What were the most popular Twitter trends this year?
This past year has been a rollercoaster of a ride — from the coronavirus pandemic and social justice movements to an economic downturn and the election — 2020 has provided an endless array of topics for people to talk about online. Twitter has just released a roundup of how people kept themselves entertained and engaged with one another on the platform in 2020.
As most of us remained indoors during the pandemic, it won't come as a surprise that "quarantine" was mentioned 1.6 million times. And in a year where "going out" has become a euphemism for taking a brief walk, tweets featuring the word "home" were up 143% from 2019. While the coronavirus has dominated 2020, social justice movements have played a big part in shaping the country this year.
Across the world, people used Twitter to advocate for what they believe in and the platform's year-end trends indicate just that. Usage of the hashtag #transrightsarehumanrights increased by 557% and the hashtag #Blacklivesmatter was the third most used in 2020.
In August, the nation came together to honor the tragic passing of Marvel's "Black Panther" star Chadwick Boseman, who died at age 43 after a four-year battle with cancer. The tweet announcing his passing was the most liked, retweeted and quote tweeted in the U.S. in 2020.
For the fourth year in a row, Korean pop sensation BTS was the most tweeted-about musicians in the U.S. The seven-member boy band, who have over 31 million followers on Twitter, are continuing to build their roster of diehard fans who call themselves the A.R.M.Y., an acronym for Adorable Representative M.C. for Youth. Kanye West, who made an unsuccessful bid for the White House this year, came second in Twitter's music roundup, followed by superstar Beyoncé.
BTS also snagged the title for the most tweeted-about celebrities. The late Kobe Bryant, who was killed alongside eight others in a helicopter crash at the beginning of the year, was the second most mentioned star. Lakers star LeBron James follows, with music moguls Kanye West and Beyoncé wrapping up the top five.
This year, Twitter also compiled a list of celebrities with the most follower growth. Popstar Ariana Grande, rapper Lil Baby and NBA icon LeBron James rounded out the top three.
With many movie theaters closed across the country, people turned to streaming services and TV shows to fill that void of entertainment. Michael Jordan's "The Last Dance," which chronicled the lead-up to the NBA legend's final championship run with the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s, was the most tweeted-about TV show. Also capturing people's attention was "Tiger King" and "The Bachelor," which took second and third place, respectively.
Here's more of Twitter's 2020 roundup:
The most liked tweets in the U.S.
@ChadwickBoseman - the tweet announcing his death
@BarackObama - his tweet honoring Kobe Bryant
@andymilonakis - his joke about astronauts leaving earth
@KamalaHarris - her "We did it Joe!" video
@JoeBiden - his celebration after being elected president
@__reignsupreme_ - announcing they're cancer-free
@kobebryant - his tweet showing his respect for LeBron James
@Twitter - promising an edit button if everyone wears masks
@BarackObama - wishing Michelle Obama a happy birthday
@_melaneee - announcing they're cancer-free
The most tweeted-about TV shows.
"The Last Dance"
"Tiger King"
"The Bachelor"
"Saturday Night Live"
"The Daily Show with Trevor Noah"
"The Mandalorian"
"Grey's Anatomy"
"The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon"
"Jeopardy"
"The Late Late Show with James Corden"
The most tweeted-about reality TV shows.
"The Bachelor"
"90 Day Fiancé"
"Live PD"
"RuPaul's Drag Race"
"The Masked Singer"
The most tweeted-about streaming shows.
"Tiger King" (Netflix)
"The Mandalorian" (Disney+)
"Stranger Things" (Netflix)
"The Umbrella Academy" (Netflix)
"Black Mirror" (Netflix)
