Long ago, when dinosaurs with names like “Kennedy” roamed the earth, MTV held an annual bacchanal of content dedicated to getting out the vote. A flood of commercials would ensue, from the likes of Madonna, the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Anthony Kiedis, and more. Most of this was the result of Rock The Vote, a non-profit formed in 1990 with the intent of registering young people to vote. The group has continued in that mission, albeit with a variety of changing tactics and slogans over the years, sometimes with longstanding partner MTV, others time separately. The group is still hard at work, back in 2014 enlisting the likes of Lil’ Jon, Lena Dunham, and Fred Armisen to try and make you give a shit about midterm elections. And now, MTV has decided to again partner with them in an effort to register millennials, also known as people who have likely never heard the phrase, “rock the vote.” Deadline reports the channel is hosting a voting special called Total Registration Live, an hourlong live special, on Voter Registration Day, Tuesday, September 27, at 6 p.m. ET.
Once more operating on the assumption that young people might actually do something if a famous person tells them to, the special will include appearances from Ty Dolla $ign, Kendall Jenner, Joss Whedon, Vic Mensa, and more. It will be hosted by MTV’s Nessa, someone who can be explained to you by your 12-year-old niece. While guests speak about issues and the importance of voting, viewers can register to vote through Rock The Vote’s site ElectThis.com, or by texting VOTEMTV to 384387 via HelloVote, described as “the first chatbot that allows voters to register over text message or Facebook Messenger in under a minute.” This is expected to come as cold comfort to the tens of thousands purged from voter rolls by people uninterested in such things as the democratic process, especially when it would mean more votes for the Democratic Party. Still, at least millennials no longer have to log off Snapchat to participate in the electoral process—that’s the important thing here.