MTV Archives - Alan Cross' A Journal of Musical Things

40 years ago today, MTV debuted

At 12:01 am on August 1, 1981, on a handful of cable systems across the US, this happened. At the

Back to work after a short vacation. Things on these pages will be operating as normal for the next while.

Expecting to die one day? Go to Mars! On that cheery note, here’s just news for July 1, 2021. Is

We’ll be hearing more about the 40th anniversary of MTV later this year because it was on August 1, 1981,

Once upon a time, an appearance on MTV’s Unplugged series was a career highlight. Everyone wanted to do one, including

Meanwhile, in Iceland. Hey, I laughed. Here’s music news for August 24, 2020. Coronavirus update 1: And here come the

This is a strange coincidence: The 50th anniversary of the release of The Beatles Let It Be album is Mother’s

I heard Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” in a store already. And so it begins. Here’s

The speaking tour is over–for now, anyway–so I’m flying back home today. Let’s do this again. Meanwhile, here’s some music

It was a Thursday when Nirvana finally moved into the newly-opened Sony Music Studios at 460 W. 54th Street to

I forgot about the MTV Music Video Awards. Yeah, I saw some pre-show hype, but when it came time to actually

Chasing a Dream – Kevin Porter in Conversation with TBP Podcast EP 036 October 11, 2021
Many of us – at one time or another – dream of being professional athletes. Most of us realize in high school that we won’t be making it to the big leagues – unfortunately. The lucky among us flirt with the minor leagues in hopes of that big break. But what happens when that big […]
Andrew Dick
Being your Authentic Self – Richard Crouse in conversation with TBP Podcast EP 035 July 2, 2021
You would be given a free pass if you forgot that before the rise of the social media influencer there were already pundits and personalities on TV, radio and print. There’s just been that much exponential change in the media business over the last 15 years. Yet today, those who were formerly the audience are […]
Mark Silver
The Business of Radio – Elliott Hurst in conversation with TBP Podcast EP 034 June 21, 2021
The commercialization of streaming audio is not a new phenomenon. Going back 100 years, it was simply known by another name, broadcasting. With the launch, rise and now transition to digital and apps, the business models of audio-preneurs have generally been the same, mostly because of the challenge of measurement, a problem audio’s cousin television […]
Mark Silver