"Having a hand in the game etches you in history": How Grand Theft Auto became a musical tastemaker

After years of waiting, we finally got a glimpse of the crime-ridden and hedonistic Vice City and fictional state of Leonida during 2023's hotly anticipated reveal trailer for GTA 6.

The trailer soon made a Guinness World Record as the most-viewed video game reveal on YouTube in 24 hours, with over 90 million views.

Alongside the chaos and carnage, 'Love Is a Long Road' by Tom Petty played in the background, with the fast-paced tempo of the rock song mirroring the high-octane action in the trailer.

The trailer left fans in a frenzy. However, it also had an unexpected impact on bringing Tom Petty’s song to a new generation and achieving a mainstream popularity that it hadn’t reached before.

https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/QdBZY2fkU-0 The song saw close to 400K streams in the days following the reveal trailer, a huge jump from the 4-5K streams it averaged before. Spotify also later reported a 37,000% increase in global streams, while the song was also Shazamed nearly a quarter of a million times, cracking the global top 20.

The second trailer proved just as influential, as the backing track, 'Hot Together' by The Pointer Sisters, saw a 182,000% spike in streams.

Advertising creative Sir John Hegarty once said: “Taste isn’t just about following the public; it’s something advertising can actively set.”

As a result of the popularity of the GTA franchise, Rockstar Games has been able to adopt this ethos and shape the cultural landscape through music, becoming one of the most influential tastemakers in the industry.



(Image credit: Rockstar Games) The wait is nearly over

(Image credit: Rockstar) Countdown to GTA 6 with GamesRadar+

Rockstar Games is able to effectively shape the musical landscape by carefully curating a soundtrack that mirrors the open world players are immersed in. The radio stations featured popular classic hits such as 'West End Girls' by Pet Shop Boys, but also brought obscure songs such as 'El Sonidito' by Hechizeros Band and 'The Set Up' by Favored Nations to a new global audience.

Take GTA 5 and GTA Online: By 2018, gamers had listened to more than an estimated 75 billion minutes of music across its radio stations.

With 18.3 million monthly active users throughout 2025, GTA is able to have a long-term impact on shaping culture and constantly introduce artists to a new audience. With GTA radio, the experience becomes more interactive as you actively engage by selecting the station, and this helps strengthen that bond between the player and the song, evoking certain emotions and nostalgia.

This is a new experience from other musical tastemakers such as film soundtracks and adverts, as they primarily allow you to passively listen and interact with the music. However, film trailers have also had a big impact on reviving lesser-known songs from famous artists, in a similar way to Rockstar Games with GTA. For example, when Nirvana’s 'Something in the Way' featured in The Batman’s trailers and film, it saw a 1,200% increase in Spotify streams. Before the release of The Batman on March 4, daily streaming figures for the song were 123,000. However, these climbed significantly to 1.6 million on March 8.



(Image credit: Rockstar Games) Being that GTA is culturally stamped and globally influential, having a hand in the game etches you in history

Ab-Soul

One of the artists who felt the impact of being included on GTA 5 was American rapper Ab-Soul with his song "ILLuminate" (featuring Kendrick Lamar) featured on Radio Los Santos.

“The impact was tremendous! Especially considering that my style is unconventional for west coast radio. It allowed me to remain comfortable in my skin as an artist and continue to grow, unapologetically. I felt it immediately,” said Ab-Soul.

He added: “Being that GTA is culturally stamped and globally influential, having a hand in the game etches you in history. Point blank. I’d go as far as saying, every song featured on the radio can be considered timeless solely off of the strength. My long-term goal is to be long-term. Period. It doesn’t get any more long-term than timeless.”



(Image credit: Rockstar Games) If you take a look at the YouTube comments under our music video, the bond between the song and this iconic video game is obvious

Romain Tranchart

Another popular song on GTA 5 was Modjo’s “Lady (Hear Me Tonight).” It perfectly captured the vibe of Los Santos as you put on Non Stop Pop FM and speed through the sun-drenched city.

Despite the French house music duo’s 2001 song already being a big hit in the UK, reaching No. 1 and being certified Platinum, its inclusion on GTA radio helped introduce it to a whole new generation.

One half of the duo, Romain Tranchart, believes the popularity of Modjo’s song was indicative of the changing landscape of open-world video games as they include radios, TVs and nightclubs. However, he also remarked that the success was also “a generational thing.”

He added: “A lot of the video games and GTA players are young, and many of them were not born in 2000 when Lady (Hear Me Tonight) was released. If you take a look at the YouTube comments under our music video, the bond between the song and this iconic video game is obvious.”



(Image credit: Rockstar Games) In 2023, GTA 5 set the record for the most licensed songs in a GTA game with 777. However, there has been some controversy in the past about the remuneration artists receive for licensing.

In September 2024, Martyn Ware from Heaven 17 alleged that Rockstar approached the band to license their 1983 hit “Temptation.” The band were offered $22,500 in total for the three songwriters in exchange for a buyout covering future royalties from the song’s use.

The British synth-pop band swiftly told the studio to “go fuck yourself” as they believed the payment was too small in comparison to the commercial success of the video game.



(Image credit: Rockstar Games) Rockstar Games have proven over the years that it is a behemoth promotional machine, with a huge built-in audience and exposure to hundreds of millions of users. Speaking of which – it's almost time to roll down the window and cruise through Vice City ourselves.

Whilst legendary artists such as George Michael, Billy Idol, Oasis and Cyndi Lauper are expected to be included in the soundtrack, expect Rockstar to continue spotlighting lesser-known artists and songs; using its platform to shape pop culture for years to come.

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