LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Rapper Azealia Banks targeted Taylor Swift's boyfriend Matty Healy with scathing remarks in a series of social media posts on Tuesday. Banks, known for her outspoken nature, shared text posts and voice messages mocking the frontman of The 1975 and expressing disdain for his band's music.
Banks' tirade seemed to be in response to Healy's previous controversial racist comments about rapper Ice Spice during an appearance on 'The Adam Friedland Podcast' in February. Banks also shared a photo of Healy on stage alongside a headline about his on-stage apology.
Azealia Banks launches personal attacks on Matty Healy
Disregarding The 1975's commercial success with their last four albums ranking in the top 10 on the Billboard 200 album charts, Banks wrote, "Does Matt Healy know that no one actually thinks the 1975 makes good music?" She continued by suggesting that he was a "lame poser with a trash cliche band name" and insinuated that he was envious of her success as a black female artist. Banks added, "Black women are more coveted todays industry because there's BIG BUSINESS in female rap [sic]. He is so obviously weak in the knees, thin-jawed and drug addicted that it's easy to catch his crusty a** lackin."
She made derogatory remarks about Healy's appearance and accused him of embodying the stereotype of a "small white opinionated male musician." However, she claimed that only Ariel Pink, who attended a pro-Trump rally, could get away with such behavior. Additionally, Banks alleged that The 1975's sound was derivative of bands like The Academy Is... and Death From Above 1979. She concluded her scathing post by praising Ice Spice for having "MILES more originality than you will ever." "The 1975 is on nobody's radar babe," Banks added, before claiming only "fat emo teenagers" would listen to Healy's music.
Matty Healy's past comments resurface
In a separate post, she simply wrote, "Matt Healy is one shared needle away from tetanus," and labeled him a "fake-a** Pete Doherty." Through an audio post, Banks asserted her authority as a "really big music connoisseur," recounting her initial impression of The 1975's name as cliche and their music as manufactured. She concluded that her lack of knowledge about the band's music was indicative of its quality and popularity. However, Banks didn't stop there.
Using another offensive sexual term, she made inappropriate comments about Taylor Swift and suggested that Swift should consider dating James Mercer, the leader of the indie rock band The Shins. Banks linked Mercer to Healy based on their shared presence in the indie rock genre. Banks' remarks echo the sentiments expressed by some of Swift's fans, who have criticized Healy for his past offensive statements. Healy faced backlash earlier this year for his comments on 'The Adam Friedland Show', where he made insensitive remarks about Ice Spice's heritage and engaged in derogatory impersonations. These comments resurfaced when Healy started dating Swift and began attending her concerts.
'I love you, Ice Spice'
After facing widespread condemnation, Healy apologized for his comments about Ice Spice during a concert in New Zealand. The musician told the crowd, as reported by Rolling Stone, that he "makes a joke out of everything" and "can take it too far sometimes in front of too many people. Ice Spice, I'm sorry. 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 d***. I love you, Ice Spice. I'm so sorry," he said.
The resurfacing of the podcast clip led to renewed calls from some of Taylor Swift's fans to end her relationship with Healy. They questioned how Swift could be unaware of his problematic behavior, considering their decade-long acquaintance. This controversy follows Healy's deactivation of his Twitter account in 2020 after posting a tweet that read, "If you truly believe that 'ALL LIVES MATTER' you need to stop facilitating the end of black ones," along with a link to his track 'Love It If We Made It'. Fans criticized him for exploiting George Floyd's death for self-promotion.
