Ice Spice is heading to Fortnite, and she’s not going alone.
Epic Games announced Wednesday that The Big Guy emote is coming to the game, pairing the Bronx rapper with Patrick Star – the beloved, perpetually confused starfish from SpongeBob SquarePants. The news arrived through Fortnite’s official Instagram account. The caption was brief and completely sure of itself: “It’s going to be stuck in your head again. The Big Guy emote with @icespice and Patrick Star is coming to Fortnite soon.”
Epic gave no release date or price. The bubbles emoji at the end did the rest of the communicating.
The response came in fast. More than 276,000 likes poured in on Instagram, with total engagement climbing past 303,000. For a reveal with no confirmed specifics, that kind of traction speaks for itself.
The pairing sounds almost absurd on paper. That’s exactly what Fortnite does best. Ice Spice‘s real name is Isis Naija Gaston. She came out of the Bronx and reshaped the hip-hop conversation in 2022 with “Munch (Feelin’ U).” The track became one of that year’s most talked-about songs overnight. Patrick Star, meanwhile, has been stumbling through life in Bikini Bottom for decades. SpongeBob SquarePants first aired on Nickelodeon in 1999. He doesn’t know much, but he’s loved unconditionally.
Put them together in Fortnite and somehow it works.
That’s the quiet genius Epic has been building for years. The Fortnite island is unlike anything else in gaming. Marvel characters, pop stars, and anime icons can all share the same map there. The game has hosted performers including Travis Scott and Ariana Grande. Hip-hop has always been woven into its DNA. Fortnite’s crossovers don’t care about logic. They care about energy. Ice Spice has energy. Patrick Star has been generating energy for 25 years.
The line “it’s going to be stuck in your head again” suggests Ice Spice’s track “The Big Guy” is the audio powering the emote. That makes sense given the name. Epic hasn’t confirmed the audio details officially.
For Ice Spice, this adds a new layer to a run that hasn’t slowed down. She appeared on the remix of Taylor Swift’s “Karma” in 2023 and landed a spot on the Barbie soundtrack that same summer. She’s stayed present across music and pop culture ever since. A Fortnite emote puts her in front of a massive gaming audience that might not have caught her on the radio first.
Patrick’s side of the deal makes its own kind of sense. SpongeBob SquarePants has been a cultural institution for more than 25 years, spawning movies and spin-offs and keeping the franchise alive across generations. Patrick specifically carved out a second life as an internet meme legend. That crossover appeal hasn’t gone anywhere.
The Big Guy emote arrives with a “coming soon” label and nothing more specific. The announcement has already made its mark.
.png?mbid=social_retweet "Bassvictim, Chxrry, Boys Noize, and More: This Weeks Pitchfork Selects Playlist")
:quality(85):upscale()/2026/11/06/066/n/1922564/7f5256156aee7272a123a4.22095875_.jpg "Charli DAmelio Says Velvet Suits Are the New Holiday Party Dress")
