Portlandia Overthrows MTV

Favorite line: "I can be sardonic." -- Kurt Loder.

Pod-Fascination: Get Up On This And You Had To Be There

Each week on Pod-Fascination, I recommend my favorite podcasts.

Get Up On This
Get Up On This hosts Jensen Karp and Matt Robinson are the self-described "cool kids" who know about all the cool stuff you haven't heard about yet. Each week, a guest from the world of comedy, film, or music join the two hosts and share something they think people should "get up on." It may sound like there's a lot of douchebaggery that can come of this. On the contrary: the podcast is like the opposite of an annoying hipster. While a hipster would say "Oh, I can't tell you what I'm listening to/watching/reading because you've probably never heard of it and are not worthy of it," Jensen Karp’s basic philosophy is "I happen to know a lot of things, let me share my knowledge so that you, too, can be a pop culture connoisseur." It's really humanitarian if you think about it.

Karp does know a thing or to, at nineteen he had a major label record deal as rapper Hot Karl and now owns the amazing Gallery 1988 in Los Angeles. He has the ability to namedrop, but it's just enough to make it interesting and not obnoxious. Many of who Karp brings to the table is upcoming rap artists, which is not my cup of tea, but the enjoyable rapport he has with guests still makes it an interesting listen. Co-host Matt Robinson usually counteracts with rap/hip-hop by mentioning a novel or board game, so there's something for everyone. In general, the dialogue among hosts and guests flows easily and always provides an interesting insider tidbit about the entertainment industry, which is the fastest way to my heart.

Why Doesn't MTV Play Music Videos Any More?

Finally, an honest (and hilarious) answer to the MTV question. (Some of the language is NSFW so you've been warned!)

If This Keeps Up, MTV Might Start Showing Music Videos Again

Unless you've been living under a rock, you're probably aware that MTV announced they won't be filming more episodes of Jersey Shore. But don't fret! Just wait another 10-20 years and it'll be back on again!

What makes me say that? MTV has been mining its archives the past few years. They created new episodes of Beavis And Butt-Head and also brought back 120 Minutes and House Of Style.

Thankfully, they're not the only ones looking to MTV's past for entertainment's future. Over the weekend, I discovered that one of the greatest shows to ever air on MTV is making a comeback on the web.

First Look: Wallpaper, "Fucking Best Song Everrr"

MTV is bringing back Liquid Television. Of course, it won't actually be shown on MTV as Jersey Shore takes up most of their programming.

Moving on...

The first thing created for the new Liquid Television is this music video for Wallpaper's "Fucking Best Song Everrr." And you know what? This really might be the fucking best song everrr.

MTV's Best Videos Of The '80s

So MTV did a poll to see what MTV fans thought the best video of the '80s is and the results surprised me. The overwhelming winner at around 75% was...

INXS's "Need You Tonight" video.



It's a really weird list and wow are there some INXS fans browsing MTV.com.

Who would you have voted for?

I Was On MTV's Made!

Back in 2004 I was living in St. Louis and worked in my free time as a stage manager for St. Louis Shakespeare. I was getting ready to stage manage their production of Richard III and was preparing to assist the director with the auditions when I got a phone call from the company's Artistic Director. She informed me that MTV would be at auditions with two young ladies who were planning to audition, as Richard III does require some young ladies to perform in it. I said eloquently, "Uhm what? MTV?" Turns out the ladies were a part of MTV's reality show, Made, which I hadn't actually heard of till that phone call. The story was, there were two sisters, Megan and Katelyn, who were a year apart in age and both wanted to be actresses. They were being coached by a local acting coach, were going through stage combat training with a local teacher, were going to be flown out to audition for a small part on a soap in LA, and so on.

My initial reaction was concern; I was concerned that MTV expected us to automatically cast the girls but was reassured that we were under no obligation, and that either way it made for a good story, and a good training experience for young wannabe actors. I was told to proceed with auditions as usual.

So the day of the auditions rolls around and they're going fine and then the volunteer working at the table says "ok, the MTV folks are here since the girls are up." The camera woman came in first, and she was was really quite kind. She assured us that she wasn't going to get in the way or spin it in a negative way, that we should just audition them like anyone else and then after the audition we'd be asked a few questions on camera or they'd record our (usually) internal conversation about their auditions. She wanted the whole experience to be as normal as possible and told us to treat it like we would an audition for any other young, mostly inexperienced, actors. They wanted to get a good TV story, but what struck me is that she seemed genuinely interested in providing a real life and supportive experience for budding young artists - it didn't read to me like she was hoping for some kind of spectacular crash and burn TV-worthy experience. I thought that was pretty cool because I was actually kind of concerned about it, never having seen an episode of the show, but was aware that most "reality" TV thrives on ridiculous humiliation.

MTV At 30: A Look Back At The MTV VJs

This list was originally published on August 17, 2010. But you knew we had to dust this one off and bring it back this week!

Here are our Top 12 MTV VJs:

12. Mark Goodman
11. Carson Daly
10. Riki Rachtman
9. Adam Curry
8. John Sencio
7. "Downtown" Julie Brown
6. Kennedy

MTV At 30: Remembering MTV

We asked people to share their MTV memories. Here are some of the best:

Dancing around the living room to Madonna's Borderline. The video inspired that Year's Halloween costume- lace gloves, spandex.
	--@Sashalyn
	We didn't yet have cable, but my cousins did. We were transfixed from the first moment we saw MTV. Back at the beginning, it didn't have commercials. We sat there for hours, ignoring the rest of our family. It was the most amazing thing. We had withdrawal when it was time to go home.
		--@Daddy Geek Boy
The thing about MTV going live is this: It's like a cool party. Not everyone was ballsy or insightful enough to attend, but in retrospect everyone tells you they were there, thinking it gives them some sort of cultural street cred. Because it does: Nothing has been the same since the moon man first came bouncing across our screens.
	--@Jett Superior

 
Got a memory of your own? Share it in the comments!

MTV At 30: Sifl And Olly, "Fake Blood"

ROCK!