The 1975’s front man, Matty Healy, has been the center of controversy since the beginning of their career. Whether it’s not crediting photographers, using the f-slur in songs or tweeting that there is a connection between ISIS and Muslims, he has been in it all.

In 2020, Healy posted a tweet that led him to deactivate his Twitter and disappear from social media until 2022. The tweet in question came out after the death of George Floyd. Healy wrote, “If you truly believe that ‘ALL LIVES MATTER’ you need to stop facilitating the end of black ones.” He followed this tweet with a link to their song “Love It If We Made It.” The song’s lyrics consist of talk about racism and police brutality. Many fans saw it as a chance for Healy to promote his music. Although Healy has claimed to have learned from his mistakes, he remains true to himself regardless of public opinion.

He returned in 2022 to promote their new upcoming album, “Being Funny in a Foreign Language,” and their upcoming tour titled, “The 1975 at Their Very Best.”

I have been a fan of The 1975 since the release of their first album in 2013. I was a fan of Tumblr and an active Twitter user, and I started to see an influx of posts about The 1975. People were obsessing over this new band. The ethereal tones and beautifully mastered lyrics got me hooked. I could relate to the deep undertones of feeling hurt but also loved in their music. Being a fan for 10 years has not been easy, considering Matty Healy likes to make it difficult to support him.

I was lucky enough to purchase tickets to their December 2022 show in Pittsburgh. The set was amazing, and the performance was amazing. The set was designed like a house consisting of furniture, TVs and functional doors. The band utilized this set in an extravagant way by climbing onto the roof of the makeshift house, climbing into the TVs onstage and entering through the doors to introduce new songs.

A girl in the front row of the pit had a sign saying that she wanted Matty Healy to kiss her, and he did. This wasn’t uncommon at a 1975 show. Matty Healy has been kissing fans since 2014. The only difference is that Healy has grown from a charismatic, witty 23-year-old to a 33-year-old man.

I have always found it strange when artists and band members start kissing their fans, but this isn’t a rare occurrence. Artists like Katy Perry, Drake and Billy Armstrong from Green Day are just a few who have gotten intimate with fans onstage.

I’m not making excuses for Matty Healy’s behavior before 2022, but shouldn’t he have learned that as a 33-year-old man you could be influencing your fans? People idolize celebrities and will essentially do anything for them. Blindly following these celebrities can put you in a situation to be taken advantage of, and these girls could have fallen victim to that. Matty Healy knows his influence and uses it to get these girls to do anything for him.

What difference does it make if he’s checking IDs before planting a kiss on his adoring fans?

At the show in Kentucky, he even brought a girl onstage to get a tattoo. He originally invited her onstage to draw her next tattoo for her. He then pulled a tattoo artist from backstage and the artist tattooed the signature square that is featured on their first two albums onto the back of her arm.

Although he received praise during his tour, he also came under fire on Twitter for these instances, but I don’t see him changing anytime soon. For an artist who shows his maturity in his songwriting, he shows a lack of maturity in person.

The 1975 started their UK and Ireland leg of their tour on January 8. Maybe this leg of the tour will be different, but we’ll see if any other girls get tattooed in the new year. Maybe 2023 is when Healy will be at his very best.

Chloe Wilson-Henline is an opinion writer. Contact her [email protected].