Music · Updated
Instagram Accounts Surging in Public Attention (September 16, 2026)
The short answer
Tom Pelphrey, the actor, is the Instagram account surging most in public attention right now — drawing 291,570 Wikipedia pageviews on September 15, 2026, about 75.1× its usual daily traffic, and holding 4.7K Instagram followers (@tom.pelphrey) as measured by Lurk's live follow-graph on September 16, 2026. Michael J. Fox and Sally Field follow on this ranking of the fastest-rising public Instagram accounts.
Some Instagram accounts are surging in public attention right now. Lurk's trend engine detects the spike from public search-interest and encyclopedia-traffic signals, confirms each entity has a verified public Instagram handle, and then reports the live follower count measured on Lurk's own follow-graph. The table below ranks them with exact, sourced figures.
Instagram accounts surging fastest in public attention
| # | Player | Country | Before | After | Followers gained |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom Pelphrey★ | Actor · @tom.pelphrey | — | 4.7K | — |
| 2 | Michael J. Fox | Film actor · @realmikejfox | — | 2.7M | — |
| 3 | Sally Field | Film director · @sallyfield | — | 265K | — |
| 4 | Sydney Sweeney | Film actor · @sydney_sweeney | 25.8M | 25.8M | ±0 |
| 5 | Macklemore | Rapper · @macklemore | 6.4M | 6.4M | ±0 |
| 6 | Mariska Hargitay | Film actor · @therealmariskahargitay | — | 3.9M | — |
| 7 | Kaley Cuoco | Actor · @kaleycuoco | — | 7.9M | — |
| 8 | Colorado Rockies | Major League Baseball franchise in Denver, Colorado, United States · @rockies | — | 599.3K | — |
How we compiled this
Candidates were detected from two public attention signals: the Wikimedia Pageviews API (each entity's September 15, 2026 article views compared against its own trailing 28-day average to compute a spike z-score) and the Google Trends realtime feed for the United States. Each candidate was resolved on Wikidata and kept only if it has a verified public Instagram username (property P2003), which proves the account exists. Follower counts are the live public figures returned by Lurk's own follow-graph API for each verified handle, measured on September 16, 2026. Where a "before" number is shown, it is an earlier follower reading Lurk recorded for that same account (measured window shown in the notes); where only one reading exists, the change is left as "—" rather than estimated. Follower counts move fast during a viral surge, so figures reflect the moment of measurement and are rounded to the precision shown. Only public, newsworthy data is used — no private-account data.
Cite this
“Instagram Accounts Surging in Public Attention (September 16, 2026)”, Lurk Trend Desk, September 16, 2026. Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 with attribution to getlurk.app.
Sources
- Wikimedia Pageviews API — daily top articles and per-article trends (en.wikipedia)
- Google Trends — realtime trending searches (United States)
- Wikidata — Instagram username property (P2003)
- MLB.com — Padres win 8th straight, maintain lead over Arizona in Wild Card chase
Frequently asked questions
Which Instagram account is surging the most in public attention right now?
Tom Pelphrey (@tom.pelphrey), a actor, is surging the most — drawing 291,570 Wikipedia pageviews on September 15, 2026, about 75.1× its usual daily traffic. Lurk measured 4.7K Instagram followers on the account on September 16, 2026.
How many Instagram followers does Tom Pelphrey have?
Lurk's live follow-graph measured @tom.pelphrey at 4,745 followers on September 16, 2026. Follower counts change constantly during a viral surge, so the exact number moves minute to minute.
How does Lurk detect trending Instagram accounts?
Lurk watches public attention signals — Wikimedia pageview spikes and Google Trends search surges — then confirms each rising name has a verified public Instagram handle on Wikidata before reporting its live follower count. No private data is used.
How can I see who these accounts recently followed on Instagram?
You can track any public Instagram account's following list with Lurk, which shows who an account recently followed — anonymously and without logging in. It reads only public data, so the account owner is never notified.
Related
- The Lurk Instagram Follow Index — live aggregate data
- All Lurk trend reports
- Best apps to see who someone recently followed
Curious who someone’s really following? Type any @ below
Instagram never tells them their following list was viewed.
See who anyone really follows on Instagram
Lurk tracks public Instagram accounts and shows who they recently followed — anonymously, with no login.
Try Lurk free