Grand Theft Auto V uses an original score, unlike most of its predecessors. Music supervisor Ivan Pavlovich summarised the original score idea as "daunting", because it was unprecedented for a
Grand Theft Auto game. Like most previous series entries, the game uses licensed music tracks provided by an in-game radio as well. Pavlovich hoped that the original score would enhance the licensed music use, not detract from it. He further noted the balancing act between the score's "ambient subtext and tensions" and the game's onscreen action. To work on the score, Rockstar engaged
The Alchemist,
Oh No,
Tangerine Dream and
Woody Jackson, the latter of which had previously worked on
Red Dead Redemption,
L.A. Noire and
Max Payne 3s music. The team of producers collaborated over several years to create more than twenty hours of music that scores both the game's missions and dynamic gameplay throughout the single-player and
multiplayer modes. , who had worked on several prior Rockstar games, collaborated with a team of producers to create more than twenty hours of original music for the game's soundtrack.|alt= Early in
the game's development, the music team were shown an early build before starting work on the score. Their work was mostly complete later in development but they continued composing until its final build was submitted for manufacturing.
Edgar Froese, Tangerine Dream's founding member, initially rejected the offer of producing music for a video game. After he was flown to the studio and shown the game, he was impressed by its scale and cinematic nature, and changed his mind. Froese's first eight months of work on the score produced 62 hours of music. In developing the radio stations, the development team sought to reinforce the game's recreation of California by licensing tracks they felt appropriately echoed a "Cali feel". Some of the tracks were written specifically for the game; for example,
rapper and producer
Flying Lotus hosts the station FlyLo FM which includes original work he composed for the game. == Soundtracks ==