Yesterday was MTV's 27th birthday. Hey, do you even remember that MTV actually played "music videos" at one time? 
MTV (Music Television) is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on August 1, 1981, the original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs. Today, MTV still plays a limited selection of music videos, but the channel primarily broadcasts a variety of pop culture and reality television shows targeted at adolescents and young adults.
Since its premiere, MTV has revolutionized the music industry. Slogans such as "I want my MTV" became embedded in public thought, the concept of the VJ was popularized, the idea of a dedicated video-based outlet for music was introduced, and both artists and fans found a central location for music events, news, and promotion. MTV has also been referenced countless times in popular culture by musicians, other TV channels and shows, films and books.
On August 1, 1981, at 12:01 a.m., MTV: Music Television launched with the words "Ladies and gentlemen, rock and roll," spoken by original COO John Lack. Those words were immediately followed by the original MTV theme song, a crunching guitar riff written by Jonathan Elias and John Petersen, playing over a montage of the Apollo 11 moon landing. MTV producers Alan Goodman and Fred Seibert used this public domain footage as a conceit, associating MTV with the most famous moment in world television history. At the moment of its launch, only a few thousand people on a single cable system in northern New Jersey could see it.
Appropriately, the first music video shown on MTV was "Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles. The second video shown was Pat Benatar's "You Better Run". Sporadically, the screen would go black when an employee at MTV inserted a tape into a VCR.
This is a list of the first music videos aired on MTV. These music videos were played on MTV's first day, August 1, 1981.
"Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles
"You Better Run" by Pat Benatar
"She Won't Dance With Me" by Rod Stewart (Contains use of the word "fuck" by Stewart)
"You Better You Bet" by The Who
"Little Suzi's on the Up" by Ph.D.
"We Don't Talk Anymore" by Cliff Richard
"Brass in Pocket" by The Pretenders
"Time Heals" by Todd Rundgren
"Take It On the Run" by REO Speedwagon
"Rockin' the Paradise" by Styx
"When Things Go Wrong" by Robin Lane and the Chartbusters
"History Never Repeats" by Split Enz
"Hold On Loosely" by 38 Special
"Just Between You and Me" by April Wine
"Sailing" by Rod Stewart
"Iron Maiden" by Iron Maiden
"Keep On Loving You" by REO Speedwagon
"Message of Love" by The Pretenders
"Mr. Briefcase" by Lee Ritenour
"Double Life" by The Cars
"In the Air Tonight" by Phil Collins
"Looking For Clues" by Robert Palmer
"Too Late" by Shoes
"Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" by Stevie Nicks and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
"Surface Tension" by Rupert Hine
"One Step Ahead" by Split Enz
"Baker Street" by Gerry Rafferty
"I'm Gonna Follow You" by Pat Benatar
"Savannah Nights" by Tom Johnston
"Lucille" by Rockestra
"The Best of Times" by Styx
"Vengeance" by Carly Simon
"Wrathchild" by Iron Maiden
"I Wanna Be a Lifeguard" by Blotto
"Passion" by Rod Stewart
"Oliver's Army" by Elvis Costello
"Don't Let Him Go" by REO Speedwagon
"Remote Control/Illegal" by The Silencers
"Angel of the Morning" by Juice Newton
"Little Sister" by Rockpile with Robert Plant
"Hold On to the Night" by Bootcamp
"Dreaming" by Cliff Richard
"Is it You?" by Lee Ritenour
"Tusk" by Fleetwood Mac
"He Can't Love You" by Michael Stanley Band
"Tough Guys" by REO Speedwagon
"Rapture" by Blondie
"Don't Let Go the Coat" by The Who
"Ain't Love a Bitch" by Rod Stewart
"Talk of the Town" by The Pretenders
"Can't Happen Here" by Rainbow
"Thank You for Being a Friend" by Andrew Gold
"Bring It All Home" by Gerry Rafferty
"Sign of the Gypsy Queen" by April Wine
"The Man with the Child in His Eyes" by Kate Bush
"Ashes to Ashes" by David Bowie
"Just Between You and Me" by April Wine
"Rat Race" by The Specials
"Once in a Lifetime" by Talking Heads
"Victim" by Bootcamp
"Tonight's the Night" by Rod Stewart
"Cruel to Be Kind" by Nick Lowe
Here's the first four videos aired on MTV ...
For more of the best of MTV from it's debut year of 1981, check this out ...
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