Well, it looks like another person is now the most popular on Instagram. Selena Gomez isn't Instagram's most followed user anymore, according to ELLE. On Monday, the publication reported Gomez's title, which she held for the past two years, as the most followed individual on the social media network has officially been stripped. So, who is now at the top? The person shouldn't come as any surprise, because the athlete has been right behind the singer for some time now. Are you ready for the reveal? It is none other than soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo.
On Oct. 29, Cosmopolitan reported Ronaldo had 144,316,082 followers, whereas Gomez had 144,311,124. She's really not that far behind him, and their number of followers could change at any moment. But, as of right now, the professional athlete remains in the no. 1 spot.
According to ELLE, Ariana Grande is the third most followed person on Instagram with over 132 million followers, and Kim Kardashian comes in fourth with over 119 million followers. To have that many followers is really impressive.
In March 2016, Gomez became Instagram's most followed person. At the time she had 69.4 million followers. Two years later, she's acquired an additional 75 million Instagram users, give or take. The 26-year-old may no longer have the most followers, but her numbers are still impressive. To rack up that many followers in two years? Yeah, that's still kind of a big deal.
The 13 Reasons Why executive producer also earned recognition for having the most liked-photo on Instagram. In July 2016, she posted a photo of herself drinking a Coke (above), and the picture gained 4.1 million likes. As of this publication on Oct. 29, the Instagram has over 6.9 million likes.
As you can see below, on Sept. 23, Gomez announced she was taking a break from social media. Next to a smiling photo of herself, she wrote on Instagram,
"Mood lol (I was looking at myself in the mirror -like an idiot!) Update: taking a social media break. Again. As much as I am grateful for the voice that social media gives each of us, I am equally grateful to be able to step back and live my life present to the moment I have been given. Kindness and encouragement only for a bit! Just remember- negative comments can hurt anybody’s feelings. Obvi."
The "Back to You" singer also shared with ELLE as the magazine's September cover star,
"I'm not on the internet. I haven't been on the internet in months. I don’t have my password for Instagram."
She explained to ELLE that Instagram is "not real to me," and Gomez is careful in the message she spreads as someone in the public eye. "I know my voice is very prominent, but I’m not careless with it," she said. "I’m selective."
Gomez later added,
"That’s my life. I’m living it the way I want to live it. But it’s about making a conscious effort — if I can have a moment to be with my friends, I’ll take that time. So I don’t have any of it. I had to make that decision."
If you're disappointed that Ronaldo beat Gomez with the most Instagram followers, don't be, because the singer doesn't care about numbers. As she revealed in an Instagram Live in September, according to Business Insider, "Numbers don't matter. None of this matters. I don't care how many followers I have. I don't. It's insane so many people are obsessed. Like, chill out."
There you have it, Gomez probably isn't upset she doesn't have the most Instagram followers anymore, especially since she isn't even using the social media platform at this point in time.
