Vladivostok FM, also referred to as Radio Vladivostok, is a radio station featured in Grand Theft Auto IV and Episodes from Liberty City that plays Eastern European music of all genres.
Description[]
Vladivostok FM is a community radio station broadcasting from Hove Beach and catering to its large ex-Soviet populace. It is named after the Russian city of Vladivostok, explained as "Music from so far east, it is virtually west". Unique in the series, the station in GTA IV plays contemporary Eastern European pop music, with a focus on Russian, Ukrainian and Belarussian artists. Originally, this consisted of music ranging from the late '80s to the present, with styles ranging from alternative rock, emo, post-punk, pop rock, dance, chanson, trance, and hip-hop. With the playlist's renewal in 2018, the styles have been narrowed down to pop/rock and hip-hop, with several tracks being anachronistic to the game's 2008 setting.
Vladivostok FM is hosted by Ruslana Lyzhychko, who presents as an energetic, eclectic, and upbeat personality. She will often sing excitedly, make comparisons between life in America and Ukraine, and encourage her listeners to make positive changes for their community. Radio idents for the station may also draw such comparisons, and occasionally give cryptic statements, such as "One day, we will run this country". As the station is aimed towards Liberty City's Russian population, some idents are spoken in Russian, while Ruslana will sometimes mutter to herself in Ukrainian. It also features unique Russian-language commercials for Horn Deodorant, Excelsior Extreme 9, and Whiz Wireless, making it one of two radio stations (the other being San Juan Sounds) to feature bilingual advertising.
In The Ballad of Gay Tony, the station has been heavily altered to feature house and Eurodance music instead, now being a competing station to Electro-Choc. The new playlist can be heard inside Bahama Mamas nightclub, but at the beginning of the radio track, the first advert announces that the radio is "direct from Hove Beach", its original broadcast location. It is hosted by DJ Paul, who has a tendency to use the phrase "Let's 'ave it" repetitively. In contrast to its GTA IV depiction, it features no commercials.
When Grand Theft Auto IV is updated by the downloadable version of The Ballad of Gay Tony, the station alternates between a program of World Beat/Eastern European pop music and one of western European dance music. Vladivostok FM is based on WNYZ-LP in New York City. In 2007, WNYZ-LP transitioned from a Russian Top 40 program to a dance music station named Pulse 87, similar to how Vladivostok changed from playing purely Russian music to house music.
It is one of the preferred stations of Niko Bellic, Roman Bellic, Michelle, Oleg Minkov, Dimitri Rascalov, Vladimir Glebov, Mikhail Faustin, the Faustin/Rascalov Mafiya, and the Petrovic Mafiya.
Tracklist[]
Grand Theft Auto IV[]
| Song: | Preview: | Notes: |
|---|---|---|
| "Liberty City: The Invasion" [Вторжение] by Seryoga (2008) | ||
| "Группа крови" [Gruppa Krovi / Blood Type] by Kino (1988) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "Ждать" [Zhdat / To Wait] by Marakesh (2006) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "Квартира" [Kvartira / The Flat] by Zveri (2006) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "Король ринга" [Korol Ringa / King Ring] by Seryoga (2005) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "Линия жизни" [Liniya Zhizni / Lifeline] by Splean (2000) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "Мама" [Mama / Mother] by Basta (2006) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "Никого не жалко" [Nikogo ne Zhalko / A Pity for No One] by Sergey Shnurov (2002) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "О тебе" [O Tebe / About You] by Ranetki Girls (2006) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "РЭП" [Rap] by Dolphin (2008) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "Швайне" [Schweine / Pigs in German] by Glukoza (2005) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "Wild Dances (Ukranian FM Version)" by Ruslana (2004) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "Зеленоглазое такси (Club Remix)" [Zelenoglazoe Taksi / Green Eyed Taxi] by Oleg Kvasha (2007) | "Club Remix" is not available on Spotify. |
Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. |
Following GTA IV's 10th anniversary, due to many expired licenses on songs appearing on the station, replacement tracks were added.
| Song: | Preview: |
|---|---|
| "Liberty City: The Invasion" [Вторжение] by Seryoga (2008) | |
| "Я ненавижу караоке" [YA Nenavizhu Karaoke / I Hate Karaoke] by Aleksey Bolshoy (2016) | |
| "Mon Ami" (ft. Max Lorens) by Seryoga (2008) | |
| "Добавь скорость" [Dobav' Skorost / Step on it] by Seryoga (2008) | |
| "Чики" [Chiki / Girl in Spanish] by Seryoga (2008) | |
| "Горячее Лето" [Goryacheye Leto / Hot Summer] by Delise (2010) | |
| "Ночью" [Noch'ju / Tonight] by Zhenya Fokin (2008) | |
| "Гуляй, Славяне!" [Gulyaj, Slavyane! / Have Fun, Slavs!] by Kievelektro (ft. Alyona Vinnitskaya) (2011) | |
| "Бегу" [Begu / Run] (Rancho Song) by Riffmaster (2007) | |
| "Riffmaster Tony" by Riffmaster (2007) | |
| "Андеграунд" [Underground] by Ayvengo (2007) | |
| "Репрезенты" [Reprezenty] by Ayvengo (2007) |
Episodes from Liberty City[]
| Song: | Preview: | Notes: | |
|---|---|---|---|
| "How Would U Feel" by David Morales feat. Lea-Lorien (2004) | |||
| "Lovin' You More" (Freemasons Vocal Club Mix) by Steve Mac (2005) | |||
| "Salvation" (eSQUIRE Mix) by Sucker DJs (2008) | "eSQUIRE Mix" is not available on Spotify. |
Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | |
| "Put 'Em High" (JJ's Club Mix) by Stonebridge (feat. Therese) (2004) | |||
| "You Never Know" (Morjac Extended Mix) by Marly (2004) | |||
| "Lola's Theme" by Shape: UK (2003) | Lola's Theme is altered in EFLC compared to the album version. | ||
| "Love on My Mind" by Freemasons feat. Amanda Wilson (2005) | |||
| "Can't Get Enough" by Soulsearcher (1998) | |||
| "The Weekend" by Michael Gray (2004) | |||
| "Music" by Jonathan Peters feat. Maya Azucena (2005) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. | ||
| "Crazy World" (Fonzerelli Mix) by J Majik & Wickaman (2008) | "Fonzerelli Mix" is not available on Spotify. |
||
| "Boogie 2Nite" (Seamus Haji Big Love Mix) by Booty Luv (2006) | |||
| "The Best Thing" by Hook N Sling (2008) | |||
| "Pjanoo" (Original Club Mix) by Eric Prydz (2008) | |||
| "When Love Takes Over" by David Guetta feat. Kelly Rowland (2009) | Removed on April 26, 2018 due to the 10-year licensing agreement on them expiring. |
Deleted Songs[]
Grand Theft Auto IV[]
According to the soundtrack disc of the station and an interview with Ruslana, the following songs were meant to appear, but were cut for reasons unknown:
- Max Lorens – "Схожу с ума" (Shozhu s uma / Going Crazy) (2008)
- Quest Pistols – "Мама" (Mama / Mother) (2007)
- Dyshi – "Взгляни на небо" (Vzglyani na nebo / Look on the Sky) (2006)
- Bi-2 - "Полковнику никто не пишет" (Polkovniku nikto ne pishet / No One Writes to the Colonel) (2000)
- T9 - "Ода нашей любви" (Oda nashei lyubvi / Ode To Our Love) (2007) (Found only in the original digital releases)[1][2][3]
The Ballad of Gay Tony[]
The following two songs were requested and approved to be in The Ballad of Gay Tony, however for whatever reason it didn't make the cut:
- David Guetta vs The Egg - "Love Don't Let Me Go (Walking Away)" (2005)[4]
- Freaks – "The Creeps (Get on the Dancefloor)" (2007)[5]
Prominent Appearances in Gameplay[]
Radio Station[]
- The station can be heard in the following locations:
Individual Tracks[]
- "Schweine" by Glukoza is playing in Roman's Taxi during The Cousins Bellic mission (replaced by "Liberty City: The Invasion" by Seryoga after 2018).
- "King Ring" by Seryoga was featured in the "Move Up, Ladies" trailer of the game, and is also heard during the end credits (replaced by "Liberty City: The Invasion" by Seryoga after 2018).
- "Nikogo ne Zhalko" by Leningrad is featured in Vlad Glebov's character trailer.
- "Pjanoo" by Eric Prydz is featured in the "You'll Always be the King of this Town" trailer for TBoGT.
10th Anniversary[]
Rockstar confirmed through the Kotaku website that some songs were going to be removed from Grand Theft Auto IV due to licensing restrictions, in particular a large portion of Vladivostok FM. However, they would be replacing some of the songs with a new set of songs. The removal of them occured on April 26, 2018[6]. However, physical copies of the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360 versions are unaffected and have not been patched. Several of the new songs are anachronistic to the setting of the game, being released after 2008.
Gallery[]
Posters[7] can be seen exclusively in The Ballad of Gay Tony.
Oversights[]
The Ballad of Gay Tony[]
- DJ Paul mispronounces David Guetta's name when he says "Straight out of France this is David Gu-wetta".
- "When Love Takes Over" by David Guetta feat. Kelly Rowland is anachronistic to Episodes from Liberty City, since the story takes place in 2008, whereas the song was released in 2009.
Trivia[]
Grand Theft Auto IV[]
- Ruslana mentions a few songs that don't appear on the radio:
- "Калинка" [Kalinka] - a Russian folk song
- "Разом нас багато" [Razom nas bahato/Together we are many] by GreenJolly (2005)
- "Несе Галя Воду" [Nese Halya Vodu/Halya Is Carrying Water] - a Ukrainian folk song
- Ruslana also sings lyrics of the English version of "Wild Dances", even though only the Ukrainian version is available in-game.
- Seryoga's track "Liberty City: The Invasion" was re-recorded and featured in his 2008 album "Хроника парнишки с гомельских улиц" [Khronika parnishki s gomel'skikh ulits / Chronicle of a Guy From the Streets of Gomel] under the name "Вторжение" [Vtorzheniye / Invasion]. It features a different intro and substitutes references to Liberty City with lyrics pertaining to New York City.
The Ballad of Gay Tony[]
- Freemasons' "Love on My Mind" samples "This Time Baby" by Jackie Moore, which was featured on Paradise FM on Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories.
See Also[]
- The Fix FM - a house radio in Grand Theft Auto.
- Brooklyn Underground FM - a drum and bass radio in Grand Theft Auto.
- Funami FM - a drum and bass radio in Grand Theft Auto 2.
- Rise FM - a house radio in Grand Theft Auto III and Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories.
- MSX FM - a drum and bass radio in GTA III and GTA Liberty City Stories.
- SF-UR - a house radio in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
- Electro-Choc - a house radio in Grand Theft Auto IV and Episodes from Liberty City.
- Deadmau5 - a house instrumental radio in Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars.
- DFA - a dance instrumental radio in enhanced versions of GTA Chinatown Wars.
- Non-Stop-Pop FM - a pop and dance radio in Grand Theft Auto V that plays a song by Kelly Rowland and Freemasons.
- Soulwax FM - a house radio in GTA V.
- Los Santos Underground Radio – a house radio in the enhanced version of GTA V.
- Music Locker Radio – a house radio in the enhanced version of Grand Theft Auto Online.
References[]
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- ↑ WebsiteThe Royalty Network Archive: https://web.archive.org/web/20120206031317/http://www.roynet.com/archive_current_events/080109.cfm
- ↑ WebsiteThe Royalty Network Archive: https://web.archive.org/web/20120206031317/http://www.roynet.com/archive_current_events/080109.cfm
- ↑
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