Grand Theft Auto 6 just got its trailer released a bit early, and that’s not the only surprise here. There’s a bit of an unexpected music choice accompanying our first look at Rockstar Games’ upcoming open world game, and that’s Tom Petty.
I’m writing about Grand Theft Auto here, so pop culture references and whether or not we all understand them is a key piece of the overall pie. I’m a millennial, so I’m very familiar with Tom Petty, not necessarily because he’s my favorite but because he’s a favorite of my guitarist father (alongside other rock n’ roll mainstays of the ‘60s and ‘70s). Hearing Petty’s characteristic moan in this trailer filled me with the same sense of nostalgia that I get when I swing by my parents’ house and hear my dad strumming his guitar in the basement. And that’s kinda how I feel about returning to the world of Grand Theft Auto, so… sure. Also, Tom Petty is from Florida! So, that works.
The specific song in this trailer is a B-side of Petty’s far more famous song “Free Fallin’,” which was first released on Petty’s debut album, Full Moon Fever. But this song wasn’t actually on that album; it came out when “Free Fallin’” was released as a single. (That’s what the term B-side used to mean before it became a cutesy pejorative for a song that wasn’t expected to become a top 40 hit — it meant the song that was literally on the other side of a single record.)
The trailer features all kinds of revolutionary stuff for Grand Theft Auto — everything from a playable female character to the inclusion of new in-game social media apps — so it’s a fun bit of whiplash to get all of that paired with a lesser-known song by a rock star of yore. I would guess it’s not so much the Tom Petty aspect that we’re meant to pay attention to as the lyrics themselves, which describe a very intense relationship: “Yeah, we were desperate then / To have each other to hold / But love is a long, long road.” Sounds a bit like what the protagonists Jason and Lucia might be feeling, in what appear to be some serious Bonnie and Clyde-esque shenanigans. (Also, check out the door of the convenience store the duo is holding up — there’s a “Petty Forever” sticker!)
Regardless, I’ll be sending this trailer to my father for his take. Maybe this will be the moment that Rockstar finally targets his demographic. (Probably not. But, hey … maybe.)