MTV changed the music world when it debuted in 1981 with it’s original culture impact bringing new adventurous music to the masses with wild visuals and an overall sense of cool. A wonderful person has revived all of that fun as it aired on TV with all of the VJ’s, interviews, outdated commercials, and of course the music videos featured in hundreds of hours of video posted on Internet Archive. Yeah, you won’t see any of reality shows that the channel is known for now. You can dive into this treasure trove of content here. 

The first video in the collection shows MTV as it first signed on the air on August 1, 1981 with the epic moon landing themed opening that saw the Bungles ‘Video Killed the Radio Star’ as the first music video aired on the network.

Currently you can watch the footage for free which is not HD obviously, but it has a charming grainy VHS quality to it and you get see all of the memorable shows like the alternative music showcase ‘120 Minutess’, ‘Headbangers Ball’, and much more. The collection does require a log in, and it runs from 1981 to 1989. This is a must-see for any music fan even the younger crowd who just know MTV for everything post-2000.

If you want more 80’s and 90’s alternative musical gifts, listen to ALT_Backspace with Brian Phillips (Saturdays 6a-8a, Sundays 10a-12p) on 101WKQX. Stream us anywhere in the world on your phone, smart speakers, Alexa, and  the radio which we can confirm was not killed by the video star despite what you’ve heard.