Rapper 2 Milly hopes to sue Epic Games over Fortnite's 'Swipe It' emote, which is based on his Milly Rock dance.
"They actually sell that particular move. It's for purchase. That's when I really was like...oh nah, this can't go on too long," he told CBS.
Swipe It was one of the emotes available to unlock as part of the paid-for Battle Pass in Fortnite Season 5, which ended in September. You can no longer unlock it but players can still use it in-game.
The emote is one of many based on real-life dance moves by hip hop artists, as Vikki outlined here. 2 Milly says he doesn't want to "bash [Epic] for all the millions. It's not really like that. I just feel like I have to protect what's mine."
As to whether legal action from 2 Milly would be successful, it's hard to say. He's venturing into uncharted territory, according to business and entertainment lawyer Merlyne Jean-Louis, who CBS quotes in its report. "There's a lot of case lawsuits surrounding the copyright of music. Lyrics. Sounds. There's a full body of case law related to that. But regarding choreographic works, that does not exist,"
In July, Chance the Rapper said that Epic should at least play the songs that inspire the emotes when players use them.
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 themJuly 13, 2018
In case you missed it, Fortnite won Game of the Year at the Golden Joystick Awards this week.
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