Twitter today released its year-end recap, shining a light on what was most popular on the platform in 2018. Usually, one can make an educated guess based on whatever viral memes or political scandals were most discussed. However, this year itâs more of a grab bag of miscellaneous trends, from singers to puppies to Marvel movies.
If youâve been paying attention at all to music in the last couple of years, it probably wonât be a surprise to see that Korean pop sensation BTS were tweeted more than actual birdsong this year (shout-out to my ARMY brothers and sisters). The yearâs most-liked tweet combines their star power with memetic appeal, as my man J-Hope nails the âIn My Feelingsâ challenge. They topped the lists of both most-tweeted-about celebrities and musicians. Iâm sure all weâd have to do is get Jungkook and Jin to kick a soccer ball around in a live vid for five minutes and theyâd top the list of most-tweeted-about athletes too (LeBron currently holds the title, natch).
#InMyFeelingsChallenge #HopeOnTheStreet pic.twitter.com/Bm8bxtKsFq
â ë°Šíěë ë¨ (@BTS_twt) July 23, 2018
Also, the second most-quoted tweet of the year was from the FIFA World Cup account during the event in Russia, asking which song should be played in the stadium. Of the four finalists, it came down a neck-and-neck race between BTS and fellow K-pop act EXO â Zedd and J Balvin might as well have not been on the ballot at all. EXO won by a nose, maybe because their song âPower,â is a bit more suited to a sporting event than BTSâs melancholy âFake Love.â
Another well-liked Tweet is from a woman named Chloe Copley and includes a video of her familyâs two dogs. One needs ear medicine, and the other (named Cache) is apparently under the impression he needs it too, so his dad mimes squirting it into his ears and rubbing it in. As Copley says, âNobody has the heart to tell him itâs pretend.â Personally, I think itâs just Cacheâs ploy to make sure he gets his fair share of attention (and ear rubs).
my dog has ear medicine she needs and the other one also thinks he needs it too.. nobody has the heart to tell him itâs pretend.. pic.twitter.com/Vshe7dhl3b
â chloe copley (@chloecopley_05) September 12, 2018
On the list of most-retweeted is teenager Ryan Sesselman, who basically asked Twitter to retweet his picture of a fluffy pup at an adoption event in order to convince his mother to let him adopt her. It worked â the puppyâs name is Milli and sheâs now a member of Sesselmanâs family.
Iâm starting to think Twitter is basically a teenage girl â endlessly infatuated with cute singers and puppies.
Other highlights of the year include the overwhelming popularity of Black Panther in the US. As far as films go, it beat out Best Picture winner The Shape of Water, Disney juggernauts The Incredibles 2 and Star Wars: The Last Jedi, and even fellow Marvel film (and the culmination of 10 yearsâ worth of build-up) Avengers: Infinity War. Wakanda forever, baby!
President Donald Trump was the most-discussed political figure, but that probably shocks no one. The day with the most tweets was February 25 â the same as the Olympics closing ceremony. And of course, Fortnite was the most popular game.
The second most-liked tweet came from former President Barack Obama, who tweeted his support of those who walked out as part of the Students Stand Up protest. That was third on the list of most-tweeted-about movements, after March for Our Lives and the NFL Protests.
Young people have helped lead all our great movements. How inspiring to see it again in so many smart, fearless students standing up for their right to be safe; marching and organizing to remake the world as it should be. We've been waiting for you. And we've got your backs.
â Barack Obama (@BarackObama) February 22, 2018
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