Rockstar Games' two official trailers for Grand Theft Auto VI deployed markedly different musical strategies to frame the game's tone, setting, and emotional register. Trailer 1 (5 December 2023) leaned on a single, melancholic classic-rock anthem — Tom Petty's "Love Is a Long Road" — to evoke nostalgia, longing, and the bittersweet underbelly of Florida. Trailer 2 (6 May 2025) abandoned the monolithic single-track approach in favour of a four-song medley spanning 1980s synth-pop, soul-disco, Haitian konpa, and classic country, signalling a more eclectic, party-driven, and tonally varied Vice City. This report compares the two music choices, situates them within the trailers' visual and narrative aims, and analyses their cultural and commercial impact.
Grand Theft Auto VI, developed by Rockstar Games, is scheduled for release on 19 November 2026 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S (Rockstar Games, 2026). Set in the fictional state of Leonida (a Florida analogue centred on Vice City), the game follows criminal couple Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos (Wikipedia, 2025). Music in GTA trailers has historically functioned as both a tonal compass and a marketing hook, with licensed-track choices reliably driving listener interest on streaming platforms (Sisario, 2023).
Trailer 1 used Tom Petty's "Love Is a Long Road" (1989) as its sole musical bed. The track is a wistful heartland-rock number whose driving rhythm and yearning vocal counterpoint juxtapose the trailer's montage of Florida iconography: alligators on lawns, strip-mall mugshots, jet-skis, retirees, and the protagonists' first glimpses (Wikipedia, 2025). The choice produces a unifying emotional arc — restlessness, hope, and the implication of a long, hard journey — that maps onto the Bonnie-and-Clyde framing of Jason and Lucia.
Commercially, the choice was a phenomenon. Petty's song saw a near-37,000% spike in Spotify streams in the days after the trailer dropped, recorded almost 250,000 Shazam queries, and reached number two on the worldwide iTunes chart (Sisario, 2023). The trailer itself became the most-viewed non-music YouTube video in its first 24 hours, accumulating 93 million views (Wikipedia, 2025).
Trailer 2 abandoned the single-track formula entirely. It opens with The Pointer Sisters' "Hot Together" (1986), an upbeat soul-pop number that scores the trailer's vibrant Vice City montage of beaches, nightclubs, neon, and crowd shots (Stutz, 2025). The trailer then transitions through Wang Chung's "Everybody Have Fun Tonight" (1986), the Haitian konpa track "Child Support" by Zenglen, and closes with Tammy Wynette's country lament "Talkin' to Myself Again" (1979) as the tone darkens and the heist conspiracy is hinted at (NME, 2025; BBC, 2025).
The structural difference is critical. Where Trailer 1's single song imposed a singular emotional read, Trailer 2 deliberately moves through emotional registers: euphoria (Pointer Sisters), hedonism (Wang Chung), cultural specificity and Caribbean influence (Zenglen), and isolation (Wynette). The medley showcases Vice City's promised musical and cultural plurality, mirroring the in-game radio-station diversity that has defined the series since Vice City (2002).
Commercially, the strategy worked again — "Hot Together" experienced a 182,000% increase in Spotify streams within hours of release (Goldberg, 2025), substantially outpacing Petty's bump in proportional terms. Trailer 2 amassed over 475 million cross-platform views in 24 hours, surpassing Deadpool & Wolverine's record for biggest video launch (Goldberg, 2025).
| Dimension | Trailer 1 (2023) | Trailer 2 (2025) |
|---|---|---|
| Track count | 1 | 4 |
| Era of music | 1989 rock | 1979–1986, plus contemporary konpa |
| Dominant mood | Melancholic, yearning | Euphoric to mournful arc |
| Cultural framing | Americana / heartland rock | Multicultural Vice City |
| Streaming spike | ~37,000% (Petty) | ~182,000% (Pointer Sisters) |
| Narrative function | Establishes protagonists' fatalism | Establishes world, then teases conspiracy |
Trailer 1's monolithic music choice fits its function as a reveal: it had to be evocative, memorable, and hummable on a single listen. Trailer 2's job was different — it had to demonstrate breadth, depth, and that the second trailer would not simply repeat the formula. The shift from Petty's American rock to a globally inflected setlist also signals an evolution in how Rockstar wants Vice City framed: not as a Floridian pastiche alone, but as a Miami-style melting pot. The closing Wynette track is the bridge between the two trailers' tonal palettes — it reintroduces the wistful, fatalistic note that Petty held throughout Trailer 1, hinting that the heist-gone-wrong narrative will eventually pull characters into the same long-road sorrow.
Trailer 1 and Trailer 2 represent two distinct musical philosophies. The first prioritised cohesion and emotional saturation via a single iconic song; the second prioritised range, cultural texture, and pacing through a curated playlist. Both succeeded commercially — driving record streaming spikes and trailer view counts — but Trailer 2's approach more closely previews the eclectic radio-station experience for which the GTA franchise is known. Together, the trailers suggest Rockstar is using music as a deliberate signalling device: Trailer 1 sold the feeling of Vice City, while Trailer 2 sold its variety.
BBC (2025) What have we learned from Grand Theft Auto 6's second trailer? Available at: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g2grmrx4po (Accessed: 14 May 2026).
Goldberg, L. (2025) Grand Theft Auto VI Trailer 2 Sets Record for Biggest Video Launch. The Hollywood Reporter.
NME (2025) Every song in the Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer 2. Available at: https://www.nme.com (Accessed: 14 May 2026).
Rockstar Games (2026) Grand Theft Auto VI. Available at: https://www.rockstargames.com/VI (Accessed: 14 May 2026).
Sisario, B. (2023) 'How a Tom Petty Song Got a Boost From the GTA VI Trailer', The New York Times, 6 December.
Stutz, C. (2025) Pointer Sisters' "Hot Together" Streams Surge After GTA VI Trailer 2. Billboard.
Wikipedia (2025) Grand Theft Auto VI. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Theft_Auto_VI (Accessed: 14 May 2026).