In 1981, a scrappy ex-radio executive named John Lack had a wild vision: âWhat if there was a 24-hour television channel devoted entirely to music videos?â Back then, music videos werenât really a thing, just a goofy way for record labels to promote new albums (Queenâs Bohemian Rhapsody? Basically a hype video). But Lack saw them as the perfect opportunity to capture a completely untapped demographicâŠTeens. Record labels laughed him out of the room (""We ain't giving you our f*cking music"") and corporate suits questioned every angle. But against the odds, Lack changed the game with six words: âLadies and Gentlemen, Rock and Roll.â Find out how MTV revolutionized not only how we consume music, but how we experience culture itself⊠why David Bowie put the channel on blast, and how âseven strangersâ helped launch a $2B reality-show industry. Hereâs why MTV is the best idea yet.Â
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