Opinion | Matty Healy’s controversies are part of the appeal
Matty Healy’s faux apology at The 1975’s Hollywood Bowl concert delighted fans and confused the press, proving controversy and authenticity are integral to the band’s success. Photo courtesy of Cassandra Pinkney
By Cassandra Pinkney, junior strategic & corporate communication major
After braving both a Ticketmaster queue and LA traffic to see a concert last weekend, I did not expect a public apology to be part of the night’s performance.
“I think it is important to take inventory of yourself so you become aware when your intentions and your actions don’t align,” said Matty Healy, frontman of English pop band, The 1975, during their sold-out concert at the Hollywood Bowl on Oct. 2.
“I’ve…performed exaggerated versions of myself on other stages, be it in print or on podcasts, in an often misguided attempt at fulfilling the…character role of the 21st century rock star,” Healy said after the fifth song of the night, "Oh Caroline."
He was referencing accusations of racism following comments he made about rapper Ice Spice on “The Adam Friedland Show” in February.
“But there’s nothing wrong with wanting to better yourself, and sometimes, that just requires people who really know what they’re talking about,” Healy said.
Having been in attendance at the concert, I can confirm that the rest of the audience and I were very receptive to this seemingly sincere, albeit unexpected, explanation of the singer’s past behavior.
The tone of the speech and the feelings of the audience, however, shifted when Healy turned toward an onstage camera and began reading cue cards for a satirical advertisement for the online therapy service BetterHelp. Mocking the controversial company's unnatural and widely-criticized influencer marketing tactics, he urged fans to make an appointment using the fake promotional code "Sorry75" before launching into the concert's sixth song, "I'm In Love With You."
Although The 1975 is a popular band worldwide, they have remained out of the spotlight of mainstream American pop culture. Fans of the group are well aware of Healy’s potentially controversial persona, keeping up with the singer’s artistic ramblings and internet trolling through interviews and his recently reactivated @trumanblack Instagram account.
By Cassandra Pinkney, junior strategic & corporate communication major
The band is keenly aware of the reaction their frontman elicits, and they incorporated it into their most recent tours.
During the 2022-23 “At Their Very Best” tour, Healy would begin a seemingly controversial speech (“I don’t think it’s a racist thing to say”) before being cut off by guitarist Adam Hann playing the opening riff of "It's Not Living (If It's Not With You)." Other deliberately shocking moments on that tour and their current “Still…At Their Very Best” tour included Healy kissing audience and band members, simulating masturbation, eating raw meat and singing on a couch while a naked model of himself lay beside him.
The inclusion of these moments during their concerts is calculated, toeing the line between expanding their ever-increasing popularity and paying homage to the fans who have supported the group since their debut in the early 2010s.
Healy creates an authentic environment by earnestly expressing his feelings without conforming to the politically correct speech typical of someone at his level of visibility. Fans feel they are still supporting the same band they have loved for years that hasn’t changed because of their popularity: a group which is unapologetic in their art and unafraid to break the mold of generic pop stardom.
The band has been able to avoid larger consequences in their controversies because the frontman’s off-color statements foster a sense of closeness with their supporters.
It was only after the singer’s brief relationship with fellow musician Taylor Swift this past summer that people who were not fans of The 1975 began to take note of his past behavior. It was this outside scrutiny that led to his remarks on “The Adam Friedland Show” podcast in February resurfacing.
Healy has largely been able to isolate himself from widespread "cancellation" thus far because of the band's long-lasting authenticity with their fanbase. Controversial moments lead to sincere apologies and changed behavior, while the act of apologizing becomes a satirical indictment of the politically correct culture which demanded the apology in the first place. In doing so, The 1975 continues a decade-long trend of maintaining a relationship with their fanbase rooted in self-referential authenticity.
The faux apology at the Oct. 2 concert exemplified this phenomena perfectly, and even though it was performed to an audience of more than 17,000 attendees, it felt like an inside joke between friends.
Relying heavily on Healy's delivery of the speech and the fans' knowledge of the band in order to be understood, the performance was not easily understood by people who were not in attendance. Mainstream media outlets covered the apology in earnest before correcting their coverage to include its satirical delivery. It was difficult to explain the intent of the speech in person, as I experienced with my friends who thought the tour had genuinely been sponsored by BetterHelp after I relayed this story to them.
This rapport is integral to The 1975’s brand. Despite worldwide success, they still feel like a small indie band with connections with individual fans, and it is precisely this culture that insulates Healy from wide-scale scrutiny: the idea that outsiders just wouldn’t understand him the way his fans do.
The 1975’s “Still…At Their Very Best” tour still has a few months left before the group takes an indefinite hiatus from touring. In that time, it can be expected that more allusions to Healy’s controversies will become part of the show and that the artist-fan relationship the band has cultivated over the past decade will remain strong. Seeing The 1975 has been the highlight of my semester, and I can’t wait to see what else the band will come up with to keep making their tour even better.