Fortnite Dances
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About
Fortnite Dances, also known as Dance Emotes, are a series of unlockable celebratory dances that players of the video game Fortnite can access after completing a series of challenges or through in-game purchases. In addition to inspiring a number of popular YouTube videos and memes of people and fictional characters performing the dances, they have also been the subject of a number of intellectual property lawsuits by the dances' creators.
Origin
On July 25th, 2017, Fortnite was released in Early Access.[1] The early release of the game featured characters performing the default emote called Dance Moves.
Spread
Orange Shirt Kid
On March 30th, 2018, the video game Fortnite launched a contest called the "Boogiedown Challenge." The contest requires contestants to upload 12-second videos of themselves dancing. Develops honor the winner with a dance emote based on their submission.[1]
That day, Twitter [2] user @Kid_Fortnite12 tweeted a video of a boy dancing in a bedroom. They captioned the post "Lmao Iβm so cringe.But here.#BoogieDown." Within one month, the post received more than 19,000 retweets and 48,000 likes (mirror below).
Several media outlets covered the story, including Polygon, Newsweek,[3] Kotaku,[4] and more.
Sans Fortnite Dance
Sans Fortnite Dance refers to a series of animated videos of the video game character Sans performing the emote Dance Moves from the video game Fortnite.
On June 17th, 2018, Twitter user @Yahiamice posted the first version, featuring a Fortnite character in a skeleton costume default-dancing to a remix of megalovania (shown below)
Shoot Dance
On May 1st, 2018, Fortnite players reported a new "emote," an expressive movement for characters with the game to make, called "Hype," which is similar to the BlocBoy JB Shoot dance.
That day, BlocBoy JB tweeted[8] a video of a side-by-side of BlocBoy JB doing the dance next to someone doing "hype." He captioned the video (shown below), "Fortnite π π #SIMI." The post (shown below) received more than 3,100 retweets and 8,400 likes in two days.
Fortnite π π #SIMI pic.twitter.com/uONfMubyxp
β BlocBoy JB (@BlocBoy_JB) May 2, 2018
Swipe It
On November 29th, 2018, in a press release,[5] rapper 2 Milly's law firm announced that the he would be seeking legal action against Epic Games "over its misappropriation, use and sale of 2 Milly's signature "Milly Rock" as downloadable content in its popular video game, Fortnite." Many have criticized the Fortnite dance emote "The Swipe It" for its similarities to the "Milly Rock" dance.[6]
In a statement, Milly Rock said, "I was never compensated by Epic Games for their use of the βMilly Rock.β They never even asked for my permission.
Carlton Dance
On January 2nd, 2018, Fortnite released the "Fresh emote," a celebratory dance characters in the game perform. Some noted that the dance resembled The Carlton. On February 2nd, 2018, YouTuber Fornite Guides released a video entitled "Fortnite Carlton Dance Music VS Fresh Emote Song 1 Half Hour Synced Comparison." The post received more than 36,000 views in one year (shown below).
On December 17th, 2018, Riberio filed a lawsuit against Epic Games, the makers of Fortnite for misappropriating Ribeiro's likeness and intellectual property in the game.[7] The actor's lawyer said, It is widely recognized that Mr. Ribeiroβs likeness and intellectual property have been misappropriated by Epic Games in the most popular video game currently in the world, Fortnite [β¦] Epic has earned record profits off of downloadable content in the game, including emotes like 'Fresh.' Yet Epic has failed to compensate or even ask permission from Mr. Ribeiro for the use of his likeness and iconic intellectual property."
The Floss
On December 14th, 2017, Fortnite released the Season 2 Battle Pass, offering a series of new items and dances for purchase. Among the new offerings was a dance called "The Floss", which was popularized by an Instagram dancer known as "The Backpack Kid."[9]
On June 13th, 2018, the celebrity news website TMZ asked Backpack Kid about the inclusion and whether he deserves royalties. While Backpack Kids agreed that he deserves royalties, he said, "It's not that big of a deal. I'm just glad it's in the game" (video below, left).
On December 8th, 2018, Backpack Kid judged a series of videos of people doing the dance, including dances in the game for BuzzFeed Multiplayer. The post received more than 1.7 million views (shown below, right).
Less than two weeks later, Backpack Kid and his mother sued Epic Games over the dance. He is also suing 2K Sports for using the dance.[10] Backpack Kids said that his mother and management filed the suit and believed that Epic was taking advantage of Backpack Kid's dance (video below).
Search Interest
External References
[1] Polygon β Fortnite announces early access release, hands-on the unfinished game
[2] Twitter β @Kid_Fortnite12's Tweet
[3] Newsweek -βFortniteβ Adds Orange Shirt Kid Emote, Fans Celebrate
[4] Kotaku -After Mass Fan Outcry, Epic Adds 'Orange Shirt Kid' Dance To Fortnite
[5] BusinessWire β Rapper 2 Milly Hires Pierce Bainbridge's David L. Hecht to Pursue Claims against Fortnite and Epic Games
[6] Rockpapershotgun β Fortnite dance creator to pursue legal action against Epic
[7] TMZ β ALFONSO RIBEIRO Sues Fortnite and NBA 2K Creators β¦ FOR STEALING CARLTON DANCE
[8] Twitter β @BlocBoy_JB's Tweet
[10] TMZ β Backpack Kid SPEAKS OUT AFTER SUING FORTNITE CREATOR
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