20. March 2026
The Videogame Soundtrack's Impact on British Youth Culture
By Chinwendu Akus, She/Her
GTA 4 put me onto Jill Scott and Fela Kuti.
NBA2K14 helped me discover Mary J Blige.
FIFA’s soundtracks built my musical identity.
Sims 2’s alternative Simlish tracks immersed me into my very own role playing fantasy.
Video game soundtracks were the score to the simulations that we’d play on our XBOX360’s, our PS2’s and 3’s. I’d sit on fifa, making my player kick a football around, not because I wanted to play, but because Call it What You Want by Foster The People was playing in the back. Memories like this created bonding opportunities between friends at school, siblings and so much more.
Santigold’s 2007 track was on FIFA 08, a game that I had on the Playstation 2. I was about 6 years old when I first heard it, and at that time I wasn’t that clued up on video gaming so I was largely restricted to watching my then 10 year old brother smash in free-kicks with his ever beloved Manchester United squad. But what stuck with me the alternative beat of Santigold’s sound. More of her discography, such as songs like Say Aha, could also be found in later FIFA iterations.
LCD Soundsytem’s I Can Change was the song I’d always look for when in career mode in FIFA 11, on a hot summer’s day wasting my days on the PS3 and switching between Assassin’s Creed, Sims 3 and FIFA. It always kept me playing in the arena mode of the game, learning new tricks and making sure my created player made it to Real Madrid at the top of his game; all before my teenage brother would push me off to play COD with his friends. Nonetheless, I Can Change reminds me of the cool breeze and the sunny skies that 2011 beheld, or is that just the joys of preadolescence? Either way. It’s a good damn song.
I literally never considered how influential FIFA songs were in my life until Jim Legacy’s 2025 album, Black British Music, especially his song, 06’ Wayne Rooney. Though I’m a bit too young to recall FIFA 06, Jim’s single reminded me of how the game’s use of alternative, indie rock infected our young brains and made us discover a genre full of colourful musicians that we wouldn’t even know about had it not been for the game.
But when did it go from cinematic to…pure old aesthetic? Tweets online from around FIFA19’s release hinted at how the games were losing their urban feel, and pandering more to a ‘younger audience’. You could be excused for saying age was getting the better of you, but it was clear around the time FIFA’s licensing on the EA game expired that the football simulator had taken a different direction altogether. But was it just FIFA alone? Had the years since put games on a timeline where music simply wasn’t as important?
GTA V released on September 17, 2013. With multiple radio stations from iFruit Radio (a parody of iPhone Radio) to West Coast Classics, Rockstar made sure that the gamers were immersed in 2010’s LA culture. When a massive update in 2017 moved the timeline forward, Rockstar introduced Blonded Radio, cultivated by Frank Ocean to the game, giving it a more contemporary feel.
Now, what about NBA2K? Unlike its fellow sporting friend EA Sports, but lesser so than Rockstar’s GTA, 2K has always immersed itself in African-American culture by using the help of renowned musicians to make sure that the basketball simulator represents the history of the individuals in the league. From Jay’Z’s hand in 2K13 to PlaqueBoyMax in 2K26, 2K Sports assures that culture is at the forefront of its gaming experience.
So, maybe we can say it’s not all lost in the gaming industry. Some people still care, some don’t. But one thing is for sure: music adds more to a game than we think.
Just before I go, here’s my 10 favourite FIFA songs, and from the FIFA’s they’re from:
- Catfish and the Bottlemen: Coccon (FIFA 15)
- Santigold: You’ll Find A Way (FIFA 08) (top 1)
- LCD Soundsystem: I Can Change (FIFA 11) (personal top 3)
- Ram Di Ram: Flashbacks (FIFA 11)
- Foster the People: Call it What You Want (FIFA 12)
- The Last Dinner Party: Nothing Matters (EAFC 24)
- The Strokes: Machu Picchu (FIFA 11) (personal top 2)
- The Kooks: Around Town (FIFA 15)
- Boy Kill Boy: Suzie (FIFA Street 2)
- Editors: Munich (FIFA Street 2)
You can find more of Chinwendu's writing on Substack and on Instagram