Image via Complex Original
Social media has the power to turn your Average Joe (or Jane) into an overnight celebrity. Take Alabama Crimson Tide QB A.J. McCarron’s girlfriend Katherine Webb for instance. The gorgeous model racked up 90,000 Twitter followers just off her on-camera appearance during the BCS National Championship game. All in a matter of 24 hours mind you. Impressive numbers for a hot chick with no name, though she's managed to pull off a feat that a handful of today’s top celebs have accomplished when signing up for the hashtag-heavy social network. Want names and stats? Take a look at 15 Celebrities Who Gained the Most Twitter Followers In One Day.
Oprah Winfrey
Twitter handle: @Oprah
Date joined: April 16, 2009
Followers gained in 24 hours: 130,000
The Queen of Daytime media felt like she finally joined the “21st century” when jumping on the microblogging service. Though she remains vocally active on numerous world issues and pop culture trends, Oprah’s shown she needs some grooming on her Twitter etiquette after committing a tech sin: endorsing the Microsoft tablet as part of her “Favorite Things” list…on her iPad.
Bill Gates
Twitter handle: @BillGates
Date joined: Jan 19, 2010
Followers gained in 24 hours: 202,000
His biography reads: "cool things I'm learning through my foundation work and other interests." That’s exactly what the billionaire philanthropist and Microsoft co-founder delivers to his 9,318,000 followers. Gates obviously lacks the humor of other tech visionaries like Dick Costolo and Aaron Levie, but he can hold claim to scoring over 200,000 followers and landing on 6,400 Twitter lists in one day. Booyah!
Conan O'Brien
Twitter handle: @ConanOBrien
Date joined: Feb. 24, 2010
Followers gained in 24 hours: 200,000+
The former Late Show host needed little assistance drawing a huge Twitter crowd, pulling in more than three times the number of followers than nemesis Jay Leno. If he’s not expressing his unflappable sense of humor, he’s tweeting exclusives like the first official photo from the Arrested Development movie set.
Lebron James
Twitter handle: @KingJames
Date joined: June 5, 2010
Followers gained in 24 hours: 200,000
The day before his government became a sponsored tending topic, King James finally caved in and joined Twitter—bringing over 25,000 followers to his profile. You can catch Bron Bron sharing his views on everything except his hairline. Zing.
Kanye West
Twitter handle: @kanyewest
Date joined: July 28, 2010
Followers gained in 24 hours: 200,000
If there was one superstar who could leave the Twitterverse on smash, best believe it’s the “voice of this generation.” That was pretty much established with Yeezy’s inaugural tweet up above. From art wisdom to classic rants, the G.O.O.D. Music leader has left no topic untouched since joining Twitter.
Tiger Woods
Twitter handle: @TigerWoods
Date joined: Nov. 17, 2010
Followers gained in 24 hours: 180,000
You won’t find the greatest golfer of all time bitchin’ over his struggles on the green or professing his love to mistresses on Twitter. Then again, we have no access to his DMs. Minor updates on his dailies and side interests fill his timeline.
Charlie Sheen
Twitter handle: @charliesheen
Date joined: March 28, 2011
Followers gained in 24 hours: 900,000
Hollywood’s most controversial headliner set the Guinness World record for being the fastest person to rack up 1 million followers. Guess having tiger blood has that effect. Dude has since quit and re-joined Twitter, luckily keeping us posted on his celebrity sightings and goddesses. Winning!
Rafael Nadal
Twitter handle: @RafaelNadal
Date joined: Aug. 3, 2011
Followers gained in 24 hours: 150,282
There’s no denying the Spanish tennis icon is one of the dryer sports figures on the Twitter scene. But you can’t knock Nadal’s mainstream charm for attracting 150,000+ followers in one day.
Jason Segel
Twitter handle: @JasonSegal
Date joined: Nov 11, 2011
Followers gained in 24 hours: 184,000
Onscreen wife Alyson Hannigan and bestie Jonah Hill welcomed The Muppets star to Twitter with open arms, along with 180,000 others. Even though he’s been inactive since April ’12, Segel’s left us with some entertaining performances on the social media outlet.
Simon Cowell
Twitter handle: @SimonCowell
Date joined: Nov. 16, 2011
Followers gained in 24 hours: 298,000
Television’s harshest critic hasn’t shied away from his brash onscreen persona on the microblogging site. If Cowell isn’t hocking his television endeavors, best believe he’s brewing beef with other celebs. Scroll up if you need proof.
Michelle Obama
Twitter handle: @MichelleObama
Date joined: Jan. 11 2012
Followers gained in 24 hours: 200,000
The First Lady was expected to do big numbers the moment she stepped into the Twittersphere. But 200,000+ followers deep in 24 hours? Impressive. When she’s not playing good wife and mother, Michelle’s giving us updates on her spouse’s presidential moves.
Steve Carell
Twitter handle: @SteveCarell
Date joined: Feb. 23, 2012
Followers gained in 24 hours: 100,000+
It was only a matter of time before The Office alumni joined the Twitterati. Besides offering insight on how to embarrass his daughter and ragging on himself, Carell’s had his moments on Twitter. Though it's been in stagnant, his 51 tweets speak for itself.
Betty White
Twitter handle: @BettyMWhite
Date joined: April. 10, 2012
Followers gained in 24 hours: 100,000+
Our favorite 90-year-old comedian certified her pop culture relevance by poking fun at her own decisions to join Twitter and flirting with Ryan Seacrest while racking up over 100,000 followers. OG Swag.
The Pope
Twitter handle: @Pontifex
Date joined: December 3, 2012
Followers gained in 24 hours: 360,000
The Pope joined Twitter to expand his outreach and spread positivity. Over 300,000 followers joined his page as a result. And even though the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church has his moments of sprituality and enlightenment, he still keeps it 100 when it comes to religious beliefs. Bawse.
Kobe Bryant
Twitter handle: @kobebryant
Date: Jan 4, 2013
Followers gained in 24 hours: 250,000
The antisocial did indeed become the social, as the Black Mamba re-joined the Twitter soiree after having previously deleted his original account in 2011. As anticipated, No. 24 did what he does best: shatter records, becoming the most followed athlete on the social network in the shortest time span. Now he has an outlet to spazz on regarding his team's abysmal season.
