The news site of Santa Barbara City College.

The Channels

The news site of Santa Barbara City College.

The Channels

The news site of Santa Barbara City College.

The Channels

Column – Music television is no longer about the music

I came home the other day, put down my backpack and flipped on the tube for my daily dose of Ray J, when I realized that something was missing.

What ever happened to the music videos?

I’ve noticed that VH1 and MTV are loaded with reality shows, but I totally forgot about the music videos that got phased out.

It’s sad to see that music videos aren’t played up the way they used to be. I remember VH1’s slogan used to be “Music First.”

Story continues below advertisement

That’s obviously not the case anymore.

The last time I saw a music video was about a month ago, when I woke up on the couch to Beyonce’s “Halo.” Or was I just dreaming of Beyonce?

According to MTV.com’s schedule of shows, there isn’t a single hour dedicated to music videos on a daily basis.

Once in a while, music videos are played in the wee hours of the morning, when nobody is watching. Instead, shows like Cribs, The Hills and Nitro Circus exist.

My only question is: What do they have to do with music?

VH1 does the same, showing music videos from 5 to 10 a.m.

Remember VH1 pop-up videos? Or MTV’s TRL, where viewers could call in to request the music videos they wanted to see? Ah, I miss those days…

I remember when I was about 10 years old and my older brother would sneak me into his room to take a peek at Wu Tang Clan’s “The Triumph.”

Mom thought I was too young to be watching rappers turn into a swarm of bees that take over New York City.

One time she caught me watching these rap music videos, but right before I got my TV privileges taken away, I showed her that they make music videos she liked too.

Next thing I knew, both of us were dancing in the living room to Sheryl Crow singing,

“All I wanna do is have some fun, I’ve got a feeling I’m not the only one. All I wanna do is have some fun, until the sun comes up over Santa Monica Boulevard.”

I grew up in Hawaii, and I had no idea where Santa Monica Boulevard was. But the music video made me feel like it was close to home.

The great thing about the videos was seeing Hollywood and music in tandem, putting us in their shoes.

We got a clear visual of how the musicians felt about the songs they sung.

Nowadays, we’re stuck watching how rock star Bret Michaels feels about the 20 girls with him on his “Rock of Love Bus.”

“All these women trying to fight for one guy, it’s ridiculous,” said my aunt, who also misses the music. She doesn’t even tune-in to music television anymore.

“They say it’s reality TV, but it isn’t actually reality,” she said.

It’s getting so bad that these washed-up and sell-out artists get a second chance at finding what they call “true love.”

What’s even worse is that they’re even basing shows off of the groupies who were eliminated in another show, but who were skanky enough to stick around.

These stations are really creating some good memories. One day, I’ll tell my grand kids about which finalist Ray J chose to keep around for a few more weeks.

It’s seems that music television has sold it’s soul. What was once a staple for these stations has now been put on the back burner.

So let’s get back to the reason these stations exist. Pack away the skanks, bring back the TRL and put the music first.

More to Discover