Music artist bbno$’s deal with Fortnite for in-game cosmetics has allegedly been called off after he leaked the information early.
On June 22, bbno$ posted a TikTok video of an email he allegedly received from an Epic Games employee about an upcoming Fortnite collaboration. The email outlined how Epic was interested in making cosmetic items in Fortnite that would surround his latest song “it boy” that released on May 24.
Since its release, the song has become popular on TikTok, with over 25,000 videos using the official audio. This popularity seemingly gained the attention of Epic, who were looking to make an emote and multiple items inspired by the song.
The initial video made by bbno$ garnered over 4.5 million views in less than a week. However, shortly after going viral, bbno$ had bad news for his once-excited fans.
Another TikTok, created on June 25, just three days after the email was leaked, showed bbno$ receiving yet another email, this time regarding the collaboration’s cancellation.
“TERMINATION: Fortnite x bbno$ collaboration // Breach of Confidentiality,” the email headline reads.
The presumed official email states that “Epic Games will be terminating our partnership with bbno$” and won’t be making the promised Fortnite cosmetics. As bbno$ moves out of frame, more of the alleged email becomes readable. It states that the breach of confidentiality associated with the previous TikTok was the reason for the collaboration’s cancellation.
While bbno$ did not appear genuinely upset, those in the comments had a different feeling, blaming Fortnite instead of the artist.
“Punished for the free plug?” said one commenter.
It seems like the supposed collaboration between the two would have even gotten some people back into the game, especially considering what Fortnite has done with artists in the past, like Lady Gaga, Eminem, Billie Elish, and Metallica.
“Insane because I would’ve installed Fortnite again just for this,” said another commenter.
Outside of bbno$ word, there is no proof that these emails actually came from Epic as the email addresses are covered in both videos. Without real evidence, there’s no telling if the collaboration was really canceled or if it was happening at all.