V-Rock is a radio station featured in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories. The station is a rock station, primarily playing hard rock and heavy metal.
In GTA Vice City, V-Rock is one of two radio stations to feature original material written and recorded especially for the game, in the form of two songs by the fictitious band Love Fist. The other station to feature original material is Radio Espantoso.
Description
In 1984, the setting of GTA Vice City Stories, the station was based in Reddick, Florida, and was co-hosted by Couzin Ed and station "intern" Lazlow. By 1986, the setting of GTA Vice City, the station had relocated to Vice City and Lazlow is now the sole DJ following Couzin Ed's dismissal. At that point, Lazlow claims that V-Rock has been on the air for 75 years.
The station's promos often included derogatory comparisons to other stations, mocking the synthesizer-based music played by its competitors while stating that "real men" only listen to the rock music that V-Rock plays. The station's mascot is a vulture, as can be seen in the station's logo. Lazlow would often complain that the bird "got more air time than [he] did".
The station was officially endorsed by contemporary rock artists, including Jezz Torrent of Love Fist, who can regularly be heard in V-Rock's promos. The station also operated a studio adjacent to its Vice City headquarters, which would often be used by Love Fist for their recording sessions. V-Rock also features call-ins from members of the public. The three callers featured in GTA Vice City are Couzin Ed, who vents his anger at Lazlow for "stealing" his job, Mitch Baker, who berates the station because he considers it plays "girl's music", and a man who refers to himself as "Snow Dog". The phone line is also used in GTA Vice City Stories, although in this instance the only caller is a man who insults Couzin Ed.
The V-Rock Hotel in Las Venturas, San Andreas takes its name from the radio station and features the V-Rock logo prominently on its sign.
Tracklist
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
- For the original songs the year of release is that of GTA Vice City: 2002.
- Authors of the original songs, at the side, in superscript.
- * - This song is missing from the iOS, Android, PS2 Classics (PS3 and PS4) editions.
- Twisted Sister - "I Wanna Rock" (1984)
- Mötley Crüe - "Too Young to Fall in Love" (1983)
- Quiet Riot - "Cum On Feel the Noize" (1983)
- The Cult - "She Sells Sanctuary" (1985)
- Ozzy Osbourne - "Bark at the Moon" (1983) *
- Love Fist - "Dangerous Bastard" (Allan Walker)
- Iron Maiden - "2 Minutes to Midnight" (1984)
- Loverboy - "Working for the Weekend" (1981)
- Alcatrazz - "God Blessed Video" (1985)
- Tesla - "Cumin' Atcha Live" (1986)
- Autograph - "Turn Up the Radio" (1984)
- Megadeth - "Peace Sells" (1986)
- Anthrax - "Madhouse" (1985)
- Slayer - "Raining Blood" (1986)
- Judas Priest - "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" (1982)
- Love Fist - "Fist Fury" (Allan Walker)
- David Lee Roth - "Yankee Rose" (1986)
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
- Dio - "Holy Diver" (1983)
- Queensrÿche - "Queen of the Reich" (1984)
- KISS - "Lick It Up" (1983)
- Dokken - "Breaking the Chains" (1981)
- Autograph - "All I'm Gonna Take" (1984)
- Accept - "Balls to the Wall" (1983)
- Scorpions - "Rock You Like a Hurricane" (1984)
- Krokus - "Long Stick Goes Boom" (1982)
- Ted Nugent - "Stranglehold" (1975)
- Ratt - "Round and Round" (1984)
- Judas Priest - "Electric Eye" (1982)
- Mötley Crüe - "Looks That Kill" (1983)
- Quiet Riot - "Metal Health" (1983)
Gallery
Video
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
Trivia
General
- On the V-Rock logo and the text on its billboards, the word "Rock" is written in the same font as the logo for heavy metal band Iron Maiden.
- Slayer, Anthrax and Megadeth are part of the "big four" thrash metal bands. Metallica is the only of the four not to be featured on the station.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
- Anthrax's "Madhouse" is the first V-Rock's song that plays when one starts the game and tunes into V-Rock.
- Alcatrazz's "God Blessed Video" and Tesla's "Cumin' Atcha Live" play in Stadium Events at the Hyman Memorial Stadium.
- The riff of Judas Priest's "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" can be heard if the player stands outside The Greasy Chopper.
- Lazlow quotes Neil Young's "Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)" during Couzin Ed's phone-in, quoting the line "It's better to burn out than to fade away". This was the final line in Kurt Cobain's suicide note when he committed suicide in 1994, and was also used in Def Leppard's "Rock of Ages".
- One of Lazlow's quotes is "I hope I die before I get old". This is a reference to The Who's "My Generation", which features this line.
- One of the V-Rock stingers contains the first few seconds of Dio's "Jesus, Mary & The Holy Ghost". This song was not actually released until 1993, some 7 years after Vice City is set.
- This is the favorite radio of the Vice City Bikers.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
- There's a V-Rock Hotel in Las Venturas, which could be a reference to the real life Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
- A large portion of Couzin Ed's banter references the 1986 cult-documentary "Heavy Metal Parking Lot".
- Couzin Ed also says "Comin' atcha live! The bitch is back...", a reference to Tesla's "Cumin' Atcha Live", which is on the station's GTA Vice City playlist. Elton John's "The Bitch Is Back" is also a popular classic rock song, although it doesn't feature on either V-Rock playlist.
- Couzin Ed makes a reference to the heavy metal mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap, saying "let's turn it up to 12", an obvious play on 11 being "one louder" than 10 on the guitar amplifier volume control in the film.
- It is the favorite radio of the Vice City Bikers (alongside Vice City For Lovers) and the Vance Crime Family (alongside Vice City Public Radio).
- Ted Nugent's "Stranglehold" was played in the trailer for the PlayStation 2 version of GTA Vice City Stories.
Grand Theft Auto V
- In Grand Theft Auto Online, it is possible to buy a jacket with the V-Rock logo on it as part of the Cunning Stunts update.
See Also
- It's Unleashed FM - a hard rock and alternative rock radio in GTA 1.
- King 130.7 - a punk and hard rock radio in GTA 2.
- Wave 103 - a new wave and post-punk radio in GTA Vice City and GTA Vice City Stories.
- K-DST - a classic rock radio in GTA San Andreas that plays a song by Kiss..
- Radio X - an alternative rock and grunge radio in GTA San Andreas that plays a song by Ozzy Osbourne.
- Liberty Rock Radio - a classic rock radio in GTA IV and GTA Episodes From Liberty City that plays other songs by Iron Maiden and Mötley Crüe.
- Liberty City Hardcore - a hardcore radio in GTA IV and extreme metal in GTA Episodes From Liberty City.
- Radio Broker - an alternative rock radio in GTA IV and GTA Episodes From Liberty City.
- Prairie Cartel - an alternative rock instrumentals radio in GTA Chinatown Wars.
- Tortoise - a post-rock instrumentals radio in enhaced versions of GTA Chinatown Wars.
- Anvil - a heavy metal instrumentals radio in enhaced versions of GTA Chinatown Wars.
- Vinewood Boulevard Radio - an alternative rock radio in GTA V.
- Los Santos Rock Radio - a classic rock radio in GTA V that plays a song by The Cult.
- Channel X - a punk and hardcore radio in GTA V.
Template:Gtaiii era radio stations