Tim Kash
 | This article contains weasel words: vague phrasing that often accompanies biased or unverifiable information. (March 2009) |
Tim Kash (born February 1982) is a former presenter of BBC One's Top of the Pops and MTV News on MTV UK and Ireland, MTV Nordic, MTV European, MTV Base in Africa and MTV Arabia. He is now seen on the US edition of MTV News and on MTV channels worldwide and now resides in New York.
Early life
He was born in Kingston, Surrey in 1982, and educated at St Paul's School. He is of Tamil descent.
Career
Early career
Upon a friend's suggestion, Tim chose to try for a job in the music industry during a summer holiday while his friends were all off traveling around Europe. [original research?] After spending his teenage years in A&R, he was hired as a VJ. He helped to create and lead the launch of the new-look MTV News in the UK and Europe in 2003.
Top of the Pops
Kash caught the eyes of BBC's Director of Programming Wayne Garvie as well as Andi Peters, the newly appointed executive producer of the BBC's long-running music programme; Top of the Pops, after Kash had started to host MTV News in Europe. Kash signed a major deal with the BBC as the new host of Top of the Pops and took the role of the show's permanent host. On 28 November 2003, Kash hosted his first episode of the show which coincided with one of its most radical overhauls in what was widely reported as a make-or-break attempt to revitalize the long-running series. In a break with the previous format, the show went live and played more up-and-coming tracks ahead of any chart success, also featuring sit-down interviews with artists and actors.
The relaunch was seen as a dramatic failure by critics and viewers alike, gathering low ratings. Many viewers disliked the new format and Kash. He was dropped from the show a year later, instead being presented by Fearne Cotton and a guest host. [1][2]
MTV UK and Ireland
After being dropped by the BBC, Kash went on to sign a new deal at MTV, that saw him behind and in front of the cameras on shows like MTVNews: A Gun Crime Forum, Rap Under Fire, MTV's Roll Call, MTV's Chris Martin goes to Africa, and the MTV: Made To Vote Campaign. The success [citation needed] of these shows led to a new wave of MTV News programming including MTV meets Prime Minister Tony Blair saw Kash travel to South Africa with Prime Minister Tony Blair for an interview. MTVNews bulletins with Kash was shown on MTV UK, MTV Nordic and MTV European.
Kash helped with the launch of MTVNews on MTV Base and MTV News on MTV Base Africa. He regularly features on TRL and various other shows for ITV and the BBC. [citation needed]
MTV USA
Late in 2006, MTV asked Kash to present some shows in America but didn’t let on that they were actually screen-testing him [citation needed]. He is now one of the main hosts based permanently in New York.
As well as appearing daily on MTV and often on TRL in the US, Kash hosted the live pre-show for the MTV Movie Awards 2007 in Los Angeles as well as the New York coverage of the recent Live Earth concert.
On 9 September 2007, Kash hosted the live pre-show for the MTV Video Music Awards in Las Vegas - MTV's flagship and most-watched awards show of the year.[citation needed]
On 13 September 2009, Kash continued his work for the MTV Video Music Awards by again, presenting the Pre Show party live from New York City.
Philanthropy
Tim has been an Ambassador for the Prince's Trust, and a patron of Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital for 4 years and continues to work closely with them.
He is also an Ambassador for MTV's Staying Alive Foundation.
Kash launched the BOOM! Music Video Academy in 2004 - a scheme set up to inspire students (11-18yrs) to teach them the skills needed to produce music, videos and short films.
In 2004, just days after the Asian tsunami hit, Kash flew with a small team to the most devastated regions of Sri Lanka to help with the relief effort. Whilst there, he filmed and documented the relief effort and witnessed first-hand the immediate effects the tsunami had on people - especially young people- across the region in the MTV-global production called MTVNews : After the Tsunami.[weasel words]
A few months later, Kash hosted a production for CNN highlighting the different issues related to the AIDS / HIV pandemic around the world.
External links
References
- ^ Dann, T."Let's kill Top of the Pops", The Independent, 2 December 2003
- ^ Your reviews: Top of the Pops, BBC News, 1 December 2003