The “Apple” Dance is arguably what made TikTok dances cool and approachable to people old enough to drink. It was created last summer by Kelley Heyer, a personality on the platform, and subsequently became a highlight of Charli XCX and Troye Sivan‘s SWEAT tour. She was even the “Apple” girl on the New York City stop, so it’s fairly common knowledge that she’s the dance’s creator.
Heyer was due to licence the dance to Roblox as an emote, but the platform released the function before reaching an official deal with her. Now, she’s suing the virtual universe over unauthorized use of her property.
As per Polygon, Heyer filed the suit in California on April 11. She first posted the dance on June 15, 2024, and submitted a copyright application for it on August 30. Roblox added the emote to their platform on August 17, as part of a BRAT-themed Dress to Impress update. Heyer was in talks to license the dance on August 12, but the function was released prior to an agreement being finalized.
“Roblox moved forward using Kelley’s IP without a signed agreement,” attorney Miki Anzai said in a statement. “Kelley is an independent creator who should be compensated fairly for her work and we saw no other option than to file suit to prove that. We remain willing and open to settle and hope to come to a peaceful agreement.”
The lawsuit claims that Roblox sold 60,000 units of the emote, work $123,000 in total when it was available from August until November 2024.
“As the Apple Dance emote comprises solely of the Apple Dance choreography, completely separate and distinct from the Charli XCX song, the sole ‘artist’ for purposes of the emote is Ms. Heyer,” Heyer’s lawyers wrote.
Heyer has successfully licensed the dance to Fortnite as an emote, and to Netflix for its usage.
