The result was historic, strange, uneven, and very 1981.
For the specific track-by-track list of what played, see the first 100 videos played on MTV.
Opening Sequence
MTV launched on August 1, 1981 with space-themed imagery and the announcement, “Ladies and gentlemen, rock and roll.” The first video was The Buggles' “Video Killed the Radio Star.” The second was Pat Benatar's “You Better Run.”
That opening pairing became a neat summary of early MTV: part new wave futurism, part rock-radio muscle.
First-Day Playlist Facts
| Category | Detail |
|---|---|
| First video | The Buggles — “Video Killed the Radio Star” |
| Second video | Pat Benatar — “You Better Run” |
| Reported unique videos | 116 |
| Reported total video plays | 209 |
| First repeated video | The Who — “You Better You Bet” |
| Heavily repeated videos | The Who — “You Better You Bet”; April Wine — “Just Between You and Me”; Phil Collins — “In the Air Tonight” |
| Most visible artist | Rod Stewart, with 16 reported appearances across 11 videos |
Why Were There So Many Repeats?
MTV launched before record labels routinely produced videos for every major single. The network had to rely on the videos it could get, including promotional clips already made for other markets. That meant repeated videos were not a bug in the concept. They were part of the early format.
Early MTV looked different from later MTV because the supply of videos was different.
What the First Day Tells Us About 1981
MTV's first day was not a pure pop countdown. It mixed rock, new wave, British acts, album-oriented rock, odd promotional clips, and early video experiments. Some songs were already familiar radio hits. Others were obscure then and remain obscure now.
That is what makes the first day so useful for trivia. It does not simply confirm what people remember about the 1980s. It shows the decade in transition.
A Few Useful Trivia Angles
- The first MTV video is famous: The Buggles' “Video Killed the Radio Star.”
- The second MTV video is less obvious: Pat Benatar's “You Better Run.”
- The first repeated video was The Who's “You Better You Bet.”
- The early MTV rotation included many British and new wave-adjacent acts.
- Rod Stewart was one of the most visible artists on the first day.
Important Source Note
The exact first-day order is best described as a publicly documented, rebroadcast-derived playlist rather than an official MTV corporate log.
If early MTV trivia is your kind of thing, try today's 80s music quiz or explore the quiz archive.
Sources and Notes
- HISTORY.com — MTV launches coverage (August 1, 1981)
- Smithsonian Magazine — How MTV Changed Music coverage
- Publicly documented first-day playlist reconstruction, widely cited in music journalism and broadcast history research. This is not an official MTV corporate log.