MTV Videos From The 80s That Caused The Worst Earworms

Remember the really bad MTV Videos that came out the television in the 80s?

MTV (Music Television) was a cable television network that revolutionized the music industry by becoming the first 24-hour music channel, airing music videos and music-related programming.

 MTV launched on August 1, 1981, with the first music video aired being "Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles. Initially, MTV focused on music videos and had VJs (video jockeys) introduce the clips and banter between them.

Most of the videos in the early days were very low budget. But if you had a catchy tune and a strange video, people remembered the artists.

Now in the beginning artists from Europe had a head start on us American when it came to strange videos. That being said it introduced all of us to new music we never would have listened to or bought the record.

Some bands I remember were U2, The pretenders, Madness, Men at Work, Adam Ant and many more.

Growing up in Warren, Michigan the talk all around school was this new TV show that played music. The cable hook up had not made it to my house yet but a close from Dan invited us over to watch it in his basement.

My eyes were glued watching video after video and at that time MTV didn't have a ton of videos. I remember them taking breaks and running strange videos of music and showing strange factory machines. I called them , "filler videos.

But got my fill of Pat Benatar , live REO Speedwagon , Robert Palmer and a whole lot of Rod Stewart videos.

Here are a few samples of artists MTV played in the 80s that still give you a pretty good earworm for the day. Earworms is a term for a song you just cant get out of your head

"I Ran (So Far Away)", also released as "I Ran", is a song by English new wave band A Flock of Seagulls. It was released in 1982 as their third single and it was the second single from their self-titled debut album.

If your wondering the band still touring in 2025 the answer is yes. The band set to play Detroit, at The Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre June 21st

POWERSOLO is a rock and roll band which formed in Aarhus, Denmark by Vocalist/Guitarist Kim “Kix” Jeppesen.

"Fish Heads" is a novelty song by comedy rock duo Barnes & Barnes, released as a single in 1978. The song also gained public recognition with the radio debut of their novelty song "Fish Heads," on the US nationally syndicated Dr. Demento

Men Without Hats are a Canadian new wave and synth-pop band, originally from Montreal, Quebec. Their music is characterized by the baritone voice of their lead singer Ivan Doroschuk, as well as their elaborate use of synthesizers and electronic processing.

The video was always on heavy rotation on MTV. The band still tours to this day with a resurgence of popularity. Check out the bands website MEN WITHOUT HATS for current tour info

Wall of Voodoo was an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Though largely an underground act for the majority of its existence, the band came to prominence when its 1982 single "Mexican Radio" became a hit on MTV and alternative radio. Everyone remembers being in Tawanna eating BBQ iguana.

The Vapors are an English new wave and power pop band. They are best known for their 1980 hit single, "Turning Japanese"

The Waitresses were an American new wave band from Akron, Ohio, best known for their singles "I Know What Boys Like." The band released two albums, Wasn't Tomorrow Wonderful? and Bruiseology, and one EP, I Could Rule the World If I Could Only Get the Parts.

UB40 are an English reggae band, from Birmingham, England. The band has had more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart and has also achieved considerable international success.

A-ha is a Norwegian synth-pop band formed in Oslo in 1982. Founded by Paul Waaktaar-Savoy, Magne Furuholmen, and Morten Harket, the band rose to fame during the mid-1980s. A-ha achieved their biggest success with their debut album Hunting High and Low in 1985.

The video pretty catchy but there's always someone in the bar trying to sing the chorus and hitting that high note