Fortnite vs. The Culture
They love the culture, but do they love us? Popular online, third-person shooter game Fortnite is doing what Colonizers do best – jacking the culture. To date, creator Epic Games is currently the owner of the most popular online game in history. Recently Epic and Fortnite have come under fire for ripping off dance moves from hip-hop artists and other popular young blacks online. So far, no law suits have been filed, but according to Forbes, artists and hip-hop connoisseurs are posing the question, “are dance moves protected under copyright?“
In Fortnite, players can choose different “Emotes” or dances, these emotes appear to look exactly like the dances created by artists such as Snoop Dogg, Memphis rapper BlocBoy JB, and Brooklyn rapper 2 Milly. The makers of Fortnite have gotten so slick about stealing these dances for their own financial come up, that they have renamed many of the dances that can be purchased through the gaming system. For example, the culture knows a dance showcased in the game is called the “Milly Rock”, however in Fortnite, its called the “Swipe It”. 2 Milly is currently threatening to sue Epic games for stealing his signature dance.
Thankfully, there are some big named rappers that are calling out these culture vultures. Chance The Rapper was one of the first entertainers to bring attention to Fortnite using these dances from hip hop culture. “Black creatives created and popularized these dances but never monetized them. Imagine the money people are spending on these Emotes being shared with the artists that made them,” the No Problems rapper expressed in his tweets back in July.
— Chance The Rapper (@chancetherapper) July 13, 2018
No dance move is safe @alfonso_ribeiropic.twitter.com/NBVaS3GeT8
Since last year, Epic Games has raked in over $1 billion in sales, and since Fortnite is a free game, this means that the sale of these hip hop emotes and other items from the popular gaming system, has been how Epic and made most of its money.
However, the question still remains. Is it possible to copyright a dance? According to Forbes’ Intellectual Property Law definition, here are the details:
It is possible to copyright a dance, but not an individual dance move. The dance must have a series of movements that are arranged in a unique, original sequence in order to have copyright protection. This is because one simple move is considered to be only one building block of an entire choreographed dance. For example, a songwriter cannot copyright a musical note but can copyright a song, which is a unique arrangement of notes.
Fortnite should put the actual rap songs behind the dances that make so much money as Emotes. Black creatives created and popularized these dances but never monetized them. Imagine the money people are spending on these Emotes being shared with the artists that made them
— Nicholas Rage (@bigdaddynickk) September 28, 2018
It’s definitely a grey area when it comes to the creators of these dances to be able to get credit for their dances. In the meantime, there is lots of online talk about boycotting Epic, and other steps these creators can take to get paid, and/or protect their creative property. Right now, all we can do is make sure we tell everyone that the culture vultures are on the loose and they may hate you, but they love your culture.
Syllabus Magazine, the Carolina’s source for Music, Culture and Fashion
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