THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

with MUSIC TELEVISION!  The cable phenom debuted on tomorrow's date in 1981. The first four hours included The Buggles' "Video Killed the Radio Star," while the rest of the first day included Pat Benatar's cover of "You Better Run," Rod Stewart's "She Won't Dance With Me," The Who's "You Better You Bet," PH.D's ""Little Susie's On The Up," Cliff Richard's "We Don't Talk Anymore," The Pretenders' "Brass In Pocket", Todd Rundgren's "Time Heals", REO Speedwagon's "Take It On The Run," Styx's "Rockin' The Paradise", and many more.

PERFUME GENIUS visits World Cafe.

THE BETHS play KEXP from home.

DIZZY visits Soundcheck from Canada.

LAURA VEIRS shares a video for "Burn Too Bright," dedicated to the late Richard Swift.

MATT BERNINGER & PHOEBE BRIDGERS discuss what goes into their lyrics, what doesn't, and why everything means everything all the time.

LIZ PHAIR & ALANIS MORISSETTE talk songwriting during an apocalypse and rock-star self-care.

THE KILLERS say they're investigating a sexual misconduct claim involving members of their 2009 touring crew.

AVI BUFFALO has been accused of rape by a former bandmate. Citing the allegations, Sub Pop has pulled Avi Buffalo's music.

IAN SVENONIUS posted a confession of his own "inappropriate" behavior on Instagram. Merge Records has decided to cut ties with him.

TAYLOR SWIFT FANS doxxed a Pitchfork reviewer for giving Folklore an 8... and the reviewer doesn't even make the score.

KIM KARDASHIAN & KANYE WEST reportedly are living separate lives as their future hangs in the balance.

AMBER HEARD's MOM confided that Elon Musk bugged the Tesla he gifted the actress, admitted she preferred ‘angel’ Johnny Depp to the ‘controlling’ billionaire and wished the couple would reconcile.

THE EMMYS are going virtual.

ELLEN DeGENERES addressed alleged workplace misconduct in a letter to her crew.

MATTHEW McCONNAUGHEY is releasing a memoir.

BRYAN CRANSTON revealed that he has recovered after testing positive for the novel coronavirus.

A TV WASTELAND IS COMING: Prepare Your Rewatches Accordingly.

M NIGHT SHYAMALAN talks Signs, which debuted on Aug 2, 2002.

RYAN REYNOLDS reunited a woman with a very special stolen teddy bear.

ONE DAY, a hole will open up in the sky and we'll all look up and this will happen.

HE'S BEHIND ME, isn't he?

THIS DOGGO has moves.

THE SHARK that killed a former New York City fashion executive off the coast of Maine was a great white - and it's still out there, officials said Tuesday.

DR. DOG plays KEXP.

HAMILTON LEITHAUSER plays WFUV via Zoom.

MAN MAN's Honus Honus visits with World Cafe.

ACE FREHLEY covers Deep Purple's "Space Truckin'."

ANNIE LENNOX blasts MADONNA for reportedly sharing an Instagram post supporting a coronavirus conspiracy theory.

TRENT REZNOR is closing in on EGOT status. 

MALIK B., an early member of The Roots, has died. He was 47.

THE NUMBER ONES looks at Kenny Rogers & Dolly Parton's blockbuster Bee Gees-written duet, "Islands In The Stream."

ASHLEY JUDD's sexual harassment claim against Harvey Weinsteinwas revived on appeal.

TRACY MORGAN and Megan Wollover are separating.

INCEPTION: The film that defines Christopher Nolan's career?

KILROY WAS HERE: Kevin Smith's next horror flick has a trailer online.

JON CRYER reveals that the first draft of Back to the Future had a scene that turned up in a Spielberg pic.

THE BRUTAL PLEASURE of Watching Charlize Theron Turn to Action. Is there a bigger action star than Theron right now?

THE TOP 26 BABES in Pop Culture, ranked by The Ringer.

POLICE give up fighting sex-mad monkeys which overran the Thai city of Lopburi, eating themselves to death.(The monkeys, not the police.)

THE "SCROTUM FROG" is essential to the Lake Titicaca region and must be saved, experts say.

RARE VIDEOS & PHOTOS of three new male Indochinese tigers taken in Thailand's western forest region.

THIS CAT hears mealtime.

THAO NGUYEN brings cellsits to her Tiny Desk Concert from home.

S.S. GOODMAN visits with World Cafe.

ALL SONGS CONSIDERED has new tracks from Angel Olsen, Chrissy Stewart, Shirley Collins and more.

THE LEMON TWIGS share "No One Holds You (Closer Than The One You Haven't Met)."

KORN & YELAWOLF cover the Charlie Daniels Band's "The Devil Went Down To Georgia."

OH SEES share some "Dreary Nonsense."

FRANZ FERDNINAND's Alex Kapranos & French singer Clara Luciani cover Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazlewood's 1967 classic "Summer Wine."

AC/DC: Back In Black turns 40; Consequence of Sound lists 40 reasons to love it.

KENNY LOGGINS shares the backstory to “House at Pooh Corner.”

GIVE THE DRUMMER SOME: Gregg Bissonettetalks to Rolling Stone about playing with everyone from Ringo Starr to Spinal Tap.

20 TIMELESS SUMMER SONGS, courtesy of Paste.

UNIVERSAL & AMC THEATERS reached a deal to allow movies to move to homes after a mere three weeks in theaters in the United States, almost certainly changing the way that Hollywood does business.

THE EMMYS nominations went to these folks. Netflix beat HBO in quantity.

JOE JONAS & SOPHIE TURNER welcome a daughter.

KANYE WEST & KIM KARDASHIAN had an emotional reunion.

THE ELLEN DeGENERES SHOW has become the subject of an internal investigation by WarnerMedia following numerous accounts of workplace problems.

ALMOST FAMOUS: Cameron Crowe, Kate Hudson, Billy Crudup & Patrick Fugit now have a video reunion (and there's a link to those 20th anniversary podcasts again). There's also an oral history at the NYT.

SAM ROCKWELL is reportedly in talks to star as Merle Haggard in an upcoming biopic about the legendary country singer's life.

A DRAMATIC CAT tries ice cream.

RACOONS got into her bedroom.

A CAT demonstrates how I work out.

THE TUBES: "She's A Beauty" and "Talk To Ya Later" are your Twofer Tuesday.

NEW RELEASES: Paste will point you to Courtney Marie Andrews, Devendra Banhart, Lori McKenna and more.

BILL'S INDIE BASEMENT has Flower, John Foxx, Chills reissues and more.

RICHARD THOMPSON, live outside a high school in New Jersey.

ST VINCENT & U2 coincidentally covered Led Zeppelin's "Stairway To Heaven."

THE STROKES have "An Ode to the Mets."

JARVIS COCKER talks to the Washington Post.

15 ESSENTIAL FLEETWOOD MAC SONGS from the pre-Buckingham-Nicks era.

DENISE JOHNSON, the vocalist known for her work with A Certain Ratio and Primal Scream, has died at 56.

THE NUMBER ONES looks at the sheer overwhelming heart-pounding bombast of Bonnie Tyler's "Total Eclipse Of The Heart."

TENET will debut in over 70 countries on August 26?

WES ANDERSON'S The French Dispatch is delayed again, likely to 2021.

OLIVIA de HAVILLAND went up against a broken Hollywood studio system-and helped change the industry forever.

ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED? Russell Crowe reflects on Gladiator.

THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER should start filming in 2021.

FLEABAG ain't coming back, but Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Andrew Scott are together again.

STEP BROTHERS and the Peak Summer of Blockbuster Comedy.

I IMMEDIATELY regret that decision.

MEOW, you mothers.

CHOOSE your COVID character.

PETER GREEN, one of the great English blues-rock guitarists and a founder of Fleetwood Mac, died on Saturday. He was 73. There's an appreciation at The Guardian. Brooklyn Vegan rounds up the tributes.

THE WATKINS FAMILY HOUR visits with World Cafe.

LUNA plays KEXP.

SVEN WUNDER covers two Japanese traditionals for a Lagniappe Session.

PAUL McCARTNEY & STEVE MILLER go unplugged on "Broomstick."

GUIDED BY VOICES: Robert Pollard talks to Rolling Stone about the band’s recent livestream, quarantine, and even more new music.

THE 15 BEST David Berman Songs.

28 MUSICIANS Predict the 2020 Baseball Season.

THE NUMBER ONES looks at Billy Joel's nostalgic Motown pastiche "Tell Her About It."

OLIVIA de HAVILLAND, an actress who gained movie immortality in “Gone With the Wind,” then built an illustrious film career, punctuated by a successful fight to loosen the studios’ grip on contract actors, died on Sunday at her home in Paris. She was 104 and one of the last surviving stars of Hollywood’s fabled Golden Age.

REGIS PHILBIN, the talk- and game-show host who regaled America over morning coffee with Kathie Lee Gifford and Kelly Ripa for decades, and who made television history in 1999 by introducing the runaway hit “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,” died on Friday night. He was 88.

JOHN SAXON, the rugged actor who kicked around with Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon and appeared in three Nightmare on Elm Street movies for director Wes Craven, died Saturday. He was 83.

THE "WEEKEND BOX OFFICE" continues to be strange.

MULAN is being postponed indefinitely.

STAR WARS had an Easter egg that modern fans might have discovered immediately.

ZACK SNYDER insisted he would incinerate his long-awaited Justice League cut before using any of Joss Whedon's footage.

DAVE FRANCO & ALISON BRIE wrote a rom-com in quarantine.

ROB LOWE's son reacts to his mom teaching Gwyneth Paltrow about oral sex.

ORPHAN ELEPHANTS decamp for a night on the wild.

A PURSE full of kittens.

SEA TURTLES think old ocean plastic smells delicious.