A hair metal documentary series is coming to Paramount+ and please take our money right now

I Wanna Rock artork
(Image credit: Paramount+)

I Wanna Rock: The '80s Metal Dream, a three part-documentary series that promises to reveal much about the hair metal scene of the 1980s, will debut on streaming platform Paramount+ in July.

The series will retell the stories of the early years of Skid Row, Winger, Twisted Sister, Vixen and The Scream. It was made in conjunction with MTV Entertainment Studios in partnership with Gunpowder & Sky, and directed by Tyler Measom, the man behind 2019's I Want My MTV, which told the story of the pioneering music TV network.

"Five young dreamers chasing stardom in the cutthroat world of 80s metal," reads the blurb accompanying the show's trailer. "Some will succeed, some will fail, but each will make you see an entirely new side of the metal genre."

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I Wanna Rock: The '80s Metal Dream, described as "a very kick ass (yet emotional) series" by Measom, includes interviews with Dee Snider from Twisted Sister, Winger mainman Kip Winger, Vixen's Janet Gardner, Skid Row founder Dave 'The Snake' Sabo, The Scream and former Mötley Crüe frontman John Corabi, and former Guns N' Roses manager Vicky Hamilton. 

The three episodes are I Wanna Be Somebody, which focuses on the early days of the bands’ careers; Headed For Heartbreak, which tells the story of the struggles faced by the bands; and Smells Like Change, which investigates the rise of grunge and the damage done to the hair metal scene. 

I Wanna Rock: The '80s Metal Dream will debut on July 18 in North America, and on July 19 in the U.K. and Australia.  

Fraser Lewry
Online Editor, Classic Rock

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 39 years in music industry, online for 26. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.

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