Knockback, Episode 270 | MTV (Patreon)

If you're an American gen-xer or millennial, there's a better-than-decent chance you were heavily influenced by MTV growing up. Launched in the early '80s, culturally crescendoing in the '90s, and still highly-relevant into the 2000s, MTV's brand of so-called 'music television' helped define a succession of generations' musical tastes, fashion, and the wider spectrum of entertainment full-stop. Today's episode of KnockBack is dedicated to MTV through the eyes of two people born in 1973 and 1984, both loyal viewers of the network not unlike millions upon millions of their respective contemporaries. There were the music videos, yes. And they were glorious. But there's so much more to delve into, too: Programming (120 Minutes, Headbangers Ball, TRL), spin-offs (VH1, MTV2), the rise of reality television as we know it (The Real World, Road Rules), and on and on and on. We definitely wanted our MTV. Did you?