To flourish in 2018, you need to follow these Twitter accounts

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Certain celebrities are known to have very active and entertaining Twitter accounts.

Celebrities like Questlove and Chance the Rapper come to mind. But there are other well-known public figures out there with interesting feeds that are worth a follow.

Here are five that will get your 2018 off to a great start:

Anita Baker

It’s quite possible some Anita Baker classic was playing in the background on Saturday mornings (aka Universal Black Household Cleaning Day) while you made that kitchen floor shine. With hits like “Angel” and “Sweet Love,” Baker’s voice is instantly recognizable.

The  R&B songbird might not be the first person who comes to mind when you think of people to follow on Twitter, but she is surprisingly good at navigating the millennial social media platform. Baker, Andre 3000’s muse, is an avid sports fan who in the past has offered up knowledgeable play-by-play analysis about her beloved Detroit Lions (She stands with Kap these days) and she’s known to throw in some music industry pearls of wisdom every now and then.

Baker interacts with fans quite a bit and typically has a greeting of good wishes each morning. She hasn’t quite mastered cellphone photography which is rather endearing and makes for the occasional blurry or off-kilter photo. It’s kinda like following your auntie if your auntie had eight Grammys.

Soledad O’Brien

Soledad O’Brien–CEO of Starfish Media, Matter of Fact host, and contributor to numerous programs such as the PBS NewsHour and HBO’s Real Sports—is a media pro with more than 25 years of experience, 10 of which was at CNN. It’s no surprise that a journalist has a way with words, but what is interesting is how much more of O’Brien’s personality fans get to see on her Twitter feed.

She’s still on point and full of facts like the public is used to, but she does not suffer fools. Come to O’Brien’s Twitter feed with some foolishness and she just might have time to set you straight. She’s not mean about it, but there is no question that she can shut someone down. She even uses the polite shade “Bless your heart.”

Don Cheadle

https://twitter.com/DonCheadle/status/946449324141027329

Don Cheadle can take a joke. That much is evident from his interactions with followers who throw barbs at this career on Twitter. His responses to that alone make him worth a follow. Did these people not see Hotel Rwanda? Cheadle is the truth. Other than self-deprecating humor, Cheadle also has humorous interactions with his celebrity buddies. There’s a #GumboWar afoot that has garnered a lot of smack talk among the more culinary inclined celebs. Cheadle also uses his Twitter account to talk about politics and lambast Trump’s shenanigans.

Wendell Pierce

For diehard fans of The Wire, Wendell Pierce will always be cigar-chomping Bunk. The New Orleans native has a long and diverse list of acting credits (Remember him in Waiting to Exhale?) and his Twitter is just as flavorful. Like Don Cheadle, he is thoroughly invested in the #GumboWars as any NOLA resident should be. If you don’t like the Saints, do not go to Pierce’s Twitter page. Probably about every fourth tweet on average is about the Saints. Pierce also talks about his numerous economic development endeavors that are ongoing in New Orleans, Richmond, and his adopted TV home Baltimore. He speaks candidly about politics and he also is generous with sharing theater, music, movie, and television recommendations. It’s quite possible Pierce will put you on to something you love.

Ava DuVernay

https://twitter.com/ava/status/941352286999085056

https://twitter.com/ava/status/937735484750434305

Critically-acclaimed, award-winning director Ava DuVernay is a fun and informative follow on Twitter.

When Queen Sugar is on, she is known to retweet fans and interact with them. She even does an #AskAva thread from time to time to answer questions. Much of her feed is dedicated to celebrating the work of other artists and highlighting current and historical achievements. She is alsobrimming with words of wisdom about the TV and film industry and the forward movement of women in general. Like her Hollywood peers, DuVernay kept help but to tweet about Trump and his administration’s policies that disproportionately impact vulnerable populations.

Follow Demetria Irwin on Twitter @Love_Is_Dope and connect with her on Facebook.