I know you posted this five years ago and TRL isn't on the air anymore, but I'm responding in case you or anyone else is curious what the experience is like. When I say "they" I'm referring to a producer, or at least a person who seemed to be a producer.
I got into the audience four or five times. It wasn't hard at all though. You just emailed the address listed on MTV's site requesting dates and they emailed back whether you got in or not. I usually went/tried to get tickets when I had family coming into town and my parents wanted me to take my cousins or whoever out for a unique experience.
After you emailed your name, age, how many tickets you were requesting (max of 3 I think, including yourself), and if they weren't all booked up they'd give you back a date. If you wanted that date you'd confirm back. Even if you get tickets, it's still first come first serve. You had to get in line at least an hour before the show started in hope of being seated. I don't remember how long you had to wait, but eventually someone with a clipboard would check your id to a name on the clipboard.
They lead you inside the building, and you go through security checkpoints with metal detectors) and you have to put all your jackets, purses, phones, etc. into cubbies. They go over the rules like not jumping up to hug the guests or vj's. They also tell you not to look up at the tv screens. Not the ones you see at home, but the ones that are in the lights above the bleachers. Everyone gets caught up in seeing that cause it's weird seeing yourself on tv.
Like everyone says, the set is smaller than you expect, but it's still pretty large. I'd say it's the size of three or four high school classrooms put together, but it's not a perfect box shape. The times I went were in 2004 and 2005, so I don't know whether it was bigger or smaller before or after that. A producer explains that this is the only show of its kind where no matter where you're sitting in the audience, you're guaranteed to be on tv so get psyched up, because no one wants to see bummed out people on TRL.
A little bit before showtime the VJs come out. Everyone does the "woooo" and they all smile and nod. I've gone when Quddus, Lala, Damien, and Vanessa hosted. Carson made a surprise cameo one of the times I went. The guests and vj's never stay in the room during commercial breaks, they went to a room in the back that's down a short hallway corridor area. You could see them through the curtain that celebrities would go through. Damien would stay sometimes though and he'd hug and say hi to people. All the vj's seemed nice, but I'd say Damien was the friendliest. The only times the celebrities and vj's stay put and sit amongst the audience are during those breaks where they'd show some one minute pre-taped thing from MTV News or only 30 seconds of a music video. If they were by the big flat screen tv's and video was playing longer than 30 seconds then the vj would just be having their own conversation with the celebrity, but you couldn't hear them in the audience.
That's pretty much it. Afterwards you just got your stuff and left.
This is just my experience those 4 or 5 times. It could be different for other people though.
Did you mean to hit reply to me or the original poster?
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