Why the Site Name?

A big question that I get is “Why do you hate MTV so much?” And the answer (honestly and truly) is that I don’t. The next question I always get after is “Well why ‘Ruined By MTV’ then?”

There’s a saying that MTV has ruined music. That’s how I got the name of the site. The main grudge I have (if any) against MTV is that it proposes a one-sided view of the music industry by drowning the public in one vision of “good music.” The public becomes conditioned to like only that kind of music, and artists stop trying to create their own sound and instead attempt to make music that would get them on Top 40 charts. There is a lot of musical diversity in the industry today, but unless you’re in the mainstream (even if you have the talent) chances are you will be overlooked by a large majority of the population.

Yet, just to clarify: When you like a band, and they become mainstream, you should be happy for them. Isn’t that the end goal, for bands to be able to share their music and their vision with as many people as they can? I don’t see anything wrong with a band becoming more popular if they remain true to their music.

When MTV aired its first video, (a personal favorite) the Buggles' “Video Killed The Radio Star,” MTV was the last great musical revolution. In the early 80's MTV transformed music into something totally different by introducing New Wave, Synthpop, and other artists that commercial radio would not play. But the revolution is long over.

I like the idea behind MTV, but unfortunately somewhere along the way the network seems to have forgotten that the M stands for music.