VJ

VJ is a behind-the-scenes look at the early years of MTV, circa 1981 to 1985, when it was exploding, reshaping the culture, and forming "the MTV generation.

As MTV's first VJs (along with the late J.J. Jackson), the four of them had a front-row seat to a cultural revolution--and the hijinks of rock stars like Adam Ant and Cyndi Lauper. Their worlds collided, of course: John Cougar invited Nina Blackwood to a late-night "party" that proved to be a seduction attempt. Mark Goodman and Alan Hunter did cocaine with David Lee Roth. Martha Quinn brought a member of the Human League to her grandparents' house--and then made him sleep in the basement wood shop.

While the book has plenty of dish--outrageous hairstyles, money disputes, secret romances--it also tells the story of four VJs growing up alongside the devoted viewers who watched MTV obsessively. By using MTV as a focal point, the book tells the story of the '80s. (Happily, MTV is the best possible focal point for that story.) Readers don't just get the inside scoop on a whole generation of music stars, but a larger understanding of the culture, and how MTV changed it. Nina, Mark, Alan, and Martha were--and continue to be--a generation's trusted narrators.
Mark Goodman, Alan Hunter, and Martha Quinn were the first MTV VJs and are all radio hosts on SiriusXM Satellite Radio’s Big 80s channel. Nina Blackwood was one of the first MTV VJs and is a radio host on SiriusXM Satellite Radio’s Big 80s channel and host of two radio shows nationally syndicated by the United Stations Radio Networks, "Absolutely80s" and "New Wave Nation." Gavin Edwards is the author of five books on music. A contributing editor at Rolling Stone, he has written for The New York Times Magazine, Details, and Wired.