SONGS

Video Killed the Radio Star

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A 1979 single by British synth-pop duo The Buggles, lamenting changes brought to popular music by television, which famously became MTV's first music video.

Composition

Video Killed the Radio Star was written by Trevor Horn, Geoff Downes, and Bruce Woolley. The synthesizer arrangement layers vocoder textures with traditional drums and bass.

Reception

The single reached number one on the UK Singles Chart and topped charts in over a dozen countries in late 1979 and early 1980. It became a defining single of early synth-pop.

MTV Connection

The song’s music video, directed by Russell Mulcahy, was the first video aired on MTV at the network’s launch on August 1, 1981. The video became one of MTV’s most-discussed pieces of programming history.

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Video Killed the Radio Star starts with V and ends with R. Browse other songs along the same letter.

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