Flashback: August 17, 1985

Welcome Back

We’re heading into the dog days of August, but back in 1985, the vibe was anything but slow. Madonna was on tour, Whitney Houston was climbing the charts, and The Goonies was still pulling us into theaters.

At home, we were glued to MTV, watching “Take On Me” on repeat, or dodging chores while trying to record the perfect mixtape off the radio.

The Cold War still loomed in the background, but so did cable TV, new tech, and a sense that things were about to change. Reagan was in the White House and a gallon of gas cost $1.12.

This week, we’re rewinding to the era of Aqua Net and Atari, when your answering machine told the world who you were...and a rising voice named Whitney made us all stop and feel something.

Let’s dig in.

This Mixtape Memory Lane is sponsored by 50 Ways to Keep Your Lover.

Mixtape Memory Lane 

🎧 "Shout" – Tears for Fears
This was the track you cranked up when your bedroom door slammed shut. Part protest, part catharsis, it gave GenX kids a way to yell back at a world that didn’t always get them, and still holds up when you need to blow off steam.

🎧 "Summer of '69" – Bryan Adams
The guitar riff alone could launch a thousand memories. Adams delivered a love letter to youth, freedom, and the ache of realizing those days are long gone. Every listen feels like paging through your own coming-of-age scrapbook.

🎧 "Saving All My Love for You" – Whitney Houston
Whitney didn’t just sing this song…she owned it. Her silky, emotional delivery turned a quiet ballad into a global moment. This was the track that announced: a new kind of star had arrived.

🎧 "Raspberry Beret" – Prince & The Revolution
Pure Prince: quirky, seductive, and sonically bold. With its storybook lyrics and that irresistible beat, it was part fairytale, part funk, and totally unforgettable. You could almost see the thrift store where he found her.

🎧 "The Power of Love" – Huey Lewis & The News
One DeLorean, one scientific wild ride, and a soundtrack that stuck. Thanks to Back to the Future, this anthem of '80s optimism became part of our DNA. It was upbeat, a little corny, and 100% fun…just like the decade itself.

👆 Watch the full throwback video playlist on YouTube Music.

Screen Time Rewind 

At the box office, Back to the Future was a full-blown phenomenon. Michael J. Fox’s time-traveling DeLorean delivered 1.21 gigawatts of excitement, while Doc Brown’s frizzed-out hair became as memorable as the flux capacitor.

Not far behind, Pee-wee’s Big Adventure took us on a surreal ride through Americana…silly, quotable, and slightly unsettling in the best way.

For horror fans, Fright Night crept into theaters and gave vampire lore a slick, suburban twist. It wasn’t just scary…it was stylish, funny, and self-aware, a cult classic in the making.

On TV, The Oprah Winfrey Show was gaining traction in Chicago, still a local broadcast but already something different.

The weeknights were ruled by NBC’s unstoppable trio: The Cosby Show, Family Ties, and Cheers—toppling Nielsen charts and defining what prime-time comfort looked like . They weren’t just shows…they were appointment viewing for families across the country.

Animation wasn’t slowing down either. Classics like The Transformers and ThunderCats were staples of after-school fun, while new entries like The Wuzzles, She-Ra, The Ewoks, and Star Wars: Droids were just hitting syndication and making Saturday morning a mastery class in cartoons.

Finally, cable was growing up. VH1 had just launched earlier that year, giving grown-ups a softer, adult spin on music videos, while MTV kept feeding us all the glam, grit, and eyeliner of mid-’80s pop.

his Life Reboot is sponsored by La’Merde Designs apparel.

Life Reboot: Soul

In July 1985, the world came together in a way it never had before. Live Aid—a dual-venue concert broadcast from London and Philadelphia—wasn’t just a music event. It was a global moment of empathy. With performances from Queen, U2, Madonna, and dozens more, the event raised over $125 million for famine relief in Ethiopia and was viewed by nearly 1.5 billion people worldwide.

For GenX, it wasn’t just background noise. It was one of the first times we saw celebrity power used for global good, and for many of us, it planted an early seed: compassion isn’t passive. It’s something you do.

And of course, who could forget the dinner-table refrain of that era:
"Finish your food. There are starving children in Africa."
It was part guilt trip, part empathy lesson and it stuck.

Today, we don’t need a telethon to care. From crowdfunding a stranger’s surgery to rounding up at checkout to support a cause, there are more ways than ever to give money, time, or attention.

This week’s challenge:

Give from the soul.
→ Donate to a cause you care about.
→ Leave a generous tip.
→ Volunteer for an hour.
→ Or just show up for someone who needs you.

Your compassion doesn’t need a stage. It just needs a signal.

Visual Feature is sponsored by Practical Advice from the Scriptures.

Visual Feature: From the Archives

One Day, Two Continents, One Cause

On July 13, 1985, Live Aid made history with twin concerts held in London’s Wembley Stadium and Philadelphia’s JFK Stadium. Nearly 2 billion people tuned in worldwide to watch music legends like Queen, U2, David Bowie, and Run-D.M.C. raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia. The image below captures the energy in Philadelphia, but the message echoed across the globe: compassion is louder than indifference.

Life Reboot is sponsored by La’Merde Designs.

Mixtape Memory Lane is sponsored by 50 Ways to Keep Your Lover.

Visual Feature is sponsored by Practical Advice from the Scriptures.

Until Next Time

In August 1985, we were peacocking a bit with stacked bangles, double-layered socks, acid-washed jeans, and hair that defied gravity. MTV was our style bible, and Solid Gold brought weekend shimmer. Our closets held Esprit, Ocean Pacific, and maybe a few knockoffs from Chess King or Merry-Go-Round if we were lucky.

We didn’t call it wellness, but we had our rituals like scribbling in diaries, marathon phone calls on corded landlines, and walking or biking to the corner store just to feel the sun and the freedom. There was a slowness in how we connected, created, and cared.

Today, we swipe past moments that would’ve been monumental back then. Instant everything. Auto-play lives. Maybe that’s exactly why we need a little ’85 energy…be present, be extra, and give whatever you're doing just a bit more flair.

If this week’s rewind sparked a memory or a mindset shift, pass it on. Forward this edition to a friend or invite someone to subscribe. We’re building this thing one mixtape at a time.

See you next week for another unexpected turn through memories and meaning.

And as for where we’re going? Well…
“Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads.”