Caitlyn Jenner timed her social media roll-out with release of her post-transition Vanity Fair cover shoot. Her Twitter account broke President Obama’s record, gaining 1 million followers in just over four hours.
When Beyoncé quietly dropped her self-titled album on iTunes in the middle of the night in late 2013, she posted a teaser video on her Instagram account with the caption “Surprise!” to alert her fans of the news. It sold 80,000 copies in about three hours.
Pop icon Janet Jackson posted a video to her Twitter account in May 2015 announcing she was getting back in the studio. “This year, new music, a new world tour, a new movement,” the singer said in the video.
Hillary Clinton announced her bid for president in a YouTube video and a tweet saying, “I’m running for president. Everyday Americans need a champion, and I want to be that champion. –H” with a link to her website. The video has racked up over 4 million views.
After a tumultuous negotiation, David Lynch announced in a tweet that he would be returning for the “Twin Peaks” reboot. “The rumors are not what they seem ….. It is !!! Happening again,” he wrote.
John Stamos revealed Bob Saget would be joining “Fuller House” through Twitter. He said: “Last but not least-best piece of casting yet. The great @bobsaget will be joining our show on @netfilx – this completes the perfect reunon(sic)!”
Nina Dobrev stunned fans of the CW’s “The Vampire Diaries” when she announced on Instagram that she had decided to leave. “I always knew I wanted Elena’s story to be a six season adventure, and within those six years I got the journey of a lifetime,” Dobrev wrote. Half a million people liked her picture.
Frank Ocean came out via a post on his Tumblr. “I feel like a free man,” he said in the open letter.
Nicki Minaj dared to bare for her “Anaconda” cover, which was posted to her Instagram account. The photo received over 300,000 likes.
Both Royal Babies were announced via Twitter by the Clarence House account. Tweets were posted when the pregnancies were confirmed, as well as when they were delivered.
Kristen Bell and then-fiancé Dax Shepard announced the arrival of their baby girl Lincoln Bell Shepard via Twitter. On March 28, 2013, she tweeted: “My new roomate(sic) poops her pants and doesn’t pay rent…basically @daxshepard1 pre-sobriety 🙂 welcome baby Lincoln xo.” He tweeted: “Lincoln Bell Shepard is here. She has mom’s beauty and dad’s obsession with breasts. Hooray!!!”
Zayn Malik’s departure from British boy band One Direction was made public through a Facebook post. He was quoted in the post, saying: “My life with One Direction has been more than I could ever have imagined. But, after five years, I feel like it is now the right time for me to leave the band.” The post gathered over 700,000 likes.
Drake took a page out of Beyoncé’s playbook when he dropped a surprise album of his own. He uploaded the album on iTunes and tweeted a link to it. “If You’re Reading This, It’s Too Late” sold half a million copies its first week.
*NSYNC dropped a major hint about their reunion by creating an *NSYNC Twitter page. Their first tweet said: “Mic check, mic check one.. two… is this thing on?!”
In 2011, Paramount Pictures released the first trailer for its J.J. Abrams-directed sci-fi film “Super 8” exclusively on Twitter. Released through the movie’s official account, the trailer made history as the first to be released exclusively on the social media site.
