Where Has Seal Been? Watching Your Instagram Stories (and ‘Plandemic’)
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June 7, 2020Let’s Meet on the Porch
June 10, 2020This post was originally published on this site
Seal has spent the last two and a half decades living largely off the royalties of a song he never intended to release. “Kiss From a Rose,” released in 1994, was not his first hit single — that would be “Crazy” — but it was the one that stuck, after an appearance on the “Batman Forever” soundtrack, a No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 and three Grammys.
In those 25 years, he has performed at events including the Nobel Peace Prize Concert and the Los Angeles Women’s March, always singing “Kiss From a Rose.” In terms of new business, there has not been much to report, save for turns on “The Voice Australia” and “The Masked Singer.”
But over the past few months, he has become an inexplicable fixture on the viewer lists of thousands of people’s Instagram Stories.
Users have posted hundreds of screen shots to Instagram and Twitter featuring the musician’s verified handle among the friends, family members and acquaintances in their viewer lists. While many chalked the views up to a bot or an assistant, Seal said it’s really him watching.
“Me looking at people’s Stories, answering people or sending them a quick message, it’s always coming from a place of love,” he said last month over FaceTime from his home in Topanga, Calif. “I’m not personally a fan of social media. However, there is one thing that it’s great for, and that’s for bringing people together. That is my M.O. at the moment.”
In the course of a wide-ranging two-hour interview, Seal spoke further about how he’s spending his time these days. For one, he is shutting out the negative, especially the news, which he says is not to be trusted fully.
‘No One Knows Anything’
Seal has been riding out the pandemic in his 2,500-square-foot home (or “isolation cell,” as he called it) with his personal assistant, friends and children, when they’re not with their mother, Heidi Klum.
He is doing everything he can to feel close to people in these isolating times. “I am talking to anyone that will listen right now,” he said. “If I pass someone on the street, people passing in cars, I’m waving at them and they’re waving back. I think it’s a testament to how beautiful we are when we slow down just a little bit and when we’re forced to look at the world differently.”
In a way, he said, his spiritual practice prepared him for this moment. “As someone who has grown up with childhood trauma, I set on a course a few years ago addressing that, which involved a lot of therapy, a lot of somatic healing, a lot of journeying to find the person that I had abandoned as a result of hatred, shame and guilt,” Seal said.
(He revealed in a 1996 interview with The New York Times that his father “beat him with whips, belts and fists, whatever was handy,” until he eventually ran away from home at age 15.)
“I think that it’s quite poetic that this thing has come that, when we’ve exhausted all of the various ways in which we distract ourselves, has forced us to confront ourselves,” he said.
Seal has stopped watching news about the pandemic. “One thing that has become abundantly clear is that no one knows anything,” he said. “There just isn’t the data at the moment, and there’s a lot of alarmist and sensationalist reporting out there.”
While it is true that a complete picture of the virus’s effects won’t exist until testing is universal, there is still plenty of data to be alarmed about: more than 6.9 million cases worldwide and over 110,000 deaths in the United States alone, with a majority of states already reopening as those numbers continue to rise.
Instead, Seal prefers to work on his music, go cycling, listen to TED Talks, bake potatoes (he uses salt and olive oil) and watch videos on YouTube.
One that stuck with him is “Plandemic: The Hidden Agenda Behind Covid-19,” in which Dr. Judy Mikovits, a discredited scientist, details a conspiracy theory about the coronavirus being a scheme for men like Bill Gates and Dr. Anthony Fauci to gain power and profit. Seal said he “really loved” the 26-minute film.
“They keep pulling it down, which in and of itself tells you everything,” he said of efforts by YouTube and Facebook to halt the video’s widespread circulation. The video was shared by several public figures, including the mixed martial arts fighter Nick Catone and Melissa Ackison, a Republican who unsuccessfully ran for an Ohio Senate seat in April.
Seal has also been watching thousands of people’s Stories and leaving comments, like “I see you,” “I’m watching you” and “peace and love.” It is his way of counteracting what he called “the pandemic of distraction and subsequent disconnection.”
He doesn’t consider himself a celebrity. Still, he understands why his online behavior has excited some people. “When they see people in the public eye joining them in their conversations, and that I’ve taken the time to see them, that can go a long way,” he said. “So if it makes them feel happy then I love that, then I’m happy, too.”
He tries to connect with as many Instagram users as he can, though he said he spends “very little” time on the app — 30 minutes twice a day at most — so he has enlisted the help of “a couple of great girls who do a lot of social media stuff for me,” he said.
‘We Didn’t Want to Be Spammy’
Those “girls” are Sarah Olea, 30, and Malena Lloyd, 29, the founders of Social Light, a branding and marketing agency in Los Angeles. The company’s client list also includes Nancy Cartwright, the voice of Bart Simpson, who was recently named in a BuzzFeed article for watching strangers’ Instagram Stories en masse.
The agency first started working with Seal in September and began applying the Instagram Stories strategy three months ago — a tactic that, according to Ms. Olea, has helped add 24,000 followers to his social media.
“Instagram is always changing, and we didn’t want to be spammy where we were just following and then unfollowing people. We think that’s such a cheesy, old method,” she said. “So what we do is we go in and find other artists that have similar sounds as him, and we go through those different fans and watch their Stories.”
Ms. Olea, who is the C.E.O. of Social Light, said that her team of 10 is responsible for the majority of Seal’s social media activity across platforms, leaving black heart and peace sign emoji in his stead. They flag to him the more heartfelt messages so he can personally respond.
Frequently Asked Questions and Advice
Updated June 5, 2020
How many people have lost their jobs due to coronavirus in the U.S.?
The unemployment rate fell to 13.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on June 5, an unexpected improvement in the nation’s job market as hiring rebounded faster than economists expected. Economists had forecast the unemployment rate to increase to as much as 20 percent, after it hit 14.7 percent in April, which was the highest since the government began keeping official statistics after World War II. But the unemployment rate dipped instead, with employers adding 2.5 million jobs, after more than 20 million jobs were lost in April.
Will protests set off a second viral wave of coronavirus?
Mass protests against police brutality that have brought thousands of people onto the streets in cities across America are raising the specter of new coronavirus outbreaks, prompting political leaders, physicians and public health experts to warn that the crowds could cause a surge in cases. While many political leaders affirmed the right of protesters to express themselves, they urged the demonstrators to wear face masks and maintain social distancing, both to protect themselves and to prevent further community spread of the virus. Some infectious disease experts were reassured by the fact that the protests were held outdoors, saying the open air settings could mitigate the risk of transmission.
How do we start exercising again without hurting ourselves after months of lockdown?
Exercise researchers and physicians have some blunt advice for those of us aiming to return to regular exercise now: Start slowly and then rev up your workouts, also slowly. American adults tended to be about 12 percent less active after the stay-at-home mandates began in March than they were in January. But there are steps you can take to ease your way back into regular exercise safely. First, “start at no more than 50 percent of the exercise you were doing before Covid,” says Dr. Monica Rho, the chief of musculoskeletal medicine at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago. Thread in some preparatory squats, too, she advises. “When you haven’t been exercising, you lose muscle mass.” Expect some muscle twinges after these preliminary, post-lockdown sessions, especially a day or two later. But sudden or increasing pain during exercise is a clarion call to stop and return home.
My state is reopening. Is it safe to go out?
States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people.
What’s the risk of catching coronavirus from a surface?
Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks.
What are the symptoms of coronavirus?
Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days.
How can I protect myself while flying?
If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.)
How do I take my temperature?
Taking one’s temperature to look for signs of fever is not as easy as it sounds, as “normal” temperature numbers can vary, but generally, keep an eye out for a temperature of 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. If you don’t have a thermometer (they can be pricey these days), there are other ways to figure out if you have a fever, or are at risk of Covid-19 complications.
Should I wear a mask?
The C.D.C. has recommended that all Americans wear cloth masks if they go out in public. This is a shift in federal guidance reflecting new concerns that the coronavirus is being spread by infected people who have no symptoms. Until now, the C.D.C., like the W.H.O., has advised that ordinary people don’t need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. Part of the reason was to preserve medical-grade masks for health care workers who desperately need them at a time when they are in continuously short supply. Masks don’t replace hand washing and social distancing.
What should I do if I feel sick?
If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others.
How do I get tested?
If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the C.D.C. recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance — because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance — you won’t be able to get tested.
“Since we’ve been in quarantine, he’s been responding to a lot of DMs and comments,” Ms. Olea said. “He’s inspired by it. We don’t want to make it seem like it is all him and he just sits on his phone all day long, but we also want them to know that he is active.”
Preston Million, the founder and C.E.O. of Influential Management, a digital marketing agency, believes there’s a much simpler explanation for what the singer and his team are up to. He said it sounds like the work of social growth hacking tool called Mass Poller, a subscription service for verified accounts. For $155 a month, the software can watch up to 30,000,000 stories a day on its client’s behalf.
“The reason why influencers and musicians do this is it provides a lot of traffic and visibility for that verified profile,” Mr. Million said. “From the end user’s perspective, they simply see that a celebrity or public figure viewed their story, get excited, go to their profile, and maybe that person is promoting a new song or a new video.” (Ms. Olea said that Seal is planning to release a new album in the near future, his first since 2017.)
The tactic is not one Mr. Million would recommend to his own clientele. “All the networks have been cracking down on abusive behavior, if you will,” he said. “This is just a new method that will soon be patched. People can get their accounts suspended if they do that type of behavior as that’s not what the platform was intended for.”
Ms. Olea insisted her company does not use this type of software. “The problem is they’re not safe. We implement the same strategy, but in a manual format so that Instagram doesn’t flag it because that’s technically against terms and guidelines,” she said, adding: “How would Seal feel if I got his account deleted?”
When software providers have contacted Ms. Olea in the past, she has turned them away; their services, she said, not only defy Instagram’s policies but also make her job much more difficult. She is concerned that as Instagram begins to crack down on automated software, companies like hers could be punished and her celebrity accounts banned.
Mass Poller’s low prices have also forced her to justify the higher cost of Social Light to her clients. According to Ms. Olea, there’s simply no comparison: “It’s like Starbucks over McDonald’s coffee.”
The strategy may be working. Lauren McKenzie, a business analyst from Surprise, Ariz., said that she wasn’t following Seal, “but I noticed him watching one of my Stories and ended up following him after. Then, he would just continuously and randomly pop up along with a chunk of other musicians.”
“My initial reaction was absolute shock, glee and excitement,” she said. “I’m 35. He’s definitely a significant chunk of my childhood and young adulthood. He’s always seemed like the nicest, most chill guy. I’m very honored.”
Others, like Christina Cacouris, a 25-year-old writer and curator in Brooklyn, have been less impressed. “The first time I saw Seal pop up on my Instagram Story was around mid-March,” she said. “I was at the beach and posted a little video of dogs, and he opened it. I thought, weird, but OK.”
“Then it happened again a week later,” she said. “And again a week after that. It’s happened at least seven times now. I refuse to follow him. Even if he is personally watching my Stories, which I don’t believe he is, it’s weirding me out.”
Seal is undeterred by this type of response. As he told his Social Light team: “All P.R. is good P.R.”
