Kevin Kelley Heyer, the TikTok star behind the viral Apple dance, has reached a settlement in her lawsuit with Roblox Corporation. Her lawsuit had focused on allegations that Roblox had used her choreography without consent. This emote, seen above, was featured during a Charli XCX-themed concert across the wildly popular platform Dress to Impress.
Heyer first sued Roblox for stealing her dance moves, which were based off Charli XCX’s song “Apple.” According to Ruffin’s legal team, the emote brought in an estimated $123,000 (£93,000) in profit for Roblox. Miki Anzai, Heyer’s lawyer, asserted that Kelley “should be compensated fairly for her work,” emphasizing the importance of crediting original creators.
The legal waters got muddy when Roblox’s spokespeople claimed that Heyer had failed to copyright the Apple dance in the first place. They argued that she had already given the company permission to use the choreography. Anzai argued that there was no valid “signed agreement” allowing this use.
Both sides have now jointly moved to dismiss the lawsuit with prejudice. According to various news reports, they won a licensing agreement with Apple for the dance. In the lead-up to the event, Kelley was awarded $9,000 (£6,700) in damages.
In a recent interview with BBC Newsbeat, Kelley sounded conflicted about how other people dancing her choreography made her feel. She must have loved seeing her brand become a runaway hit. What upset her too was when brands and even larger creators copied her work but didn’t tag or credit her.
As of April 2023, Roblox Corporation now boasts the same number of daily active users as both Nintendo Switch and Sony Playstation have in total monthly active users combined. Most recently, they released a new emote featuring singer Charli XCX. This collaboration is designed to increase user interaction on the company’s centralized mobility platform.