Robin PottratzA Tribute to TRL
November 18th 2008 00:10
Sorry that I have been away loyal readers...but you see I have been in a state of mourning...well not really mourning, more of a "wow really...that sorta sucks." The event that made me feel this way was the final episode of MTV's long running, culturally significant video countdown known as Total Request Live or simply TRL. It was announced a couple of months ago that due to declining ratings, TRL would be cancelled in favor of...some reality show involving pretty California hipsters I guess. On November 16th, MTV bid the program adieu with a live three hour send off that featured appearances from various musical artists that were launched or impacted by the success of the show. It even featured a return appearance from former host and current late night talk show punch line Carson Daly.
As I watched TRL limp into extinction, I couldn't help but feel nostalgic about the show and my memories of it. I remember when the show first began, I was in 6th grade and was still going to my catholic elementary school in Melrose, Minnesota. Every day I would rush home on my bike and catch the last three videos of the day. I would engage in silly debates with the girls in my class over who was better: The Backstreet Boys or KoRn...for the record KoRn was always better ; ). In its inception, it was hosted by Carson Daly, a host that had just the right combination of trendy good looks and couch potato sweetness. He was often accompanied by VJ contest winner and poster boy for the borderline retarded Jesse Camp. Jesse would rattle of nonsensical garbage and Carson would pretend not to be irritated...they worked well together. Everyday the countdown battle would be between The Backstreet Boys and N'Sync. They often traded the number one spot on the countdown, and as TRL's popularity grew, the battle for the number one spot on the countdown turned into the battle for the number one musical act in the world. Along the way TRL launched the careers of KoRn, Britney Spears, Limp Bizkit, Kid Rock, and Eminem.
As I grew older, I lost interest in the show...only watching if there was nothing else on and I happened to flip to it. The show eventually lost traction and when Carson Daly left, TRL became significantly more irrelevant and less hip. Over the years the hosts became interchangeable. Damien Fahey, Vanessa Minnillo, Quddus, and that one British chick that they had on their ending few shows. The ability of TRL to propel new artists also diminished. I remember when N'Sync, The Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears could shut down Times Square with a simple appearance, but when I went to New York last summer, outside the MTV studios couldn't have been more lifeless. TRL had run its course and even though I think that the show has a poor time slot and did what it could given the constant host shifts and various other gimmicks...there is simply no longer a place for TRL.
However what I will always have with TRL are memories. Memories of being 12 and 13 and watching the show every afternoon after school. That show helped me fall in love with popular culture and understand what makes certain media popular. The show also featured Britney Spears when she was sane and beautiful and Christina Aguilera when she was still a girl at just about the time when I was going through puberty...talk about irony. As I watched the finale of TRL I felt several things: nostalgic, sad, happy...and really old. Despite that I think that it would be unfair to ignore the impact that TRL had not only on MTV but on popular culture as a whole. TRL had a role in featuring the boy band era, the rap rock fusion, teen princesses, emo bands, and a resurgence of angry hip hop. Music would not be the same without it...so raise a toast to TRL and the legacy that it is leaving behind.
As I watched TRL limp into extinction, I couldn't help but feel nostalgic about the show and my memories of it. I remember when the show first began, I was in 6th grade and was still going to my catholic elementary school in Melrose, Minnesota. Every day I would rush home on my bike and catch the last three videos of the day. I would engage in silly debates with the girls in my class over who was better: The Backstreet Boys or KoRn...for the record KoRn was always better ; ). In its inception, it was hosted by Carson Daly, a host that had just the right combination of trendy good looks and couch potato sweetness. He was often accompanied by VJ contest winner and poster boy for the borderline retarded Jesse Camp. Jesse would rattle of nonsensical garbage and Carson would pretend not to be irritated...they worked well together. Everyday the countdown battle would be between The Backstreet Boys and N'Sync. They often traded the number one spot on the countdown, and as TRL's popularity grew, the battle for the number one spot on the countdown turned into the battle for the number one musical act in the world. Along the way TRL launched the careers of KoRn, Britney Spears, Limp Bizkit, Kid Rock, and Eminem.
As I grew older, I lost interest in the show...only watching if there was nothing else on and I happened to flip to it. The show eventually lost traction and when Carson Daly left, TRL became significantly more irrelevant and less hip. Over the years the hosts became interchangeable. Damien Fahey, Vanessa Minnillo, Quddus, and that one British chick that they had on their ending few shows. The ability of TRL to propel new artists also diminished. I remember when N'Sync, The Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears could shut down Times Square with a simple appearance, but when I went to New York last summer, outside the MTV studios couldn't have been more lifeless. TRL had run its course and even though I think that the show has a poor time slot and did what it could given the constant host shifts and various other gimmicks...there is simply no longer a place for TRL.
However what I will always have with TRL are memories. Memories of being 12 and 13 and watching the show every afternoon after school. That show helped me fall in love with popular culture and understand what makes certain media popular. The show also featured Britney Spears when she was sane and beautiful and Christina Aguilera when she was still a girl at just about the time when I was going through puberty...talk about irony. As I watched the finale of TRL I felt several things: nostalgic, sad, happy...and really old. Despite that I think that it would be unfair to ignore the impact that TRL had not only on MTV but on popular culture as a whole. TRL had a role in featuring the boy band era, the rap rock fusion, teen princesses, emo bands, and a resurgence of angry hip hop. Music would not be the same without it...so raise a toast to TRL and the legacy that it is leaving behind.
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