Artist Claims Rockstar Only Offered $7,500 For GTA 6 Song Rights

Summary

• By the same time next year, Grand Theft Auto 6 is supposed to be out, marking the end of a decade-plus wait between GTA titles.
• While not much is known about the game, a musician alleged that he was offered $7,500 for the rights to his song to appear in GTA 6.
• It's impossible to verify the authenticity of these claims, though the musician is part of two iconic synth-pop groups, the kind that would have music in a GTA game.
• Previous GTA games have had the likes of Michael Jackson, Elton John and Dr. Dre as part of the game's radio, so it stands to reason that not everyone is paid equally.

For a game like Grand Theft Auto 6, which is confirmed to come out around this time next year, we sure don't know a lot about it. In fact, it's safe to say that we know more about the business side of things when it comes to GTA 6, than we do about the game itself.

That's because we've learned that Take-Two and Rockstar Games might ditch the traditional $70 price tag when the next GTA launches. Oh, and that the game has a reported budget of $2 billion.

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Now, via a series of social media posts, we have somewhat of an idea of where some of that budget may be going. On Saturday, Martyn Ware, a member of synth-pop groups the Human League and Heaven 17, discussed the finances of having a song in a Grand Theft Auto game.

That's Not A Lot Of Money

Taking to Twitter, Ware noted how he had been contacted by his publishers on behalf of Rockstar in an effort to license "Temptation" in GTA 6.

As Ware wrote on Twitter, "Naturally excited about the immense wealth that was about to head my way, I scrolled to the bottom of the email re the offer."

That is when he allegedly found out that the offer was $7,500 "for a buyout of any future royalties from the game - forever." Based off his spirited response, it sounds like Ware declined Rockstar's offer.

It's important to note that this is just one half of the story, and it's impossible to verify any of the details without seeing an actual contract proposition. More so, it's unclear if the alleged $7,500 is simply Ware's portion, since the song has multiple credits.

It's also unclear the purpose of the song (trailer, in-game radio, TV spot, etc.). That said, should these details be true, it stands to reason that Rockstar likely has a sliding scale when it comes to paying artists.

Over the years, GTA games have had the likes of Michael Jackson, Elton John and Dr. Dre, among other artists. $7,500 seems a little light for anyone of that caliber, so there's likely a scale in place. That's not to say that Ware isn't famous in his own right, having been part of two iconic groups.

Either way, it's a fascinating look at the money behind one of gaming's biggest franchises.

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