Social media has transformed into an integral aspect of electronic dance music’s proliferation, from increased chart ranks and sales to tickets. Yet, no performer sticks exclusively with one form. Facebook is typically for promotions and contests, while Twitter, with its minimalist look and 140-character limitation, offers a series of vignettes into his or her life. Performances, trips, and time spent at the airport often form the brief remarks a DJ or musician makes to his or her fans. Add blogs and websites to the mix, and you’ve got a verifiable online brand.

On the other hand, promotion overlaps between all media. The personality snippets behind each 140-character statement are displaced by links and re-tweets from a manager or label. While this approach is a must for getting music heard and videos seen across both mediums, going too far in this direction makes Twitter superfluous and, frankly, not worth reading.

Even with the success of EDM, many artists’ Twitter accounts become oversaturated with promotion, and the artist’s personality is lost. Yes, we see, perhaps once a week, that he or she is boarding an airplane or decided to enter the studio, but these brief, few and far between statements don’t make an account worth reading. Twitter accounts with these statements are great for journalists and celebrity gossip bloggers, who wade through the dregs to find the next news story, even if the statement is just an ordinary “Back in the studio again!” For the average reader, Twitter is all about personality: the more of it there is, the more worthwhile the 140-character statements are to read.

So, whose Twitter feeds should you read and why?

Clarity

The internet, as a medium, degrades communication skills practically by default, and dance music DJs aren’t exempt. Want a full-on grammar assault? Read a Deadmau5 blog post. As a low bar for separating the good from the bad, there’s clarity, and certain DJs are better at coherently expressing themselves than others. Avicii, for instance, isn’t as must of a regular updater, but you’ll know where in the world he is and what he’s doing. Madeon delves into his own thoughts, be it the music he’s listening to or his own songwriting process. Mat Zo, even with the occasional link, talks in length, within the limitations of the medium, about everything from politics to his own sounds.

Life Goes On The Internet

Going into depth about your life, on the internet, is frowned upon for the average individual; after all, what happens if a job recruiter sees? For stars, the professional façade falls down through social media. Although many DJs stick with where they are and what they’re doing, others describe more of their daily activities. Hardwell and Brennan Heart describe their respective times in the studio, while Markus Schulz, going beyond the self-congratulatory “It was awesome! Thank you guys!” post, shares his feelings before and after gigs.

Kaskade, although touching on his gear and gigs, muses about the mundane while taking questions from fans, and few moments are off limits for Porter Robinson, even going to the eye doctor, TyDi, and Nero, who apparently enjoy video games as much as you do.

Everyone Has an Opinion, But Some Are Better Than Others

If there’s a quintessential social media account for EDM, it’s Deadmau5, from controversial opinions to bizarre instagram photos. But, while this DJ can stir up an online maelstrom, others are opinionated about the ordinary: Dada Life gripes about American Airlines’ music choices, while Wolfgang Gartner oscillates between re-tweetable musings about the music industry and statements that can’t be put in print.

Zedd is like a less shameless Gartner, while Dirty South and Diplo base their opinions and observations on wherever they are in the world.

I’m Not Alone

Along with a lack of coherency is the proliferation of anything random online, and Twitter is no exception. While promoting Swedish House Mafia still, Steve Angello doesn’t exist solely as an island in the ocean of the music industry, and neither does Calvin Harris. Although their recent tunes may be dismissed as saccharine treacle, these two interact, touching on their collaborators or talking with other celebrities. Harris, particularly, seems the most prone into a Twitter feud, and as it already happened with Lady Gaga, his account might be the one to watch for such an online catfight.