Elton John Leaving Twitter Because Of The Rocket Man: Here's How Elon Musk Responds

Zinger Key Points
  • Elton John becomes the latest celebrity to publicly announce the leaving of social media platform Twitter.
  • The musician known for a song about the "Rocket Man" and a trip to Mars throws shade at a man known by that moniker.

A legendary musician is saying goodbye to Twitter, or rather might be singing “So goodbye Blue Bird Road.” Here’s why Elton John is leaving the social media platform and what Twitter CEO Elon Musk had to say about the news.

What Happened: Several prominent musicians and celebrities have threatened to or have left social media platform Twitter since it was announced that Musk was acquiring the platform for $44 billion.

Musician Elton John announced via Twitter, where he has 1.1 million followers, that he is leaving the platform.

“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. I’ve decided to no longer use Twitter, given their recent change in policy which will allow misinformation to flourish unchecked,” John tweeted.

Musk called himself a fan of John’s music and is likely singing “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart.”

“I love your music. Hope you come back. Is there any misinformation in particular that you’re concerned about,” Musk replied to John.

Musk also replied to a user on Twitter who questioned why John was leaving the platform, asking “What is this ‘misinformation’ that he refers to?”

Why It’s Important: John is known for many hit songs, including "Rocket Man," a song about an astronaut heading to Mars, something Musk hopes to have people accomplish in the future. 

John isn’t the only celebrity leaving Twitter. Musicians Sara Bareilles and Toni Braxton announced that they were leaving the platform previously. Actress Tea Leoni, showrunner Shonda Rhimes and actor Josh Gad are among the celebrities who have voiced disapproval of Musk being in charge of Twitter.

John did not state a reason for leaving other than the misinformation. Musk recently announced that Twitter's ban on Donald Trump would end. Even though the former president is a longtime fan of John, the musician refused to play at his inauguration. John has also spoken out against his songs “Tiny Dancer” and “Rocket Man” being used during Trump's political events.

John recently completed the North American portion of his farewell tour with a California concert called “Elton John Live: Farewell From Dodger Stadium” among the first live-streamed events for Disney+, a streaming platform from The Walt Disney Company DIS.

If John eventually shares more details on his concerns about misinformation, it’s unclear whether he would get an apology from Musk, as the saying goes - “Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word.”

For John, Twitter is one of the platforms on which he has fewer fans and followers. John has 4.3 million followers on Instagram and 8.1 million followers on Facebook, two social media platforms owned by Meta Platforms META

Read Next: Apple Exec Deletes Twitter Account, Tech Giant Clears All Posts, What's Going On? 

Photo: Courtesy of Shutterstock.

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