Matty Healy dismisses podcast controversy: ‘it really doesn’t matter’
The 1975 frontman was accused of racism after an appearance on 'The Adam Friedland Show'
By Joe Goggins
Matty Healy has played down the furore over his appearance on The Adam Friedland Show, saying the controversy “really doesn’t matter.”
The 1975 frontman was addressing the fallout for the first time in the media in an interview with The New Yorker. When he guested on the podcast back in February, he drew sharp online criticism for appearing to laugh along with Friedland and co-host Nick Mullen as they speculated on the racial heritage of the rapper Ice Spice, using mocking Hawaiian, Inuit and Chinese accents. Additionally, Healy was criticised for suggesting that Harry Styles “gets a pass” on what he described as “queer-baiting” behaviour.
Asked in the new interview if he was deliberately trying to get a rise out of his own fans on the podcast, which was a previously called Cum Town, Healy admitted: “A little bit,” he replied. “But it doesn’t actually matter. Nobody is sitting there at night slumped at their computer, and their boyfriend comes over and goes, ‘What’s wrong, darling?’ and they go, ‘It’s just this thing with Matty Healy.’ That doesn’t happen.” “If it does, you’re either deluded or you are, sorry, a liar.”
“You’re either lying that you are hurt, or you’re a bit mental for being hurt,” he continued. “It’s just people going, ‘Oh, there’s a bad thing over there, let me get as close to it as possible so you can see how good I am.’ And I kind of want them to do that, because they’re demonstrating something so base level.”
The comments come at a time of unprecedented scrutiny for Healy as he continues to be romantically linked to Taylor Swift, and after Noel Gallagher last week responded to his plea earlier this year for Oasis to reform by calling Healy a “slack-jawed fuckwit.” He had previously apologised to Ice Spice from the stage at a tour stop in Auckland, New Zealand last month (April 21). “I just feel a bit bad, and I’m kind of a bit sorry if I’ve offended you. Ice Spice, I’m sorry,” he said. “It’s not because I’m annoyed that me joking got misconstrued. It’s because I don’t want Ice Spice to think I’m a dick. I love you, Ice Spice. I’m so sorry.”
“The truth is it’s a bit of a problem because I just want to say, “Hello. This is a bit embarrassing. I’m sorry if I get it wrong. We all get it wrong.” I just have to do it in public and then apologise to Ice Spice. My life’s just a bit weird. I am genuinely sorry if I’ve upset her because I fucking love her.” The 1975 headlined Radio 1’s Big Weekend in Dundee on Saturday (May 27) and play more UK dates in the coming weeks, including a homecoming headline performance at Parklife in Manchester in June and a huge show at London’s Gunnersbury Park in July.