Van Toffler, who helped build MTV into a powerhouse during a nearly three-decade run at Viacom, is returning to play a large role with this year’s Video Music Awards. Toffler’s Gunpowder & Sky shingle (which he launched with Floris Bauer in 2016), has sealed a multi-year deal with CBS and MTV to produce a week of music-themed fare leading up to the VMAs.
Among the things Toffler has up his sleeve: MTV2 will return to music videos for the first time in ages, as Toffler’s team programs a week of music videos — including both classic and current clips as curated by past VMA winners and one-time MTV personalities. (Those guests will be asked to select their seven favorite music videos of all time.) MTV Live and MTV Classic, both of which still focus on music videos, will also carry the programming.
“We’re not just producing a show,” said Toffler, who now serves as CEO of Gunpowder & Sky. “We’re launching a celebration of music that spans one week, every screen and every generation. Music has always been the heartbeat of the VMAs, but the show’s soul comes from its willingness to break rules, embrace unpredictability and reflect the times. This is about honoring that spirit while blowing open what’s possible across every format.”
The move comes as the VMAs will move to CBS for the first time, expanding the long-running kudocast’s reach. (It will also stream on Paramount+ and continue to simulcast on MTV, along with a one-hour pre-show airing across the Paramount Media Networks.)
This reps the 42nd annual Video Music Awards (which first began in 1984), and will air live from the UBS Arena in New York on Sunday, Sept. 7 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. There’s no word yet on whether there will be a host.
“The VMAs have always been where music and spectacle collide, and no one embodies that spirit more than Van Toffler,” said Paramount co-CEOs Chris McCarthy and George Cheeks in a joint statement. (McCarthy runs Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios while Cheeks oversees CBS.) “Bringing Van back to the VMAs, along with Gunpowder & Sky, is about reigniting the rebellious soul of the show with a week-long music immersion and delivering global moments that are impossible to ignore.”
Toffler exited the company in 2016 as CEO of Viacom Media Networks Music Group; he had spent years at MTV, starting in the late 1980s, where oversaw many of the network’s landmark series, including shows like “The Osbournes,” “MTV Unplugged,” “Beavis and Butt-head,” “Jackass” and more. And he was an executive producer on the VMAs until he left.
At Gunpowder & Sky, Toffler has focused on film, TV, VR, podcasts and digital series, such as Audible’s “Words + Music,” Spotify’s “Drawn & Recorded,” Amazon’s “Seismic” and YouTube’s “Released.” He’s also focused on music to documentaries and films including “Her Smell,” “Lords of Chaos” and “Hearts Beat Loud.”
This year’s VMAs are executive produced by Bruce Gillmer and Den of Thieves co-founder Jesse Ignjatovic. Barb Bialkowski is showrunner. Alicia Portugal is co-executive producer. Jackie Barba is executive in charge of production. Wendy Plaut is executive in charge of celebrity talent. Lisa Lauricella is executive in charge of music talent.
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