VJ: The Unplugged Adventures of MTV’s First Wave

Although it’s a household word today, when MTV debuted on August 1, 1981, the cable television channel boosted the careers of many rockers looking to kickstart their careers (Madonna), reboot their careers (Michael Jackson), or launch their careers (Duran Duran). In those heady early days, anything seemed possible, and the ability to look pretty in music videos offered many mediocre music acts a shot at fame and fan worship. MTV worked so well because of a group of onscreen video jockeys (VJs), who introduced the music, interviewed the acts, and brought a friendly presence into the living rooms of many fans. In this brilliantly conceived but regrettably dull and lackluster book, Rolling Stone contributing editor Edwards gathers interviews from the original group of MTV VJs—with the exception of J.J. Jackson, who died in 2004—offering a firsthand account of what life and work at MTV were like in those early days. The VJs reflect on their work together, their toughest interviews, their relationships with the musicians who passed through the MTV studios, and the cultural impact of MTV. Blackwood recalls that because of MTV, “musicians got more visually conscious; or self-conscious.” Hunter believes that MTV “presented this vision of American culture, which was tolerant of sincerity and tongue-in-cheek self-deprecation at the same time.” For Goodman, MTV is the “reason you have no attention span. And you can pin reality TV on us, too.” Goodman best sums up the VJs’ halcyon days: “MTV was a trial by fire. We went through this wonderful, terrible experience together and it bonded us.” (May)