Matty Healy has spoken out about his public row with Azealia Banks, telling fans: “I really let myself down”.
- READ MORE: The NME Big Read – The 1975: “I’d rather be a pretend supervillain than some pretend hero”
The 1975 frontman entered into an X spat with Banks yesterday (December 4), after she criticised his friend and collaborator Charli XCX.
Re-sharing a clip of the video for Charli’s 2014 song ‘Break The Rules’, Banks wrote: “Charli used to be soooo pretty. Ugh.”
Healy quickly came to the ‘365’ singer’s defence, writing: “Azealia you seem to have a blind spot when it comes to your ‘reads’. All the women you attack seem to be culturally relevant, attractive, divisive and NICE people.” He then added that Banks is “jealous”, saying: “You’re so talented but everything else about you is a failure. Just rap bro.”
The feud then escalated quickly, with Banks saying: “The bitch look[s] like Frankenstein to me. You both look like you share needles. Lmao.”
Charli used to be soooo pretty. Ugh. Boaaa, I swear them weho gays be having the girls questioning themselves meanwhile they all scraping k off a cookie sheet, eating cold bossanova and sharing panties. Tuh. https://t.co/JeI5qSw33i
— Azealia Banks (@azealiaslacewig) December 3, 2024
In a since-deleted tweet, Healy then replied: “Talk to me like that I’m not gonna side eye you at an awards do I’m going to fucking slap you so hard I’ll get a Guinness world record for the highest a rat some bitch calls a wig has ever flown.”
The musician soon apologised for “saying I’m gonna hit a girl” and called his comment “insane”. Healy added: “You just can’t keep being so mean about my mates and my mrs it’s really hurtful gets me well defensive.”
Then, earlier today (December 5), Banks threatened to sue Healy over his threat of physical violence, adding: “Fuck your mates honestly. This is like the third time you’ve come out of your face spewing violence specifically towards black women. Brutalized porn, Ice Spice, now you’re threatening to slap me and think a small apology will suffice.”
Now, Healy has taken to The 1975’s Reddit page to acknowledge the row, writing: “What a bad day, I really let myself down,” on the band’s verified account.
“I have worked so hard to move past these impulsive self destructive and honestly quite volatile outbursts I have,” he added. “I’m constantly making trouble for myself for no reason, I come back to social media after depressive episodes (which is NOT an excuse) because I often become sober, so as an addict when I’m not using I pick up social media my new way of ‘consuming’ and changing how I feel.
Love you guys
byu/TrumanBlackOG inthe1975
“I just feel dreadful about how I acted violent – I think Azealia and all obvious flawed people all deep down have a heart and I hate that I have contributed to her mental fragility. She’s a human. This cultural discourse has become so violent in general. I don’t wanna act like I regret who I am or who have been. But Tbh at this point I feel gross even having said anything negative ever about anything – if it’s contributed to this culture”
He went on to say: “I’m not here saying this cos I feel bullied and scared. I’m embarrassed man. And I’m sad. And I want this 1975 world to be dreamy and wonderful again. Not some black mirror episode about being a fucking hipster. I hope to put as much work into our need and desire for altruism and understanding and love as I have about the dangers of becoming an internet lunatic. Cos that happened to me and it’s was real but it’s time to move on as an artist. Sending you all love.”
Banks’s comment referred to Healy’s controversial appearance on The Adam Friedland Show last year. Friedland and co-host Nick Mullen discussed Ice Spice’s heritage, debating whether she has Hawaiian, Inuit or Chinese, before impersonating the accents of those countries and regions. Healy did not participate in the mocking of accents, but he did laugh along with the hosts. The episode has since been removed.
Healy later apologised before Ice Spice said she “didn’t really care” about the remarks, and explained that there was no bad blood. “He apologised to me a bunch of times,” she said. “We’re good.”
Banks has since doubled down on her comments about Charli’s physical appearance, writing: “I said what the fuck I said. Charli has horrible fucking plastic surgery. Period. Do something.”
She then reiterated that “Matt Healy is getting sued” and said “Charli XCX is still botched”, adding: “Now fucking what?”
Because I’m suing him. Ahora. Having something to say is one thing but threatening me with physical violence is where the line gets drawn. Threatened to slap me twice, dox me, called me ugly. I haven’t slept all night I am very stressed https://t.co/bmJ2cF7Xq3
— Azealia Banks (@azealiaslacewig) December 4, 2024
Banks also addressed The 1975 being sued for $2.4million by Good Vibes Festival, mentioned Healy’s past heroin addiction, and criticised the Manchester band for “writing shitty songs”.
Elsewhere, the rapper hit out at Healy and his fiancée Gabbriette Bechtel – who is also a friend of Charli’s, and stars in her ‘360’ video – by posting an image of the couple together. “Looking like Aids and tetanus,” Banks wrote.
According to Pop Crave, Healy shared a statement about the feud and his decision to step back from social media again. “Guys I don’t have the right kind of intelligence / emotional maturity etc for social media,” he said.
“I literally just end up saying stuff that immediately regret etc. I’m actually just gonna stick to music cos I’m good at that. Having manic episodes on Twitter at 35 is kinda pathetic.”
He has not commented on Banks’ claim that she is going to take legal action, at the time of writing.
Charli XCX is engaged to Healy’s 1975 bandmate George Daniel – the latter of whom earned co-writing and production credits on his fiancé’s latest album, ‘Brat’. He is credited on ‘Club Classics’ – where Charli declares “I wanna dance with George” – and the viral hit ‘Apple’ (Daniel recently did the viral dance to the latter song at the ‘Brat’ tour).
Healy and Daniel also created a 1975 re-working of Charli’s track ‘I Might Say Something Stupid’ for her new ‘Brat’ remix album. During an interview in October, the pop star said Healy was “like [her] brother now”.
“I have an endless amount of respect for him as a songwriter and him as a person,” she continued. “But I sometimes want to strangle him.”
In other news, Charli XCX has shared her top artists and songs of 2024 via Spotify Wrapped, looked back on her debut mixtape she made as a teenager and expressed her excitement over the new Sky Ferreira song.
She has not yet commented on Azealia Banks’ remarks about her.
