Where Do Fortnite Dances Come From?

Where do Fortnite dances come from? While there are occasionally original additions among the emotes added to Fortnite, many of these dances are based on moves innovated elsewhere. That re-appropriating of dance moves has gotten Epic Games in hot water in the past, bringing the original sources into the conversation for the first time.

Where Do Fortnite Dances Come From?

Fortnite dances have a variety of sources. Some, such as Best Mates, are based on viral videos. Many more, including the original default dance, come from other places in pop culture. In particular, Epic Games seems prone to recreating dances by black artists, from Snoop Dogg (the source of the Tidy emote) to BlocBoy JB (the Hype).

Chance the Rapper was among the first to take issue with this practice, opining that Epic Games was using these dances without appropriately compensating the artists who created them. A handful of similarly-minded creatives even opened lawsuits against Epic Games, though they've since dropped their suits.

The most recent wrinkly to the story came June 5, when Epic Games collaborated with YouFunnyB on adding his Billy Bounce dance to Fortnite. Neither party has clarified whether or not YouFunnyB is receiving compensation, but his name does not appear in Fortnite, leading many to see the development as only a small step forward for Epic Games' credit-giving process.

Photo courtesy of Epic Games