“Having a blue tick now means there’s a higher chance that you’re a complete loser and that you’re desperate for validation from famous people,” Doja tweeted.
Elon Musk’s Twitter regime has begun removing the platform’s trademark blue check verification from legacy accounts, as promised.
Fans logged in on Thursday (April 20) to find that some of the site’s most famous users — Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, and others — had lost the elite status symbol, which had been displayed next to public figures’ profile names for years to confirm their identities. Survivor checkmarks now indicate that a user is a subscriber to Musk’s Twitter Blue service, which grants a blue tick to anyone who pays an $8 monthly fee.
“This account is verified because they are subscribed to Twitter Blue and verified their phone number,” reads a disclaimer on Taylor Swift, Rihanna, Britney Spears, and Miley Cyrus’ accounts, which all kept their checks.
Musicians, like the rest of the Twitterverse, have expressed their thoughts on the ordeal. A long-standing concern with the Twitter Blue setup has been how simple it will be for people to impersonate public figures by simply purchasing a verification symbol, which Finneas lamented in his post-checkmark tweet: “We used to have a system in place on this app that would make sure you knew someone was really who they said, but that’s gone now,” he sarcastically wrote.
Musicians such as Nicki Minaj, on the other hand, are taking risks. When a fan suggested that the rapper follow Twitter Blue so that people wouldn’t mistake her for an internet troll, she simply replied, “I am,” along with a hilarious gif of Mike Myers’ Austin Powers character Dr. Evil.
Other artists’ reactions to Musk’s decision have ranged from outrage to indifference. Doja Cat, on the other hand, believes she is better off without the verification symbol. “Having a blue tick now means you’re more likely to be a complete loser and desperate for validation from famous people,” she tweeted.
See how musicians are reacting to the loss of their blue checkmarks below:
I am https://t.co/GlNHdF9xaZ pic.twitter.com/OjlpR6as8W
— Nicki Minaj (@NICKIMINAJ) April 21, 2023
I only have one twitter, it’s this one- anyone ever tells you they’re the real me, with any other @ is lying- we used to have a system in place on this app that would make sure you knew someone was really who they said but that’s gone now :)))))
— FINNEAS (@finneas) April 21, 2023
My latte this morning was wonderful. https://t.co/f3roroXxP4
— Dionne Warwick (@dionnewarwick) April 21, 2023
https://twitter.com/DojaCat/status/1645698094745673730?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1645698094745673730%7Ctwgr%5Eb79a230f4cbbc74e4f029cb3b70dba7524834cc1%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.billboard.com%2Fmusic%2Fmusic-news%2Fmusicians-react-losing-blue-check-verification-elon-musk-twitter-1235312500%2F
So you’re telling me I have to pay top dollar to be allowed into a new velvet rope circle of hell? I thought our brilliant collective musings, time, attention, and the depression/anxiety resulting from said attention WERE the payment. Lol.
— St. Vincent (@st_vincent) April 20, 2023
I kid. I’m not genuinely worried about the blue check mark. You’ll know it’s really me by the sporadic timing and general confusion with which I engage. ❤️ to all.
— St. Vincent (@st_vincent) April 20, 2023
Instead of paying 8 bucks a month for the blue checkmark, I decided to donate it here https://t.co/yh2ZzTVa1L pic.twitter.com/xnhjFubag5
— Jason IsbOO (@JasonIsbell) April 20, 2023
The way Twitter is going anyone could be me now. The verification system is an absolute mess. https://t.co/bqESzaAhL1
— Dionne Warwick (@dionnewarwick) April 18, 2023
— Suki Waterhouse (@sukiwaterhouse) April 20, 2023
Y’all mf’s out here worried about the wrong check.
— Taylor Gang World Leader (@wizkhalifa) April 20, 2023
Elon took my blue check away! I’m unverified! After all these years and thousands of tweets and free content, this worm has the nerve to de-certify me!
— bettemidler (@BetteMidler) April 20, 2023
Elon, deciding that I’m not me, I’m a fake, & obliging ME, who has contributed mightily to your platform, (at least until you “tweaked the algorithm & tanked my metrics”) to pay monthly because you don’t have enough money & you’re humiliated b/c everyone thinks you’re a pathetic
— bettemidler (@BetteMidler) April 21, 2023
officially no longer an officially verified artist. i love being unofficial and unverified. it’s very moi.
— Charli (@charli_xcx) April 20, 2023
This is now my proof of verification✨ thank you 😂 pic.twitter.com/rI5BOTVUZ5
— Lauren Jauregui (@LaurenJauregui) April 20, 2023
going to bed tonight with my checkmark husband, knowing it will all be over by morning pic.twitter.com/hYXKNrpsdt
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) April 1, 2023
Blue check or no check… I know my fans still checkin. ❤️
— Ciara (@ciara) April 20, 2023
