What’s Being Said and What’s True: Is Matty Healy Really That Bad?
Racist. Islamaphobe. Misogynist. Abuser. These are all the words that have been carelessly thrown around on Twitter this past month to describe rockstar, The 1975 frontman, Matty Healy. Such strong language begs the question, is he really any of those things? If you ask Swifities, the answer would be yes. But in the age of cancellation, reactive performative activism, and political correctness, how much can you trust what’s being shared over and over online, much less on Twitter? In the case of Matty Healy, not at all.
The onslaught of hateful comments began in early May when the UK tabloid The Sun broke the news of Swift and Healy dating. Initially, many fans dismissed the news because of the source, and stated that Taylor would never date a “racist” and called him “ugly”. A small faction of Swifties and 1975 fans however were excited at the possibility due to the pair’s long-standing friendship and prior rumored relationship in 2014 as well as their many shared friends including Jack Antonoff, Phoebe Bridgers, and many more of Swift’s inner circle.
Three days later, Healy was spotted for the first time at Swift’s Eras tour. He was seen in the VIP tent next to close friends of Swift’s such as Gigi Hadid. Photos of him that night paint a picture of someone very in love.
The reactions from fans were mixed, to say the least, and perhaps brought the clearest divide in the fandoms, with many people declaring their love for the pairing and dubbing themselves “Maylor’s”, a combination of Matty and Taylor’s first names. But for all the love they got, they got even more hate. Some fans of The 1975 disapproved of Matty’s attachment to Swift and feared she was going to “change” him or “control” him, and many viewed her as “stealing” him from them. The worst of it came from her own fans. Die-hard fans of Swift began to turn on her, calling for her to speak up about her boyfriend and his so-called “misdeeds”. They even went so far as to demand that she apologizes for dating him. One Twitter user wrote an open letter, attempting to hold Taylor “accountable” and started the hashtag “SpeakUpNow” to go along. Neither Swift nor her team have commented on this. This is the letter.
In this age of modern technology and lives lived mostly online, we need to remember not to believe everything we read without research. Taylor Swift is an exceptional young woman who has overcome every hurdle thrown her way and come out stronger for it. She has been an outspoken voice in support of minorities and people of all backgrounds in ways that many so-called “liberal celebrities” simply are not. It is reprehensible to allow Twitter threads to cause you so much anger that you spread vile libel and send death threats in the name of “activism”.
As this situation has grown and reached multiple major tabloid outlets, it’s time we look into what’s being said and what’s actually true.
The most repeated accusation they have against Healy is that he is a racist. Their proof? Healy’s alleged comments on a podcast hosted by troll Adam Friedland and a song Healy wrote about “observing the volatile aspects of modern society and responding with a sentiment of hope and positivity”.
Swifties allege that on Friedland’s podcast, Healy spoke about enjoying a specific type of porn in which POC women participate in overly rough sexual acts with white men and also allegedly made comments on Ice Spice’s appearance. However, if you listen to the podcast you can tell the one saying the things and bringing up the topics is Friedland, an American who can clearly be differentiated from Healy’s British accent. He also did a profile interview with Jia Tortellini for the New Yorker in which he says that those comments were made by the host. Healy did admit to chuckling at the comments, but I think we can all agree ill-advised behavior is not comparable to hateful systemic bigotry. He also issued an apology to Ice Spice on stage during his concert in New Zealand. This has not stopped the hate, however, with many dismissing this or refusing to hear it at all.
The song and performance that they point to as further proof of racism is his 2018 hit “Love It If We Made It” in which he says:
“I moved on her like a bitch”, excited to be indicted
Unrequited house with seven pools, “Thank you, Kanye, very cool”
The war has been incited, and guess what? You’re all invited
And you’re famous, modernity has failed us
He also does a military salute with his left arm in his performance on stage. This combined with the lyrics “Thank you, Kanye, very cool” enraged fans and caused them to call Healy a Nazi and an anti-Semite. Neither of these things is true as the lyrics are a quote from liable rapist Donald Trump and are being used for commentary in line with the rest of the song's lyrics, not an agreement on Healy’s part. The salute is not a nazi salute nor is it intended to be. Healy on the beginnings of making the song:
“Ed went to pick up the tabloid newspapers on the way into the office so I could eventually, after a year, have every single tabloid headline and write a song about that. The sad thing is that using the actual things that were written, was just becoming too slapstick and funny.”
He has also received backlash for his comments on religion, earning himself the label of “Islamaphobe” for stating that he believes he should be able to be offended by religion just as they are offended by him. It’s clear there’s no basis for these accusations as he is not hateful towards Muslims or those of Arab descent, but questioning the religion itself and by extension all religions. It should also be said that Healy keeps company with people of many different backgrounds and close Jewish friend and producer Jack Antonoff has said this about him:
“I think Matty is a deeply sincere person, who can, at different points, be misunderstood because of how much he enjoys a bit, if you don’t know him, if you don’t get him, because you’re not really tuned in to the work, you might assume a cynicism that is literally not there.”
Multiple Twitter accounts have also accused him of abusing his ex-girlfriend FKA Twigs. It should be said that they have no proof of this and are basing it solely on the above accusations. FKA Twigs was a victim of abuse at the hands of her ex-boyfriend Shia Labouef and it is an extreme disservice to her pain and Healy’s reputation to spread unsubstantiated lies.
Recently Azaelia Banks posted to her Instagram story mocking Healy’s addiction and warning Swift away from being intimate with him. She is not the first to say these things. These accusations and “warnings” are disgusting and inhumane. Matty Healy has been clean of his addiction for five years. Taylor Swift spoke about how difficult it is to struggle with mental health or addiction when her song this is me trying was released. Our society as a whole needs to do serious self-reflection on the treatment of addicts and those in crisis.
None of this however has dulled Healy and Swift’s shine. Healy showed up to multiple nights of her Era’s tour and was spotted several times with her at the Electric Lady Recording Studios near Swift’s apartment, as well as a secret sighting at a private club. Neither has made official comments on the situation; however Swift told her fans in Gilette Stadium that, “I’ve just never been this happy in my life in all aspects of my life ever”, and several publications suspected of having links to Taylor’s publicist Tree Paine have posted glowing articles about the couple's relationship, spotting them kissing, potentially moving in, holding hands, etc. Many close to the pair say they see this as “the real thing”. Given their long history, you can see why.
