Here's What Matty Healy Feels About 'The Tortured Poets Department' Months After Its Release

According to a close pal of The 1975 frontman Matty Healy, the singer has "mixed feelings" about Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department.

Speaking to Us Weekly, Healy's friend claimed that he "loves the attention" that the album has "brought to him, [but] he also thinks it's hilarious because at no time [were they] ever serious."

The source noted that Healy was "completely blindsided" by how sharp Swift's lyrics were on the album, pointing out the global pop star's allusions to marriage and having children.

Days after the album was released, Entertainment Tonight cornered Healy about his reaction to it and its alleged connection to his short-lived romance with Swift.

"How would you rate your Taylor diss track compared to the 30 others?" the reporter asked, prompting Healy to laugh. "I haven't really listened to that much of it, but I'm sure it's good."

Swifties believe Healy was the subject of Swift's songwriting on some of The Tortured Poets Department's songs - "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived," "Down Bad," "Guilty As Sin?," "But Daddy I Love Him," "The Tortured Poets Department," "Fresh Out of the Summer," "The Black Dog," and "I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)."

Many thought Swift's line, "Gazing at me, starry-eyed / In your Jehovah's Witness suit" in "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived," directly references Healy. The New Yorker described Healy's signature outfit as a "close-cut suit and a tie," which is also the same one famously worn by those members of the religious sect.

Another source revealed to Us Weekly in May 2024 that Healy was bothered by the "renewed" attention the album had caused him.

"Matty's uncomfortable with the renewed attention on his relationship [with Taylor] - especially because he's [with someone] new," the source told the outlet.

Initially, Healy was apprehensive about what Swift might have revealed on the album. However, the source shared that the 1975 vocalist was "overjoyed" with the outcome, creating a narrative arc of tension and relief.

The insider also added that Healy's family was "worried" that the songs from the album would "rip" the singer "apart."

"Matty has struggled with life in the public eye, and he's been doing really well, but the last thing that he needs is for every Swiftie in the world to think he's a villain," the source confirmed.

Tags

Taylor Swift, The 1975