# MTV alternative music host and 120 Minutes creator Dave Kendall dies

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/dave-kendall-120-minutes-creator-and-host-has-died/
- Published: 2026-07-15T14:01:41+00:00
- Updated: 2026-07-15T20:12:28+00:00
- Original publisher: Brooklyn Vegan
- Original article: https://www.brooklynvegan.com/dave-kendall-120-minutes-creator-and-host-has-died/
- Topics: Music

## Key points

- Dave Kendall, creator and host of *120 Minutes*, has died
- He helped popularise alternative music on MTV
- No cause of death was disclosed

## Summary

Dave Kendall, the British-born creator and one of the best-known hosts of MTV’s late-night alternative music programme *120 Minutes*, has died. His death matters because he helped bring alternative and underground acts to a much wider television audience at a time before that music had fully entered the mainstream, making him an influential figure in late-1980s and early-1990s music broadcasting. The news was announced by former *120 Minutes* host Matt Pinfield, who praised Kendall’s role in championing artists and connecting authentically with viewers.

Kendall created *120 Minutes* in 1986 and hosted it from 1988 to 1992, during years when the show became a key outlet for post-punk, indie and alternative music. The programme ran for 120 minutes and featured artists such as Kate Bush, the Ramones and They Might Be Giants; Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” also premiered there on 29 September 1991. No cause of death was given, and the coverage also noted Kendall’s wider career as a DJ, TV reporter and producer, Sirius Satellite Radio host, and later a contributor to the *Bangkok Post*.

## Coverage

- [Brooklyn Vegan: MTV alternative music host and 120 Minutes creator Dave Kendall dies](https://www.brooklynvegan.com/dave-kendall-120-minutes-creator-and-host-has-died/)
- [Variety Music: Dave Kendall, Creator and Longtime Host of MTV’s 120 Minutes, Dies](https://variety.com/2026/music/news/dave-kendall-dead-mtv-120-minutes-1236811604/)

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.