User Reviews

I was the the ORIGINAL video editor on the show and I can tell you that we FAKED most of the "call in" requests when the show launched. Me, the producer, co-workers of mine would all call into the editing suite and tape record the so called the "requests" It was originally a "top request for videos" show. where the viewers call in and give their requests, the audio of requests would be played over the intro of the requested video... but it was all a scam. MTV had their own agenda of what videos they wanted to push and we were expected to "create" their desired results. So I would call in, make up a phony name, pick some town and say " yo, I want to hear Limp Bisket" or whatever... and the public was never the wiser.

The original trl was never that great to begin along the 1990's which started the downfall of music and entertainment and this new version of trl is even worse than that awful powerpuff girls remake from last year, none of these clowns have any talent, their hosting is awful, the DJ is pathetic, the lyrics are truly worthless, the editing is pathetic, I remember back in 1998, TRL at least as pathetic as original was, did long some good careers including Christina Aguilera, here in this reboot, it's all pathetic, truly dreadful and absolutely hopeless, there is absolutely nothing good about this reboot in my day of the week except the style, otherwise that is it, this is truly the worst TV show of the year, a truly miserable experience.

TRL is a big time failture of a reboot I'm giving it my lowest rating an F.

MTV TRL presents an action packed variety music show filled with tons of guests.

Audience Member (Fabolous, Remy Ma, Keyshia Cole, Vic Mensa, Black Youngsta, Dolan Twins, Fatboy SSE, TI, Big Boi, Ludacris, Nipsey Hussle, Bow Wow, Maino, Marlon Wayans, Nafessa Williams, China Anne McClain, Mike Epps, Tyra Banks, Serayah, Rae Sremmurd) MTV Studios/Viacom (Tamara Dhia, Lawrence Jackson, DC Young Fly, Sway Calloway): October 2017-July 2018; Audience Member (Usher Raymond, Cherish, Pharrell Williams, Jessica Biel, Rihanna, Beyonce); MTV Studios [Vanessa Minnillo, Susie Castillo, Lala Vasquez, Damien Fahey, Quddus, Sway Calloway): July 2006/August 2006.

When I grew up with MTV in 1998, TRL became the most watched show in the afternoons. I used to call MTV's 1-800 phone number to request a video in the top 10 and it would be on there!!! This before the days of Youtube and Facebook made videos popular. It was more than just videos. It was about Times Square, the screaming fans who crowd near MTV's studios, and of course, the celebs and Carson Daly. I liked it when they put up a rap, rock, or alternative video but once it was all pop, I stopped watching. Now all the stuff that MTV airs is reality crap like Jersey Shore. TRL was back when MTV was at its peak. It showed the excess of the new millennium, and changed the way people requested music videos live forever.

I was home today and started channel surfing and Total Request Live was on. Man, this show brings back memories. I was a big fan of this show as an an teen in 98' (I cringe lol) and I have not seen this show since 2001. That's when an already quirky show just became boring to me after so many changes.

A lot of people may not remember but Total Request Live started out not being live in 98'. It was called Total Request with Carson Daly and it first played at night. There was no live audience just Carson Daly sitting down by a TV. The show was 30 minutes long and counted down the top videos of the day. I remember Hanson being #1 all the time with their video "Weird".

Then some thing happened in the later part of 98'. The show moved to afternoons. It went from 30 to 90 minutes long. It got an live audience inside and out. The birth of TRL was born. As a teen this show was fun to come home too. Even though the countdown was shallow and more of an popularity contest and not many good music videos made it but they had a lot of guests and music and it was just fun and cool at the time to us teens. This show believe it or not made pop acts like Nsync and BSB even more popular than they already were. They owned the countdown seriously. If BSB was not #1 than Nsync was and vice versa. But TRL also made grunge metal bands like Korn, Limp Bizket popular too. People who were into pop were introduced to rock and vice versa from the countdown.

Carson Daly became an overnight sensation and was so popular as an DJ they even started an be an MTV DJ contest. I remember when Jesse Camp won the contest. Oh, man watching him was hilarious...he was great.

Then 2001 rolls in and the show just changed. They added a whole lot of DJ's that I could give a crap about. Carson was hardly featured then he finally left. The videos were cut short or never really showed. I guess music just changed in general. I always thought BSB and Britney Spears were horrible acts to be always topping the countdown but I watch today and you have Ashlee Simpson, Hilary Duff, Ryan Cabrera all in the countdown and wow, Nsync, Britney and BSB don't look so bad.

I guess my most reason for stop watching TRL is that I am a teen no more. I just grew up. Whatever it was I will always remember this show at once being really fun to watch as a teen.

TODAY's LINE-UP... THE SAME 10 VIDEOS PLAYED YESTERDAY, ONLY IN A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT ORDER!!!

Get some variety in there. 65 days should be 35 days. 65 days is enough time for those teen boppers to absorb all the publicity and pre-pubescent fans cheering them on, and then to shoot another video covered with horrid dance moves and revealing clothing. They honestly should do something to get more out of it. But the sad part of it all is TRL and MTV Jams countdown are pretty much the only times MTV plays videos anymore(except for the hours between 2-5am when everybodies sleeping).

They carefully handpick the 'beautiful people' to be in their studio audience, and then the cameras only pan on good lookers on the street. when was the last time you saw a fat ugly girl in the studio? in the street audience, everyone is holding signs 'i love nsync' 'britney is the best' and 'carson, let us up'. sad really. It like they are programming us. And Carson can't think for himself. I never heard him badmouth a boyband. He can't on national TV.

Basically, TRL is a front for a communist takeover. They brainwash you with the teen boppers and boybands. Then they send in the boyband attack drones to rid of all non-fans(a.k.a. those with the age in double-digits and IQs higher than their shoe size). Mass hysteria, total anarchy, cats and dogs living together. Then all the girls are put into bare midrifts, hosed-on make up, and given breasts faker than their personality. Conversations are prerecorded and lip synced. Girls deny the obvious and then later admit to it.

Please, boycott TRL to prevent this tragedy.

...something new!" This show is extremely overrated. Why watch it every day? You know it's gonna be the same people at the same number as they were the previous day. Unless by some strange coincidence NSYNC and Backstreet Boys swap #1 and #2.

Why can't they make the show better? Why can't they play a variety of videos? It's always the same teeny bopper nonsense...because obviously all of the people that like rock and alternative have better things to do with their time than call up Carson Daily at 4:00 in the afternoon and scream into a phone for some video.

Carson is barely even there. WTF is he doing? How many times can I see special guest stars filling in for him? And they are always Mandy Moore, 98 degrees, etc., etc., etc. Or else he will get one of MTV's lame boy band appearing vjs (Serena Altul and Bryan McFaden...I know I spelled those wrong but you get the point). Why don't they just kicked Carson off and hire Dave Holmes in his place? I like Dave way better.

They really need to switch the music choices. Every single day you see the same videos. It's all BSB, Nsync, Christina Aguilera, Britney Spear, 98 degrees, etc., etc., etc. What about Placebo? Or the Goo Goo Dolls? And has anyone noticed that Carson is always hitting on the boys from NSYNC, Fred Durst, and Kid Rock. I swear...he tries to act like he's being sarcastic...but I really think he's serious.

I'll admit I used to like this show but back when it was good!

They used to have good artists on the countdown mixed in with the crappy "artists" nowadays it's a bunch of talentless whore and label product cash cows who top the TRL countdown!

If you've turned it onto TRL recently you can see that the TRL demographic has turned from it's bubble gum pop thing to it's "punk/sk8er" phase with the oh so talented (yeah right!) Simple Plan and Ashlee Simpson topping the TRL charts!

Then they slowly started showing less and less of the music video.

Nowadays they only play about 5 seconds of the video to squeeze in the "next big thing" or how they're kissing whoever's ass is their that day.

Carson has left the show and he made it more bearable to watch.

Is it me or am I the only one who find the black hosts of this show to be so stereotyped with the "hey y'all!"'s and the "fo' sho!"'s always said!

This show used to be good but it has slowly made it to unbearable.

You can tell when the show's viewers have gone through phases...right now it's at it's "sk8er/punk" phase...it also has a ghetto phase from time to time where the pathetic suburban kids dress just like their street homies G Unit!

I just felt like putting in my 2 cents on this terrible show!

I used to watch this show for awhile but then it got just plain stupid. What really started to anger me was the fact that all these teeny bopper and boy bands started to always be in the top 10. I mean in the summer and fall of 1999 the backstreet bots were number 3/4 of the time and this very quickly tires this show and makes it very flat and now in 2000 two other familar names dominate the top 10, Eminem and N'sync are always in the top 10 and what is sad is that "the real slim shady" is an extremely dumb song and it was number one quite a few times. I mean when is MtV going to get their head out of the ground and allow some other groups they've banned to be aired such as ICP and Twiztid. I would also like to see some more punk bands like Bad religion or the offspring make it into the top 10. basically this show is for middle schoolers and high schoolers who are into this type of pop music and my advice to America is "don't let boy bands and teeny boppers" take over mainstream music.

I want to see bands like Pavement and Pixies on this show. Why doesn't anyone ever request artists like Tom Waits, or Liz Phair? All I ever see are teen-dreams like Britney Spears. Where's Pedro the Lion? Where's The Dismemberment Plan? Carson, show us the new Alpha video! I wanna see the new Rufus Wainwright cut! Will great bands like King Crimson ever make it on TRL? What about pop giants like Elvis Costello or Wil Oldham? Where are classics like The Beatles, the Stones or the Velvet Underground? Big Star anyone? I want to see Edgar Verese music performed by the late great Frank Zappa, not some pre-pubescent spank rag! If you have to, at least show us Spike Jonez's newest Bjork video, or that Squarepusher video about the Japanese children in the mental ward!

Oh well, I heard they played Beck once...

*sigh*

I've watched this program for about maybe 3 months just to see what they would play. But I have to admit, _some_ of my favorite groups made it like Green Day, The Offspring, and Blink 182. KoRn is okay. But IMHO, those were the only good groups whose vidoes made it on TRL.

Everyday it's the same thing on this show. Either the Backstreet Boys or N'Sync come in first. Also, they play a lot of stuff that only attracts the teeny-bopper genre, such as Britney Spears, Christina Aguliera, Ricky Martin, TLC, some rap, and Mandy Moore! After I realized it was just the same junk, I've stopped watching and gave up on MTV all together.

This show is only for teeny-bopping trendies. And it also seems like Carson Daily literally falls for the boy bands. Why can't they have a special TRL or even a show just like it that only have requests for videos from Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Green Day, The Offspring, Bush, Live, Soundgarden, and some of the old rock groups that have made videos like The Rolling Stones!

Also, another nightmare was that even Hole and No Doubt made guest appearences on TRL and were even in the countdown! This show is only for teeny-boppers who like this type of music. They ought to change the name of this show to, "Total Payola Live"!

ok this show was a good idea when i started. but music cant be based on votes. ever heard of record sales. they tell a more honest top ten. what happened to MTV live. all it was was dj's and a few people in the background chillin playing random videos. no it is a room with an audience that thinks they are rock cause they flash the rock on hand signal, or a hip hop fan cause they wear a shirt eminem wore when he was on the show. all the music that makes it is the ones that have chessy, lame pointless songs that have no depth or sense of someone actually wrote from the heart. whatever happened to a musical opinion. no person can be cool with the backstreet boys and than kick it with a rock band. carson is so fake. he plays for the camera and acts like he is cool with all the artist (i use that word losely)and acts like he loves all the genres of music. they also only have one kind of band per genre and plug the f*ck out of them. hey lets play blink 182 cause they are a punk band. bullsh*t there punk. why dont you look at the early days of the sex pistols when people were killed or injured and every show.

this show also does way to much, i thought they were suppose to play the video, but they play a meek 30 seconds of a 3 minute song, and then go to carson as he is talking to nsync about how there nice album is more rock influenced. no one gives a damn. play the video in full, and dont cover the screen with scrollers saying how someone voted it or have a 17 year old going on 12 years old screaming about how they voted for the video cause there hot.

this show is so low, it digs itself deeper every time it airs. but sadly, its the only time they play videos. but wait, you can see rock videos at 3am to 4 am. this show makes me hang my head in shame and shake it in disbelief that its still on. bring back the original format of MTV or at least do a count down that is based off sales.

This show is not bad. You have some decent videos, some celebrity guests in each airing, and you get to win prizes. However, I'm positively sure that the producer of the show actually places "The Backstreet Boys" and "N'sync" in the top two positions. Then the producer switches the positions every other day or so, to let the viewers(mostly teenage girls) be attracted to the show by seeing who will have the number one spot. I bet even Carson Daly suspects this.

Hmmm, well the show's stayed on the air for a couple years, so somebody's obviously watching it. My question is....who? If you compare the TRL's Top 10 with the actual Top 10 hits, you'll notice that TRL is pretty off on portraying the opinions of the fans. In order to stay "hip", TRL is always careful to choose the latest videos, rather than showing some videos that are actually good. Moreover, as anyone intelligent has noticed by now, there's nothing on this show besides tasteless pop music and a couple alternative songs. It's no request show, it's a routine devoted directly to teeny boppers. Even Carson grows weary of it (ever noticed how he's never enthusiastic as he announces who's on the show?)

Next time, try voting for a song by a group who can really play like Guns n' Roses, Alice Cooper, or Rush. Notice how it won't make a difference.

This is your chance to vote for your favorite Music Video, but the only problem is. "'N Sync" and "Backstreet Boys" are always up at first and second place. That will get really annoying. I want someday Korn will get first place. They're one of my all-time favorite band.

You really can't judge the show without judging the music that is on it. Carson was a decent host. Not great, not bad. The whole slew of new hosts that have taken over for him in the past couple months are not great, and not bad, too. The show's concept is not unique, but it was a good idea from whoever came up with it in the beginning. The show itself has some flaws; but most of the flaws comes from the music it plays itself.

First of all, I don't claim to be an expert of TRL history. I've only seen maybe 15 episodes my whole life. I've never voted. And most of the times I've seen the show is during the summer when I wasn't doing anything at the moment, or if I got home early.

TRL seems to present its audience with maybe 30 or 40 videos to chose from at any given moment. You can pretty much count on it that anything outside those 30 or 40 videos won't ever get on the countdown. As a result of these restrictions, it's no doubt that the same brainless mush manages to get on the countdown. TRL doesn't present its audience with any unique or different music. So, it's audience (mainly kids between 10 and 15) never votes anything unique or different on the top ten.

TRL is also strictly placed into one demographic - kids between 10 and 15, so, anyone outside the demographic, or people inside the demographic who like different types of music, is turned off by the show. And since these people don't watch (and vote) for it, there are no other outside influences. Basically, TRL is stuck in a small airtight bubble with the music it plays. Recently this has changed slightly, but, not by much.

What TRL plays on its countdown is just stale and doesn't fully represent what is out there, right now. It's regulars include Christina Aguilera, Justin Timberlake, Avril Lavigne, Britney Spears, B2K, the boy bands, Jennifer Lopez, etc. Only one of these regulars actually plays an instrument and writes songs. The rest either write no original songs, play no original instruments... or have written or co-written one or two songs on their albums. Not very much artist integrity, huh? Recently TRL has embraced pop-punk and mainstream rap. But, really, these genres are also focused on TRL's demographic.

If TRL really wants to dig itself out of the drudgery of its music and ratings, it needs to try to expand its demographic. Otherwise, this show will be stuck as a show for pop hungry pre-teens and younger teens.

I haven't watched TRL very much at all, and I won't ever. Out of interest, I've watched it a few times, and I don't like what I see.

For those of you who have yet to define what you think is good music. Or, if you think what TRL is playing is good music (you're entitled to opinions)... this is a show for you.

If you don't like what gets played on TRL, don't watch it. There's always CDs and MP3s.

Rating: 3/10

If there is a show that can kill a network like MTV, it's this one. TRL is not only bad, it's overrated, and it plays the same 10 videos every single day!! Plus, it's always the Backstreet Boys, or N*SYNC every single day in the countdown, which has been old for a long time. And all of those screaming people! God that's just aggravating after at least 2 seconds! Don't even get me started on Carson Daly. He's such a loser, and he sucks just like this show! So please, don't waste your time with this garbage.

This is the most annoying show on the face of this earth. This show doesn't play any real music. It's all teenybopper c**p like The Backdoor Boys and 'N Sucks. Whatever happen to the music that I grew up with. I can't stand Carson Daly. He's extremely annoying. Face it, this show is show. It's only for little teenyboppers, Real music fans STAY AWAY FROM THIS GOD AWFUL SHOW!!!

Why do so many people hate this show? Everybody seems to think that it is stupid, pointless, and annoying. If you hate it so much, don't watch it! The videos that are played are voted for by fans, so obviously many people like the sorts of music that make the top 10 countdown. Carson Daly never appears on the show at all anymore, either, so please stop complaining that he is the worst part of it! I like this show (but I won't go so far as to say that I love it). I just wish that the other people who watch this show had some better taste in music. Some of the "music" they choose for the countdown is CRAP! I can't stand Ja Rule, B2K, Justin Timberlake, or Shakira. Lets see some more of Good Charlotte, Avril Lavigne, Eminem, and Blink-182!

This show rocks! I love how *N Sync always gets first place! Carson is such a great host he keeps the show alive and fun, and not to forget that Carson is totally hot! The only thing that I don't like is when they are showing the video and it has a little screen come up with people screaming for what they voted for. I didn't mind it when they had a little caption box at the bottom of the screen, but I hate it when they bring up those little screens with the people screaming!

What has happened to MTV over the last couple of years? TRL is one of the few shows that actually plays music videos. Screw the REAL WORLD and ROAD RULES. I want videos. TRL at least attempts it if you like the POP genre, a.k.a. the Backstreet Boys and N'Sync. At least we get to see KOrN every once in a while.

On this show people vote on MTV.com for their favorite songs, and they're all put on a countdown. My synopsis on this show is that it's not bad for what it is, and I do think that Carson Daly is a pretty good host, he seems like a really nice guy and I like how he interacts with his audience. It does pander to the teeny bopper crowd as acts like N'Sync, and 68 degrees pretty much dominate the countdown. Actually I think that if they concentrated solely on the teeny bopper stuff it would be an improvement. What totally kills this show is dirtbag bands like Korn, Limp Bizkit, Blink 182, Papa Roach and Green Day. The pop music is fine, but the rock music completely sucks. I guess that's because I'm an old-school 80's heavy metal fan. I'd like to see some videos from Judas Priest, White Lion, Queensryche, Stryper, and Def Leppard. Here are some of my picks for the TRL countdown that you probably wont ever see on there

White Lion: Tell Me

Judas Priest: Hot Rockin

Queensryche: Jet City Woman

Dokken: In My Dreams

Stryper: Free

Kix: Don't Close Your Eyes

I could probably think of some more, but I'll stop here. In closing, this show would be good it only concentrated on pop music and give the sucky alternative garbage the old heave ho

This show is terrific! I really love it. Yeah N'Sync and BSB may stay at #1 and #2. But oh well! It's the votes of the people. So I guess Korn just don't have as many fans as N'Sync and BSB obviously do. Pop is coming back! It's a pop takeover and I'm totally loving it! TRL is just the way those major pop fans show their loyalty. It's so great.

The only good thing about this show is when they have celebrity news or debut videos. It's always the same though because the same videos are always on even if they are not good. Just cause they're like a particular group or something. N'Sync or BSB or Korn are always first. There are no divas on the countdown either like Whitney Houston or Mariah Carey. It Sucks!!!!! But I LOVE Carson!!!