Web Sensation for April 2011
Celebs like attention. For them, it's basically food. So it stands to reason that people already famous for being on TV, in movies or on the radio would seek new ways to get attention via the Internet. Have a look at who best used the Web to amass even more fame this April.
How to make people notice you: First, make a big show of quitting, and then make an even bigger show of coming back. Miley hopped back onto Twitter in early April to promote her new tour and quickly returned to her typical online antics: over-sharing and posting suggestive self-pics. Way to build that follower count, Miles.
It's harder to accuse someone of self-promotion when they're doing it under the guise of promoting someone else. But let's be honest: G and Jay had their own interests in mind when they decided to interview each other on their respective lifestyle websites, GOOP and LifeandTimes.com. The two generated buzz just by
making people wonder: What do two celebs talk about when they seemingly have nothing in common?
While the Web Sensation roundups generally showcase what celebs have done to enhance their own persona, Prince William and Kate had their celebrity thrust upon them when news of their wedding swallowed the Internet whole. However, it's worth noting that Will and Kate's official website served as a hub for a lot of that traffic and
helped their union become the sixth-biggest Web event ever.
Put this in the "Why didn't I think of that?" file: Perry announced this month that she will be gussying up her concerts with JumboTron billboards that will flash tweets and TwitPics from her fans. It's all in an effort to get fans interacting with each other, feeling generally stoked and, in a small way, involved in Perry's on-stage antics. It's a
simple idea, but it's a good one
She's trying to make herself all GOOP-y. Seriously. Based on announcements made this month, it sounds as though Conrad looked at Gwyneth Paltrow's life plan and decided to copy the part where Gwynnie started blogging about food, decor, and all things unattainable. We'll see how much Paltrow's influence will shape the
pending Lauren Conrad.com, but the important part is this: Another celeb wants to tell you how to live your life.
Staring April 28, 50 Cent wants to make you laugh -- but on purpose this time. He launched ThisIs50Comedy.com, a new offshoot of his official Web presence, ThisIs50.com. Time will tell if the site turns Fiddy into the next Keyboard Kitty, but the dude seems to be wired for online life. Also this month, the rapper's
13-year-old son, Marquise, announced he'd be launching a new sneaker website.
Usually, April Fool's Day just gives amateur pranksters a chance to pull off some lame stunts. This year, however, one celeb pulled off a good one: Richie hacked into the Kardashian sisters' Twitter accounts and posted foul tweets about poop. Yes, for a day, the Kardashian tweets were actually worth reading. Hats off to you,
Nicole.
The odds were stacked against ol' Weird Al as he prepared to release his first full-length comedy album in five years, especially because Lady Gaga was rumored to have stopped the release of his "Born This Way" parody, "Perform This Way." But in the end, Yankovic triumphed over Gaga's
legal team when Gaga herself gave the parody her blessing, assuring that Yakovic would earn the love of her psychotically loyal monsters.
Who would have thought that '80s white boy rappers would still be throwing rhymes in the year 2011, much less making the most of the Web while doing so? Yet the Beasties have skillfully used the Internet in two significant ways this month: They're streaming their newest album for free on their website and they've mined
nostalgia for their early days by dropping the trailer for the star-packed "Fight for Your Right." We young folks could take a lesson or two from these middle-agers' Web savvy.
It's been quite the month for young Cahill, the Internet star who made homemade webcam lip-sync videos into must-watch material. In addition to making a video with yet another big-name celeb cameo, the 16-year-old may have turned his Web-based fame into a full-time job by signing with a PR, branding and marketing agency.
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