I Want My MTV...or BET, or VH1...

Remember in the early years of MTV when their slogan was "I want my MTV"?
As kids, we would joke about it, but I didn't really think about it until they started doing reality shows. At that point, I wanted more music and less reality (still do), but that's not what this blog is about today.
For the past year, I have been living in Japan. I have heard that there is a Japanese version of MTV, but I don't get cable (and cable is not an option for me). I have had no exposure to new artists or songs apart from Flo Rider.
I am aware that Ne-Yo should be coming out with a new album soon, but that is all due to my own research. Aside from that, I got nothing.
I have been feeling so disconnected from my own culture recently. Back home, we are exposed to so much that we are typically not aware of, or that we take for granted. You don't have to listen to a certain radio station to know what the number one song is, because it will come out on an ad over the tv, or it will be in a movie, or it will be blastin' out of your neighbor's stereo. Back home, you would pretty much have to be living under a rock to NOT know what's going on. Even my nearly ninety grandparents know about Madonna and Michael Jackson.
Well, back to my situation. Japan is an interesting place. My particular town has a song that you will hear in town when it is noon and when it is five. I guess this isn't uncommon in Japan. Each store has their own song(s) that they will play over and over. It is usually a muzak version of a song, but sometimes we get lucky. Oh yes, I am one of the lucky ones. I get to hear words. Over and over and over. My store's song happens to be "Up, Up and Away In My Beautiful Balloon". The song is so old that I remember my mother listening to it on wax. The other song is another song that was probably popular in the 60's or 70's. It was probably a one-hit wonder. It's worse that the first song.
I'm guessing that the songs are meant to keep people from spending a lot of time in the store. If so, then it works for me.
My friend's store has the Muzak version of the "Austin Powers Theme". It seems more shopper-friendly. Wouldn't you just want to break out into a dance while shopping, too?
Alas, that is pretty much the only exposure that I get to music. I have tried to access the MTV, BET, and VH1 websites. Unfortunately, almost all of the videos are blocked to those of us outside of the US...something about copyrights. I'm not trying to download. I just want to hear something! Luckily (or unluckily), I can still watch the reality shows on the MTV website (not VH1 for some reason...they tend to be more interesting).
At the moment, I don't understand this phenomenon. There are many artists who are incorporating Japanese influence into their songs or images. Why can't we just listen to their music?
I never thought that I would ever mean it, but darn it, to day I do: I WANT MY MTV!