in keeping up not just with technology but also with viewers’ forms and functions, tastes and styles. It appears that MTV did not do that. Not even with their spin-off VH-1 which also had great success during its more limited run. Not even with their numerous new shows (“Jersey Shore” as one example) that just couldn’t hit the mark over the long run.
“I Want My MTV” was a mantra with great significance at the time … perhaps one of the best of all time.
Is this the end of a defining era? Perhaps, and as a long time fan it’s a bit sad. Although I believe that MTV is a great brand in search of a disruptor who will reinvent it. Takers? Will it appear on say Netflix?
What do you think? What’s your experience? JIM