My college girlfriend and I used to watch her with the sound off, to accentuate the head tics that she kept doing. It was one of those things the more you saw it, the funnier it got.
Music videos are still made by virtually all major pop stars. They’re just on YouTube now instead of cable tv.
Ironically, the music they introduced on MTV back then probably sounded better coming though your 1970s-80s era mono television set than the for-shit bitrate Siriusxm’s satellites use to stream today.
They’re made, but there is usually so little effort put into them it’s not worth it. The last time I saw a good music video was This is America by Childish Gambino. They are rarely so inspired these days. I like the ones by Ok Go too.
I can remember their videos, but I’ll be damned if I can remember a single Ok Go song.
Their music is pretty mediocre and forgettable. Though I do like the song “The One Moment,” but I mostly like it for the lyrics.
Hey, there are a lot of good videos still being made. Most of them aren’t the level of “This is America”, but most of them don’t have a major label providing the promotional money. Besides, they’re music videos. They’re over in about 5 minutes, so they don’t have to be that earth breaking.
Two of my favorites from the last year or so:
This one has particularly good use of a video synthesizer.
Providence, RI here - just barely remember marijuana-crazed channel surfing into ‘Video Killed the Radio Star’ which I’ve always understood to be the first piece ever played on MTV. If I’m wrong, I’m not sure I want to know it - it seems too perfect.
I disagree. A lot of videos I see nowadays are immense productions.
I’d love to see your best suggestions.
Many of the really elaborate videos these days are from Asia.
Here’s the Korean group Blackpink.
Here’s the Japanese group Perfume.
And another Korean group Twice.
K-pop has a lot of great videos. The music industry there is very much big production and big promos.
I see what you did there…
I was going to make fun of the crap music, but after The Who they get Chrissie Hynde and Todd Rundgren in the first half hour. Not too shabby!
In 81, I was a college junior, as into music as I ever have been in my life. Likely in the first of several quite mediocre bands. MTV was a VERY big deal at the time. The Thriller video was a must watch event.
I never saw the appeal of Shoes, other than them being somewhat local and the low tech recording. In that vein, I far preferred The dBs, Squeeze… But I was falling pretty hard for the harsher sound of The Clash, Elvis, Graham Parker, Pretenders, Ramones…
And it was always number one in subsequent countdowns of best music videos, years later, when I was watching it. I’d also rank Like a Prayer and Freedom '90 as personal favorites. But those came later. It’s been a while since I’ve felt young. 
I think many of us remember the really good videos (Thriller) and the really bad videos (Rock Me Tonight), but we tend to forget the average videos. They’re still making videos today, but most of them are average and easily forgotten.
Might be good fodder for another thread, but:
When “Thriller”'s video was just mentioned, along with the video countdown shows … it made me wonder what were other well-esteemed videos? The ones that consistently made the Top 10s of those all-time countdown shows?
(I mean … MTV had “all-time video countdown!” programs by at least 1985, if not earlier. The medium wasn’t even a decade old, and the channel was barely four!)
So … anyway, what other videos does the house recall often coming in high on these countdowns? “Thriller” almost always was #1, but they seemed to sometimes drop it down to #2 to keep it interesting. I recall The Cars “You Might Think” being a consistent Top 5 selection. When Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer” came out in 1986, it was considered something of a watershed in the medium – in fact, I think “Sledgehammer” was the go-to #1 when they wanted to drop “Thriller” down to #2.
Take On Me.
Don’t Come Around Here No More.
Of course, “Take On Me”. Firmly planted in the Top 3 or 4 of most countdowns.
The one that crosses my mind most frequently is Men Without Hats - The Safety Dance. No idea why, but that sucker burnt itself into my brain somehow…