Tonight 9/8: Watch the Premiere of ‘Biography: I Want My MTV,’ a Documentary Look at MTV’s Groundbreaking Story

MTV. Music Television. At the time, it was revolutionary, unthinkable, groundbreaking — and though it doesn’t exist anymore in the way it did for decades, it remains a crucial part of the pop culture landscape of the past 40 years.

Tonight, Sept. 8, A&E will premiere Biography: I Want My MTV, an exhaustively compiled and researched documentary chronicling the story of MTV and featuring interviews with those responsible for its rise and success as well as the musical acts that gave it the singular identity it held for so long. Artists including Nancy Wilson of Heart, who shared her excitement about the project on Twitter:

Last week I was interviewed talking Heart, music, & career for the Biography: I Want My MTV. The biography charts the rise of a cultural phenomenon that came to define a generation: MTV. It premieres tomorrow, Tuesday, September 8, at 9 pm ET/PT on @AETV ! Tune in🤘🏻🍿#iwantmymtv pic.twitter.com/YD0TpCTmZ7

— Nancy Wilson (@NancyWilson) September 7, 2020

Here’s a preview:

More on the doc, via Best Classic Bands:

I Want My MTV weaves together exclusive interviews with the network’s founders and VJs, artists and journalists, along with rarely seen archival footage and outtakes, including a 1983 interview with David Bowie that was never broadcast on television. During the interview with VJ Mark Goodman, a skeptical Bowie takes the network to task for essentially ignoring black artists.

Martha Quinn, one of the original MTV VJs who became household names during the ’80s thanks to the network, discussed her experiences in a 2013 interview with Rock Cellar:

“Gavin Edwards, who co-wrote the book with us, said there was a period of time when MTV was the center of the universe and it’s really true, especially for those of us who grew up with rock and roll. It was literally the center of the universe. Eventually they split all the duties where the news department started doing interviews. It became more of a well-oiled machine. MTV was becoming much more corporate, but there was a period of time where we were all that was happening and that was pretty special. That was an amazing time.”