"rAw TiMe": Tinarina

In the '90s, public-access television show “rAw TiMe” generated a cult following. Where did it go, and what legacy did it leave behind?

Written by Maci Jean

It's 1999 and you're a youthful wild child living in Austin, Texas. You drunkenly stumble into your studio apartment, which you could actually afford, and turn on the television. It's 1:30 a.m., and you just want some background noise. What do you get instead? “Goth Princess” Tinarina on your screen, yelling “rAw TiMe!” into a phone and denying the music requests that roll in — "cuz that song sucks!"

In the ‘90s, nothing was bigger than MTV. It was the epitome of what teens wanted, with cynical bits of comedy strewn about between both popular and underground music. There was something for everyone, with shows like "Beavis and Butthead" playing everything from Nirvana to Snoop Dogg. However, there existed a certain niche deep within the alternative circuits for young music listeners and television enjoyers. The thirst for that niche and the lively spirit of "Keep Austin Weird" combined to produce several shows on public-access television — one of which was the glorious “rAw TiMe.”

The show, produced in part by Zomba Recording Corporation, featured several different co-hosts over different sessions, most notably the teenage goth icon Tinarina (aka Tiffy), who used different screen names for the sake of anonymity since she was a minor. She’d answer phone calls from viewers in between music videos, replying to late-night creepers with a cynical tone and a wink for the camera. Tiffy was sarcastic and charismatic, encouraging viewers to call just so she could insult the ridiculous things they said.

In no time at all, she became the iconic face of "rAw TiMe." With more viewers tuning in and calling than ever before, Tinarina, more than any other host, had to deal with "real sleazeballs," who often catcalled her over the air for numerous things, usually her hair or makeup. Despite receiving a slew of insults like "stupid sl-t wh-re ass b-tch" and facing overt sexual harassment on air, she always shrugged it off and moved to the next video, a noble move for someone who was only 16-years-old at “rAw TiMe”’s peak.

"rAw TiMe" played "stuff for the real weirdos," and each time slot contained an almost ridiculous range of music. In one session, the videos went from Björk to Rammstein to The Cardigans — it was true to the wild music scene of Austin. You could find any type of music in the city, even genres never before heard of, and the viewers ate it up. One viewer asked for "folk-techno" … talk about juxtaposition.

There were several shows on public-access television in Austin in the '90s, but “rAw TiMe” stands out because Tinarina was unapologetic and unabashed with her criticisms of both the music and the viewers. She spoke her mind and helped hone a tendency within young femme viewers to do the same, and the local feminist culture reflects that today. “rAw TiMe” has had a resurgence lately, with clips of Tiffy blowing up and young girls yearning to be just like her. She was a fervent host, both passionate about music and telling disruptive callers to "kiss her hot goth ass.”

In a time of a ‘90s resurgence in music, fashion, and culture, “rAw TiMe” is a beacon of what it meant to be punk. The show's unforgettable hostess and variety of music created iconography incredibly crucial in “Keeping Austin Weird” … but what happened? Where’d Tiffy go? What happened to the thriving existence of public-access television in general?

Unfortunately, there is no real answer. There have been several theories over the years on what happened, but never a truth. Tiffy dropped off the air alongside “rAw TiMe” without a quip, just when we needed the feminist punk most. To this day, there are few to no traces of her online, and nobody knows what happened to the star. Still, don’t you wish you could still dial 472-CALL and listen to Tinarina tell you, “It's not a f-cking request show?”

This article was added to Aural History after its publication, upon the creation of the Aural History series.

Aural History: What Ever Happened to “rAw TiMe?”