Rina Sawayama, the Japanese-British artiste, made a statement against Matty Healy, her labelmate at Dirty Hit Records, during her set at Glastonbury Festival on Saturday, June 24th. While introducing her song “STFU!” on the festival’s Woodsies stage, Sawayama referenced controversial comments The 1975 frontman has been a part of in recent months and dedicated her song “STFU!” his way. She did not mention Healy by name, but it was clear who she was talking about. In her onstage outcry at Glastonbury, Sawayama was referring to Healy’s appearance on an episode of The Adam Friedland Show in February that has since been removed from Apple and Spotify. The episode had the show’s hosts making racist jokes about rapper Ice Spice sounding like an “Inuit Spice Girl” and a “chubby Chinese lady,” and they mockingly imitated Chinese and Hawaiian accents. Also in the episode, they joked about Healy watching “Ghetto Gaggers” pornography. Healy was formerly a director at Dirty Hit, the record label to which Sawayama and The 1975 are both signed, but in April reportedly stepped down from the position.
Several media outlets widely reported Sawayama’s statement. Her public call-out of Healy has sparked conversation and controversy on social media, with many fans and followers expressing their support for Sawayama and condemning Healy’s past actions.
As of now, Healy has not publicly responded to Sawayama’s comments at Glastonbury Festival.
Matty Healy has been involved in several controversies, including racist and sexist comments, throughout his career. In January 2023, during a concert in Leeds, Healy made a racist comment on stage, which was caught on video. In February 2023, Healy appeared on The Adam Friedland Show, where he and the hosts made racist jokes about rapper Ice Spice. Healy’s comments on the podcast resurfaced and caused controversy, with many fans and followers expressing their disappointment and calling for consequences. Healy has also been accused of being Islamophobic, antisemitic, and sexist.
