When Music Learned to Look Back at You
Why do so many classic hits arrive with pictures already playing in your mind? MTV changed more than television — it gave a generation of songs a face, a style, and a lasting place in pop culture.
Why do so many classic hits arrive with pictures already playing in your mind? MTV changed more than television — it gave a generation of songs a face, a style, and a lasting place in pop culture.
Dark, sleek, and impossible to ignore, Self Control turned Laura Branigan into the queen of midnight pop.
From Kim Carnes and Lionel Richie to Journey and Rick James, 1981 was a thrilling year on the radio. It was a moment when rock, pop, funk, country and new wave all collided, with MTV waiting just around the corner.
A-ha’s “Take on Me” was more than a catchy 1985 hit — it was a hard-won pop breakthrough built through rewrites, daring vocals and a video that changed MTV forever. Here’s the story behind the song that still makes the speakers glow.