3 Overplayed ’80s Music Videos You’ll Never Be Able to Forget

Back in the glory days of MTV, music videos were everywhere.

At first, it felt revolutionary—you could actually see your favorite bands instead of just hearing them on the radio. But just like radio overplays a catchy song until you can’t stand it anymore, MTV had its own problem: certain videos ran on repeat all day long. And since there wasn’t much competition at the time, you couldn’t just switch to another channel.

Some of those videos turned great songs into eye-rolling experiences. Others made already mediocre tracks feel even worse. Between the cheesy acting, awkward dance moves, and hilariously dated props, it was almost unintentional comedy. Honestly, many fans eventually welcomed MTV’s shift into reality TV. When Jersey Shore and Jackass appeared, people were practically relieved to see The Situation on-screen instead of another cringeworthy ’80s video they couldn’t escape.

Here are three music videos from that era that still haunt our memories:

“Patience” by Guns N’ Roses
After dropping back-to-back masterpieces like “Welcome to the Jungle” and “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” the band’s slower track “Patience” just didn’t hit the same way. The opening whistling alone is enough to test your patience, and Axl Rose’s trademark snake dance seems wildly out of place in such a mellow song.

Fun fact: drummer Steven Adler appears here for the last time in a GNR video—even though he doesn’t actually play on the track.

Before the song ends, Rose dramatically smashes a neon telephone, which feels more like stress relief than symbolism. Still, the video isn’t a total loss. Slash saves the day with a beautiful unplugged guitar solo that makes the whole thing a little easier to sit through.

“Every Breath You Take” by The Police
At the height of their career, The Police were the biggest rock band in the world. Their album Synchronicity made them superstars, and “Every Breath You Take” dominated both the charts and MTV for weeks.

The video itself is as memorable as it is unsettling. Shot in moody black and white, it mostly features Sting staring intensely into the camera while singing lyrics that already lean toward obsession. The creepiest part? The multiple Stings playing upright bass, as if to guarantee that no matter where this poor subject breathes, steps, or moves, he’ll be watching you.

“Lick It Up” by Kiss
When Kiss released their 1983 album Lick It Up, they shocked fans by ditching their famous face paint. For the first time, MTV viewers saw the band in plain old rock-star outfits. But the video itself was anything but ordinary.

Set in what looks like a women-only post-apocalyptic wasteland, the band struts around confidently—especially Paul Stanley, whose dancing makes it clear he’s having the time of his life. Meanwhile, everyone in the video eats messily and squeezes bizarre-looking tubes of food into each other’s mouths.

The message is clear: lick it up. But for many, the reaction was more along the lines of, “No, thank you.”

Final Thoughts on These Overplayed Music Videos

Some ’80s videos aged like fine wine, adding to the legend of the bands behind them. Others, like these three, feel more like awkward time capsules we can’t forget—even if we want to. Love them or hate them, they’re proof that once MTV locked onto a video, you were stuck with it—whether you liked it or not.