The battle royale game Fortnite is as synonymous with popular dance moves as TikTok, which perhaps is why many dances you see on the social media network invariably end up in the video game. But on Thursday, one TikTok star called out Fortnite for what appears to be a use of a dance she made up and posted to social media.
As the leaked emote appeared online, many noted the similarities between Ana Coto’s viral TikTok of her roller-skating and dancing to Jennifer Lopez’s ‘Jenny From The Block,’ which has gone viral a number of times in 2020 on various platforms.
Coto, an actress who appeared in Ouiji, has a huge platform on TikTok, in part thanks to the video’s massive popularity. The impact of Coto’s 10-second TikTok is tough to quantify, but she’s largely credited with the explosion of popularity of roller skates while people passed time in quarantine. So when the tweet about the Freewheelin’ emote spread, Coto herself saw it and amplified the video both on TikTok and Instagram.
“Flattered but no dance credit,” Coto wrote, mentioning Fortnite directly while adding a nonplussed emoji. The dance is extremely similar to Coto’s, which sees her skating and moving her arms around basically in time to the leaked Freehweelin’ emote.
But curiously, the emote appearing without dane credit would come weeks after Epic credited another dance inventor for their work when the Renegade dance was added to Fortnite. That dance, which also was popularized on TikTok, got some run at the NBA All-Star Game — though creator Jalaiah Harmon wasn’t initially credited and featured. The game maker even had a TikTok dance contest recently, with a winner getting a licensed emote in the game as well.
Grab a friend and groove to the music with these smooth moves by @tiktok_us Emote Royale Winner, Michael (TikTok: michaelmejeh).
Pick up the new Verve Emote for free when you login between now and July 29 8 PM ET pic.twitter.com/pB2FmpFSga
— Fortnite (@FortniteGame) July 28, 2020
According to The Verge, Epic wouldn’t comment on whether they have gotten in touch with Coto about the dance, and judging by her posts on social media she’s upset they mimicked her moves without approval. The Freewheelin’ emote isn’t in the game just yet, though, so it’s unclear what will happen before it’s officially launched.
[via The Verge]