In October, it was revealed that Tesla CEO Elon Musk took control of Twitter after a lengthy legal battle and months of uncertainty.
Since beginning his reign on the popular social media platform, the multi-billionaire has made a number of controversial decisions, including reinstating former president Donald Trump to Twitter after the site’s previous owners had permanently suspended him for violating company rules in the wake of the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The decision to reactivate Trump’s account comes after Musk posted a Twitter poll asking users if they would like to see the former president back on the platform — days after Trump announced his third White House bid. After that, Musk announced that he would return the suspended Trump account after around 15 million users allegedly voted 51.8% in favor of reinstating it.
Amid Musk’s Twitter takeover, a number of stars have removed themselves from the platform, citing hate speech and Musk’s decisions. We’ve compiled all the musicians who have decided that Twitter is no longer for them, including Nine Inch Nails‘ Trent Reznor, Sara Bareilles, Jack White and more. See below.
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Trent Reznor
“I’m about to depart. We don’t need the arrogance of the billionaire class to feel like they can just come in and solve everything,” the Nine Inch Nails frontman told The Hollywood Reporter on November 19. “Even without [Musk] involved, I just find that it has become such a toxic environment. For my mental health, I need to tune out. I don’t feel good being there anymore.”
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Toni Braxton
As a POC, Braxton expressed concern over “hate speech under the veil of ‘free speech’” on the app, leading her to “stay off” the platform.
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Sara Bareilles
Bareilles revealed on Oct. 29 that Twitter is “just not for me,” noting that she’ll still be using other platforms.
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Jack White & Third Man Records
On November 20, Jack White posted a screenshot to Instagram of news announcing that Elon Musk had restored Donald Trump’s Twitter account. “Absolutely disgusting, Elon. That is officially an a–hole move. Why dont you be truthful? Tell it like it is; people like you and Joe Rogan (who gives platforms to liars like alex jones etc.); you come into a ton of money, see the tax bill, despise paying your fair share, and then think moving to Texas and supporting whatever republican you can is going to help you keep more of your money. (How else could trump possibly interest you?),” he wrote in his lengthy accompanying message.
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Moby
“This will be my last tweet,” Moby wrote on Nov. 29. “Last night @elonmusk posted an alt-right anti-Semitic meme, a fake @cnn story, and an image of guns on his bedside table. @Twitter has become a cesspool of racism, anti-semitism, disinformation, and dimwitted alt-right hate, and it’s time to leave.”
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Liz Phair
Liz Phair deactivated her account on November 11. “… And the band played on… for not much longer,” she tweeted.
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Laura Benanti
The Broadway star was one of the earliest defectors, announcing her exit from the platform on Nov. 7. “F— you forever @ElonMusk,” she tweeted along with a peace-sign emoji. “Deleting my account today. Kind humans, if you want you can catch me on @instagram.”
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Elton John
The “Tiny Dancer” singer sent out his last tweet on Friday (Dec. 9), writing, “All my life I’ve tried to use music to bring people together. Yet it saddens me to see how misinformation is now being used to divide our world.”
He continued, “I’ve decided to no longer use Twitter, given their recent change in policy which will allow misinformation to flourish unchecked.”
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Meek Mill
Meek Mill deactivated his Twitter account “forever” on Dec. 18. He announced in a now-deleted tweet that he intends to “go to a new social where it’s more good vibes based off building, creating and motivation” — like his YouTube channel — and attributed his Twitter exit to “too many bots and weird people.”
