GTA 6's First Six Radio Stations Are Here, With Bad Bunny, Lana Del Rey and Kerry King. Every Host and Artist Confirmed

The radio is where a Grand Theft Auto game tells you who it thinks you are. The map shows you the place and the missions show you the plot, but the dial shows you the personality. So when Rockstar dropped six station previews on October 8, I stopped what I was doing and read everything I could find about them.

Here's my short reaction: the playlists are great, the casting is bold, and neither is the thing I keep thinking about. It's the headphones. For the first time, a GTA game lets Jason and Lucia keep their audio going after they step out of the car, and I think that could quietly change how the whole game feels to move through.

One honest note before the lists. Rockstar previewed each station in a sample of about two minutes, and I'm working from the announcement and the reporting around it, not from hours of in-game listening. Anything that's my opinion is labeled as such.

What Rockstar announced, and what it didn't

According to a Rockstar Newswire post dated October 8, six Grand Theft Auto VI radio stations now have previews on the Music section of the game's official website, each about two minutes long. Rockstar's own pitch is that the game has "the biggest and widest-ranging selection of in-game radio and podcasts yet," spanning everything from classic rock to talk radio.

That last part matters, because the six stations Rockstar showed are only part of the lineup. The announcement confirms classic rock and talk radio options that weren't detailed, and it doesn't give a total number of stations. Rockstar also released a batch of new official screenshots alongside the reveal.

The second piece of news is the format. Rockstar says that for the first time ever, GTA VI introduces "a series of on-demand podcasts" for Jason and Lucia, available alongside the radio in vehicles or on foot through newly introduced headphones and earbuds connected to their smartphones.

It's also worth keeping this separate from GTA 6: The Album, which Rockstar announced in September. Insider Gaming reports it has 34 songs from artists including Travis Scott, Future and Morgan Wallen. That's a different project from the radio stations, and gHacks reports its full tracklist hasn't been published yet.

The six stations, one card each

Here's everything reported so far, station by station. The facts come from Rockstar's announcement as reported by gHacks, Insider Gaming and others. The "My read" lines are my opinion, based on the lineups and not on listening time.

• Cocoteo FMModern Latin

  On the mic: El Martillo, voiced by Bad Bunny, and La Gata, voiced by RaiNao.

  Confirmed on the playlist: Bachata, merengue, dembow and reggaeton, including Bad Bunny's "EoO."

  My readCasting a global star as a DJ with a character name, instead of just licensing his song, is what makes a fake dial feel like a real place. Dembow next to bachata also feels right for a Florida-inspired state.

• Back Country RadioRenegade country

  On the mic: MW, voiced by Morgan Wallen, and Delta Dawne, voiced by Lana Del Rey, plus roving reporter Mud Dog Mike, voiced by Jeremy Dufrene.

  Confirmed on the playlist: Loretta Lynn and David Allan Coe.

  My readLana Del Rey as a country DJ is the most surprising casting of the six, and I mean that as a compliment. A "renegade" label with Loretta Lynn and David Allan Coe on it tells me this station has an attitude, not just a genre.

• AfroBank FMAfrican music

  On the mic: Burna, voiced by Burna Boy, and Palmsy, voiced by Palms Trax.

  Confirmed on the playlist: African music ranging from 20th-century classics to amapiano and 3-step.

  My readRockstar described a span from classics to amapiano and 3-step, which sounds more like a guided tour than a playlist. This is the station I expect people to say they did not plan to like.

• The Chamber 106.6Classic metal

  On the mic: DJ Kerry, voiced by Kerry King, and DJ Tom, voiced by Tom Araya.

  Confirmed on the playlist: Black Sabbath, Pantera and Slayer. Insider Gaming describes the station as classic metal from the '80s and beyond.

  My readTwo Slayer members on one station is a fun bit of casting, and metal over a car chase is the pairing I worry about least. It is the safest bet on the list, in the best way.

• Flash FMPop

  On the mic: Robyn and Alex Consani.

  Confirmed on the playlist: Charli xcx, MGMT and Zara Larsson with PinkPantheress. Flash FM is a name fans may remember from the Vice City era.

  My readReviving a name with history for a new pop lineup is smart, and putting MGMT in the same hour as PinkPantheress shows some range. Pop is also the genre that dates fastest, so I am curious how it holds up.

• Dirty South ClassicsRegional rap and hip-hop

  On the mic: Trick Daddy and Trina.

  Confirmed on the playlist: David Banner, JT Money and DJ Khaled.

  My readTrick Daddy, Trina and DJ Khaled are all Miami names, which is a good fit for a Florida-inspired map. A host pair with that much regional credibility makes me think the station will sound local rather than generic.

Host and artist details follow gHacks' reporting of Rockstar's announcement. Rockstar says these six are not the full list of stations in the game.

My ranking: which station I'm most curious about

This isn't a quality ranking, because nobody can judge that from a two-minute sample. It's a curiosity ranking: which station I'd most like to hear an hour of, based on what Rockstar has told us.

1. Back Country RadioA modern country star and Lana Del Rey on the same station, plus a roving reporter character. Of everything announced, this is the one I most want to hear a full hour of.
2. Cocoteo FMBad Bunny as a character DJ is the headline, but four different Latin styles on one dial is what keeps me curious.
3. Dirty South ClassicsRegional rap with hosts who are part of that history. The playlist names are the kind that make a car feel like it belongs in the city.
4. AfroBank FMA range from classics to amapiano and 3-step. I'm ranking it fourth only because I know the least about what it will actually sound like.
5. The Chamber 106.6Sabbath, Pantera and Slayer with two Slayer members hosting. I'm excited, but I also already know what it's going to feel like, and that costs it curiosity points.
6. Flash FMLast on my list for curiosity, not for quality. The pop picks are good, and a returning name is nice, but a pop station is the one I feel I can already picture.

You might order these completely differently, and I'd love that. The point of a good GTA dial is that everyone's favorite is a little different.

Why the headphones matter more than the playlists

Every station above is a nice addition. The headphones are a structural change. gHacks notes that in earlier Grand Theft Auto games, radio was confined to vehicles and select buildings, which means a huge amount of play time on foot had no soundtrack of your choosing. With the new setup, a player can keep music or a podcast running while exploring or during combat.

The podcast detail is the second half of this. iXBT's coverage points out the difference from past talk radio: talk stations in earlier games broadcast constantly, while podcasts work on demand, so you choose an episode and listen whenever you want. GamesRadar also adds some useful perspective: in-game podcasts aren't a brand-new idea in games, with examples going back at least as far as Metal Gear Solid 4, but they are new for GTA.

Here's my opinion, and it's a guess, not reporting: I think this is going to change the feel of walking. In a game where the world is meant to be dense and lived-in, the soundtrack following you out of the car could make on-foot stretches feel less like the stuff between the driving and more like a part of the day. I also think a podcast option makes the in-game phone feel more like a real tool than a prop. Rockstar hasn't said how much further that goes, so I'll treat it as a hope and not a fact.

Pick your moment: which station for which scene

This is my own pairing guide, built from the genres and lineups Rockstar published. It's a plan for how I'd start, not a statement about how the game is designed.

• Empty highway, nowhere to beBack Country Radio

  Wide-open driving and a station with attitude. I'd leave it on and let Mud Dog Mike's reports fill the gaps.

• Getting chasedThe Chamber 106.6

  Sabbath, Pantera and Slayer exist for exactly this kind of moment.

• Walking through a busy neighborhood, headphones inCocoteo FM

  The on-foot feature is new, and Latin styles built for movement feel like a natural first test of it.

• Windows down, no mission markerFlash FM

  Pop is the easiest station to leave on while you look at the scenery.

• A slow cruise through the cityDirty South Classics

  Regional classics sound best when they match the place you're driving through.

• When you want something you didn't know you likedAfroBank FM

  A range this wide is built for discovery.

What's still unanswered

Rockstar's announcement was generous, but it left real gaps. These are the questions I'm still carrying:

• Which classic rock and talk radio stations are in the game? Rockstar confirmed those types exist but didn't detail them in this announcement.
• How many stations does the full game have? Rockstar called it the biggest and widest-ranging selection yet but didn't give a total.
• Will the complete station list be revealed before launch? gHacks reports Rockstar hasn't said.
• What are the podcasts about, who hosts them and how many are there? The announcement described the feature, not the shows.
• When will the full tracklist for GTA 6: The Album be published? gHacks reports it hasn't been released yet, and it's a separate project from the radio stations.

Quick answers