It’s August 1st and these are some of the things that happened on this day in pop music history:
- In 1981, MTV went on the air for the first time, offering U.S. cable subscribers around-the-clock music videos introduced by VJs. At 12:01 am ET, the station launched with the words “Ladies and gentlemen, rock and roll” and footage of space launches. The first video on MTV was for The Buggles song “Video Killed the Radio Star.”
- In 1987, MTV Europe went on the air. The first video it broadcast was for Dire Straits’ “Money For Nothing,” which starts with Sting saying “I want my MTV.”
- In 1996, MTV marked its 15th anniversary by launching MTV2.
- In 1981, “Jessie’s Girl” by Australia’s Rick Springfield started a two-week run at No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It earned the singer a Grammy for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance.
- In 1987, Dave Stewart of Eurythmics married Bananarama’s Siobhan Fahey. They were divorced in 1996.
- In 1987, Bob Seger’s “Shakedown” went to the top of the Billboard Hot 100. The song, from the soundtrack to Beverly Hills Cop II, was nominated for an Oscar and Golden Globe.
- In 1963, Artis Leon Ivey Jr. was born in Pennsylvania. As Coolio, he had hits like “Gangsta’s Paradise” and “Fantastic Voyage.”
- In 1981, Diana Ross and Lionel Richie released the duet “Endless Love,” from the movie of the same name. It went on to spend nine weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won an American Music Award. The song also earned an Oscar nomination for Richie, who wrote it.
And that’s what popped on this day.