Selena Gomez is a well-known celebrity, and her social media accounts prove it. But some wonder why Selena, specifically, has so many followers. It's a bit of a strange phenomenon, fans admit, because Selena isn't nearly as prolific in her music or acting these days as other celebs are.
It's a bit of a mystery how Selena continues to rack up the followers, sometimes earning as many as 10 million in a month. So what's her secret? Fans have a few ideas.
Selena Gomez Is Approaching 300 Million Instagram Followers
As of July 2021, Statista reported that Selena was the fifth most-followed celebrity on Instagram. Interestingly, she's gained about 18.5 million followers since then, with her September 2021 follower count clocking in at 264 million.
Who's bigger than Selena, though? The details might be surprising.
Cristiano Ronaldo was number one, with more than 315 million followers, and Dwayne Johnson was the closest behind him with 254.76. Their figures now, however, are about 347 million and 271 million, respectively.
Ariana Grande came next with 252 million (currently 267 million, maybe her surprise marriage had something to do with the uptick!), followed by Kylie Jenner (of course!) with 249 million (now 270 million).
The top-ranking celebs have shifted, because Leo Messi, who a few months ago ranked behind Selena and Kim K, has now surpassed Selena's follower count and is also creeping up on Dwayne Johnson.
Anyway, it's interesting to see that Selena Gomez is in good company at the top of the ranking -- the other celebrities she shares the charts with are multi-faceted and hyper-relevant these days. Which led fans to wonder just how Selena manages to stay on top.
Some People Wonder How Selena Nabbed A Top Spot
Some quasi-fans of Selena Gomez wondered just how she managed to sit so pretty on Instagram when other celebrities have been far more active in the public eye than she has. She surpasses even Beyonce, which is saying a lot -- Bey is known to grind.
One fan suggested that having dated Justin Bieber probably helped Gomez become popular on social media, but she outranks even him (and his now-wife). In fact, per the July figures, Bieber trailed right behind Beyonce and just ahead of Kendall Jenner.
Other commenters were satisfied to state that "Instagram is weird" and moved on; J Lo has millions more followers than her contemporaries, they say, and the numbers just don't make much sense. There is one theory that does, however.
Instagram Is A Global Platform, And Selena Has Mass Appeal
One commenter pointed out that Instagram truly is a global platform, and that might have something to do with Selena Gomez's mass appeal. Because although Selena doesn't actually speak Spanish, she did release a full Spanish language album, and she is Latina.
Fans suggest that she has more appeal to wider audiences than celebs like Taylor Swift (she hasn't hit 200M followers on IG yet) or Miley Cyrus (she's barely at 100 and a half million). Compared to Selena, fans are practically sleeping on less diverse celebs.
And fans may have a point; Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi aren't conventional celebrities in the US, but they sure are popular on a global scale (thanks to the world's love of soccer!). So while Selena is Latina, she also appeals to global audiences because of all the collabs she's done with a variety of performers (Luis Fonsi and BlackPink both come to mind), but fans also called her "ethnically ambiguous."
And it's true that many advertisers these days look to "ethnic ambiguity" to sell their wares, simply because people of color can appeal to a wider audience if folks don't know their specific backgrounds.
That's getting a little deep, of course, but it's a solid theory from various perspectives! Fans have even more ideas about Selena's good IG standing, though.
Some Say Selena Gomez Is A Benign IG Presence
In what is an amusing yet potentially accurate suggestion, one commenter proposed that Selena Gomez is "more inoffensive than explicitly well-liked." Another contributed the fact that "non-pop stans love her" because she has a "laidback image" and she's "mellow."
Basically, Selena is not only "more accessible" than other stars (like her contemporary from Disney, Miley Cyrus), but she also has less controversy, suggest fans. Some went so far as to call her "bland," while others disagreed completely.
Some even credit Selena's health issues with bringing the spotlight back onto her, despite her career seemingly slowing a bit (especially during her health crisis with lupus). They point out that celebs who speak out about their personal struggles (even if it's not that juicy as in, say, her relationship with Bieber) often get more traction in the media and in this case, on social media.
Either way, no one's really complaining, especially not Selena, veritable queen of Instagram.
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