GTA 6 Lead Has Finally Explained Trailer 1's Song Choice

GTA 6's Trailer 1 Song Was A "Mission Statement" From Rockstar Published Sep 6, 2026, 11:40 AM EDT George is the Lead News Editor for TheGamer, and has been working in the industry since 2021 after graduating from the University of South Wales with a bachelor's degree in Journalism. He has also previously written for RPG Site, WhatCulture, and PlayStation Lifestyle. George is an expert on platformers, action games, and fighters, but tends to play as many releases as possible. This hands-on experience lets him dive into gaming communities and follow the latest trends. Some of the games George has extensively covered first-hand include Dead Rising, Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, Assassin's Creed Shadows, and Ninja Gaiden 4. Sign in to your TheGamer account Rockstar Games co-studio head Rob Nelson has finally explained why Grand Theft Auto 6 was revealed to the world with Tom Petty’s Love Is a Long Road. Following last week’s unbelievable Extended Look, GTA 6 is feeling more tangible and within reach than it ever has before. Still, as exciting as that is, I think we all remember the dark days of desperately waiting for more news, which all began nearly three years ago with the game’s first trailer, aptly titled Trailer 1. That reveal gave us our first look at Leonida, introduced new protagonists Jason and Lucia, and left us all begging for more as we hit replay and listened to Love Is a Long Road for the tenth time in a row. While many thought that song was just representative of Jason and Lucia’s relationship, it actually had another, more literal meaning this whole time. GTA 6’s First Trailer Told Us There Was A Long Road Ahead Back When The Game Wasn’t “Fully Formed” As pointed out by Twitter user videotech, TroisCouleurs recently had the chance to preview GTA 6 and chat with Rockstar North co-studio head Rob Nelson about the game. During that chat, TroisCouleurs asked Nelson about the first image that came to mind when the studio started thinking about GTA 6. In response, Nelson noted that everyone had different images, but all got “on the same page quickly”, with that image developing as time went on. Nelson said that Rockstar is usually “chasing something a little bit out of reach”, and that choosing a piece of music helps put together the pieces. That’s exactly why Tom Petty’s Love Is a Long Road was chosen, as Rockstar viewed it as a “real mission statement” while the game wasn’t “fully formed”, but the team still had an idea of “what it’s going to be”. Basically, Rockstar wanted us to know that there was a long road ahead of GTA 6, but that it was working hard to make it happen. “You really have to push hard to pull that together and so when this team is able to do that – and it’s definitely made with everything that you’ve got, but it’s the best of everything you’ve got at that point – it’s put together in such a way that it helps be a bit of a guiding light of what it needs to feel like.” - Rob Nelson While I do love the theory that Love Is a Long Road is about Jason and Lucia’s relationship, which it still very likely is, Nelson’s comments add a lot more humanity to the long wait for GTA 6. It may not have felt like it with the lengthy silences, but Rockstar was just as excited to get the game out there as we all were to play it.