While Grand Theft Auto III was in development, Lazlow was working at a digital ad agency in New York called Blue Dingo (named after his dog) while hosting a technology and video game-focused radio show called Technofile.
GRAND THEFT AUTO III IGN FULL
GTA III saw Lazlow play an exaggerated version of himself - his full name is Lazlow Jones - who leaned into a deadpan delivery and an easy exacerbation with his guests. Lazlow has appeared in multiple GTA games since, but Grand Theft Auto III was his remarkable debut. They told us about how the station originally came to be, the cigarette and pizza-fuelled writing sessions that led to its craziest moments, and the odd celebrity status that accompanied its DJ after the game’s surprise success.īut first, we need to talk about Lazlow. This year marks 20 years since players first got the chance to tune into Chatterbox FM, so, to celebrate, we spoke to those who brought the station to life, including its host Lazlow, and the voice actors Reed Tucker and Frank Chavez. The conversations offered unique insight into the bizarre world beyond the events of the game, and hinted at what all the pedestrians you passed by (or maybe more accurately for the mayhem-minded, ran over) might be thinking about when they weren’t running away from our bat-wielding protagonist. The show provided goofy, satirical commentary on early 21st Century American culture through the cavalcade of guests Lazlow interviewed. Grand Theft Auto previously included radio stations full of licensed music to listen to, and Grand Theft Auto 2 introduced DJ banter and commercials to the mix, but Chatterbox brought a new, real-life radio style to the virtual airwaves. Instead, it broadcasted an hour-long talk show, pitting its presenter, the singularly named Lazlow, against a string of obscene callers. In contrast to the other stations, Chatterbox didn’t play any music. But while there were a host of entertaining stations to listen to, one became a defining element of weaving through traffic in GTA III: Chatterbox FM. It’s up there with trying to fly the Dodo or rampaging through the streets in an armoured tank. Listening to the radio while driving around the boroughs of Liberty City is one of Grand Theft Auto III’s greatest pleasures, because of the licensed music, eccentric personalities, and ridiculous ads.