Featured Image Credit: Rockstar
Topics: GTA, Gaming, Money, Music, Reddit, Social Media, Twitter, Entertainment, Business
Tom Earnshaw
Topics: GTA, Gaming, Money, Music, Reddit, Social Media, Twitter, Entertainment, Business
The somewhat surprising amount of money one musician was offered for his song to feature in GTA 6 has resurfaced as fans count down the days, weeks, and months until the game finally is available to play.
It's not too long now until Grand Theft Auto VI is finally made available to the public, with an autumn 2025 release date on the cards according to parent company Take-Two Interactive.
Take-Two, which owns GTA developer Rockstar, made this commitment last autumn and then again in the first week of February in a move that was widely applauded by fans, given it wasn't the feared delay to 2026.
Advert
And given it's been 12 years since the last GTA game was released, fans reckon they are going to get an incredible instalment that could go down in history.
Part of what makes a GTA game as good and memorable as the one before it is the soundtrack, with a huge back catalogue of music making up the car radio stations you can flick between while driving around the likes of Vice City or Los Santos, depending on which instalment you're playing.
There's a reason Spotify playlists with all these songs still exist, with fans listening to them reminded of the good times they had bopping along while doing their best to escape a five-star police chase.
Advert
Well, GTA 6 wont be any different, it seems, thanks to one musician, Martyn Ware, who took to X to explain how he was approached by Rockstar for his song to feature. One of the founding members of the band Heaven 17, he co-wrote the song 'Temptation' (search it, you'll know it) which was one of the best selling songs of 1983.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter) last September, his comments have resurfaced on the r/GTA6 subreddit this week after he rejected the offer from Rockstar.
"I was recently contacted by my publishers on behalf of Rockstar Games re the possibility of using Temptation on the new Grand Theft Auto 6," he wrote.
"Naturally excited about the immense wealth that was about to head my way, I scrolled to the bottom of the email re the offer
Advert
"It was $7,500 - for a buyout of any future royalties from the game - forever. To put this in context, Grand Theft Auto 5 grossed, wait for it… $8.6 BILLION. Ah, but think of the exposure. Go f*ck yourself."
Responding to the original post from Ware, one fan said: "Sure, that's probably not a lot, but y'all kinda f**ked up. Having a song in a GTA game is a long term win. I hope you guys can negotiate this."
Responding, Ware explained: "I haven’t ‘f**ked up'.
"I’ve worked in artist rights advocacy for 20 years. I know the game. This is iniquitous."
Advert
Another fan agreed with Ware, stating: "You did good. You can make $7,500 in western countries from waiting tables probably in a month or two.
"That is no way to evaluate art, especially from the creator of a game that will likely make over a billion dollars on its launch night.
"'Exposure' isn’t payment because while there’s a chance you could get more famous being included in such a big project, there’s an even bigger chance you’d be treated as just another random song on the game’s radio that people won’t care to Shazam and listen to.
"Unless they’re willing to offer royalties, it isn’t worth it."
Advert
Ware later clarified that the offer from Rockstar was in fact $7,500 for each of the co-writers on Temptation, meaning the overall offer was $22,500. He still rejected it, saying it was 'utterly unacceptable'.
Given that gaming analysts reckon GTA 6 will make $1 billion before it goes on sale, you can kind of understand where Ware is coming from.
LADbible has approached Take-Two for comment on the deal.