Trent Reznor, the man behind Nine Inch Nails, has answered his own threats he made back on June 10th and has deleted his Twitter account.
Reznor is hailed by many as a musician who truly “gets it”. He has been at the forefront of using social media to engage with his fans and also been on the cutting edge of business model experimentation in distributing his music.
Back on June 10th, Trent Reznor posted a long rant where he blasted Twitter and called out many of his followers for the negativity they expressed to him regarding the content of his feed:
I approached that as a place to be less formal and more off-the-cuff, honest and “human”. I was not expecting to broadcast details of my love life there, but it happened because I’m in love and it’s all I think about and that’s that. If this has bummed you out or destroyed what you’ve projected on me, fair enough – it’s probably time for you to leave. You are right, I’m not the same person I was in 1994 (and I’m happy about that). Are you?
It will be interesting to see how Reznor’s fans react. It does illustrate how social networks like Twitter can be a double edged sword for many high profile celebs. While they do provide a level of engagement that was previously unavailable, they also provide a level of intimacy between fans that can become problematic . In the end, I don’t think it’s a big deal for Reznor or for Twitter. However, I do think it’s interesting that Reznor, who is all about social media, has decided to ditch the service.
Guess this isn’t like when athletes retire and then come back?
usually this means more people will follow. That’s how it works with celebrities.
@Bill Kenney
I dont think celebs should be on twitter if they cant be responsible with it. Trent kept harassing his fans and giving them suicide advice.
Miley Cyrus couldnt take the criticism.
One of the Jonas clones got mad over the comments on his engagement and the rumors.
Tila Tequila liked to start shit with random people
Perez Hilton couldnt handle the heat he got after bashing Jackson.
NONE OF THEM NEED TO BE SO PUBLIC IF THEY CANT TAKE THE OBVIOUS RESPONSIBILITIES, CRITICISM AND OPPOSING FORCES.
Not everyone loves these people. And they seem to let their botched “fame” go to their head
This is why celebrities have handlers. Fans want the image, not the real person. The real person needs the fans to buy stuff. That is the relationship. Period. Anything else is just an illusion.
There will always be more of them than you. And them have a population of mean and demanding that hook into celebrities to get famous for themselves. Easier to tear down someone else than rise up on your own.
It takes balls to throw away that kind of fan engagement. How many followers was he up to, 400k? 500k? It wouldn’t have been a decision made lightly; it’s a shame to see him go.