Rebellion is often a form of expression that ensnares the attention of mass groups of youth because it is often seen as a way to escape and to be cool. The 1975 (Matthew Healy in particular) use their rebellious attitude and mode of dress to influence large audiences into understanding where they are coming from and why. By writing songs that are filled with real life struggles caused by divorced parents, sex, drugs, and alcohol, and by dressing, acting, and singing in a way that is heavily influenced by the early 1980’s to early 1990’s style, Matty Healy is seen as a youth rebel writer of the 21st century.
The 1975 is an English band from Manchester composed of four male band members: Matthew ‘Matty’ Healy (vocals and guitar), Ross MacDonald (bass guitar), Adam Hann (guitar), and George Daniel (drums). Unlike many youth rebel leaders, Matty Healy actually came from a middle class, successful family (Hann). His parents were British actors and split in 2012 when The 1975 was finally receiving large gigs. This is where the song “Is There Somebody Who Can Watch You?” came from; it was written to explain the feelings Matty was experiencing due to his parents’ split and feeling like he had no home (Hann). One lyric in The 1975’s song “Is There Somebody Who Can Watch You?” says, “I preferred it before// We should ring dad more// Lost our house// Hold me close”. This experience changed his view on his life because he now felt that he had nowhere to return to. His lyrics also give off the feel of being lonely and feeling guilty about his parents’ divorce, as though it were his fault, or he could have done something different. This relates to many young people in today’s culture because of the commonality of divorce within families, and the feelings created by divorce. Teens, especially, blame themselves for their parents’ divorces, which lead to them feeling isolated and lonely. This is what Matt focused on because music helped to make him feel “real” and less “alienated from the world”, which are both common themes in youth rebel writing (Trendell). This is just one example of a song that was taken from Matt’s personal life that is filled with impactful lyrics and raw pain.
Another example of rebellious writing in The 1975’s album, The 1975, deal with more common struggles faced by inner-city teens: drugs, sex, and alcohol. Although, the most prominent factor for The 1975’s songs is drug addiction. Matt’s addiction to drugs and alcohol started at a young age due to his feelings of alienation caused by some of his father’s friends’ comments about a Michael Jackson video when Matt was around the age of 6 (Trendell). When asked about drugs in the GIGWISE interview, Matt said, “I wasn't a heroin addict – I never lost it to heroin – but I was a coke addict big-time. I was 18. I dabbled in everything. I wanted to be Jack Kerouac. I thought I was as decadent as all of that. I thought: the world will catch up...” (Trendell). The drugs served to separate Healy from the alienation he was feeling at home. Alcohol and drugs became a way of life to Matt due to his mother, Denise Welch, who was known for struggling with depression, drug addiction, and alcoholism (Middlehurst). The songs “Chocolate”, “The City”, and “M.O.N.E.Y.” all portray Matt’s struggle with alcohol, sex, and drug addiction with catchy lyrics that stick in the heads of listeners.
The song “Chocolate” from the album The 1975 created a large stir in the music industry in 2013. The music video for “Chocolate” has over 3.8 million views on YouTube, and the song was No. 39 on Billboard’s Alternative Chart (Hampp). Although the song is catchy, the lyrics are deep and meaningful to Matty because of his history with drug abuse. In “Chocolate”, Matt sings the lyrics, “’Now, you’re never gonna quit it (x3)// If you don’t stop smoking it’, that’s what she said...// Oh, my hair smells like chocolate”. In an interview with Bang Tidy Music, Matt explains that ‘chocolate’ is referencing drug use, namely weed, and the relationship between the kids doing illegal things (drugs and drinking) and the police (Castellani). Drugs were seen as something to do to kill the boredom, much like they are now. This is another way that The 1975’s lyrics connect with the modern generation. Weed is a fairly common drug in the teen community now, and the police are seen as bored enforcers trying to kill youth fun, which is exactly what Healy sings about in “Chocolate”.
“The City” and “M.O.N.E.Y.” have their fair share of drug references, but they are also prime examples of sex. For example in “The City”, one verse says, “Don’t call it a fight when you know it’s a war.// With nothing but your t-shirt on.// And go sit on the bed ‘cause I know that you want to.// You got pretty eyes, but I know you’re wrong.”. This song illustrates Matt’s use of women as objects. He used the woman within the song as he saw fit. Within the same song, Matt sings, “If you wanna find love then you know where the city is”. Matt doesn’t see the sexual encounters with woman as love; he sees ‘love’ as the corruption within the city. The lifestyle of nonstop partying and experimenting with everything created a basis for all of his songs.
In “M.O.N.E.Y.”, Matt uses catchy lyrics to help people understand the struggle of needing affection due to the corruption of his life through drugs, money, sex, and alcohol. One verse starts with, “Tabs with unlimited 0’s// New clothes// Bloody nose// Powders and walking back home// Has he got enough weed? No// Broken phone// Retching on the floor alone”. This verse speaks to the amount of money wasted on drugs, sex, and alcohol, the loneliness that money cannot take away, and the overall theme of not being good enough. The lonely man in the song wants unlimited money to keep the women with him, but once he is out of money, he is home alone and throwing up alone. The last verse really resonates a lonely feel, which draws in audiences who can relate to his feelings of loneliness and doing anything to get rid of it. Another section of lyrics is, “He doesn’t like it when the girls go// Has he got enough money to spend?”. This section ties into the theme of not being able to dull the loneliness because the girls only come around when money is involved, but the man does not have enough money to keep them any longer. Although drugs, alcohol, and sex have been common youth rebel writing topics within music, Matt Healy plays on the idea of the loneliness and inadequacy caused by drugs, sex, and alcohol.
Although the album, The 1975, was well received by audiences selling over 100,000 copies over a two day period according to NME, the album only received a 2 out of 5 star rating from The Rolling Stone magazine due to “enunciation” issues and the need for an “editor” (Ganz). Even with this harsh rating, the band was asked to support the Rolling Stones’ English tour over the summer of 2013 (McCormick). The rating also caused a huge stir and backlash by fans. The Guardian gave the same album a 4 out of 5 star rating (Hann). The rating from The Guardian was received by fans positively. According to another album review, The 1975 is seen as a “media darling” (“Album Review”). This is due to Matt’s charming personality and likeability. Another reason people are attracted to the album as a whole is due to the songs being “reflections of [Matty] and what he’s done, even when he’s painted in the most unflattering light, as cruel or uncaring or apathetic” (Hann). Matt tries to tell the truth through his songs. In another interview with Bang Tidy Music, Matt explains that his songs are a way to “finally get the truth out there and off [his] chest” (Castellani). This blatant honesty attracts audiences from the younger generations with understanding lyrics and soothing melodies.
Another way The 1975 rebels as a whole is through appearance. Matt is always seen with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth, 1980’s clothes inspired by his favorite movies by John Hughes, unruly hair, tattoos, and piercings (Hann). When browsing sites like Tumblr, Matty is worshiped as a perfect bad boy type with a kind soul. Although when asked about social media, Matt said they try the “less is more” approach (“The 1975 Interview”). This could be caused by Healy’s love of 1980’s movies, which follow an understated beauty approach to everything. Another way that The 1975 ties in the ‘80’s rocker chic look is by filming all of their music videos in black and white with a story line filled with “the usual young adult angst and hormones” which were common in Jack Hughes’ films (“Album Review”). Matt’s open fascination with the rebels in John Hughes’ films causes many of the seemingly coincidental appearances. The teen to early twenties generation still have a fascination with these films and the dark, sexualized appearance of The 1975. Matt also attracts male and female attention because although he is not bisexual or gay, he likes attention from all genders, which ties back to his previous comments about feeling alone. In his interview with The Guardian, Matt explained his feelings more clearly about his need for attention and love:
I feel like there’s a genuine hole in me. A little death, almost. I need stimulation. I used to need physical stimulation constantly, whether that be from listening to the sound of my own voice or flirting with guys or girls. I’m not bisexual, but that moment when you realise someone likes you- it’s the best feeling in the world. (Hann).
His inability to connect with people led to his experimental behavior with women and men simply because the feelings of loneliness became too much for him, which he used to build angst within his music.
The 1975 are modern day youth rebel writers because of their lyrics and appearance. They are highly popular due to their raw honesty and impactful lyrics filled with struggles caused by drug, sex, and alcohol abuse. The 1975 gained the most popularity through self- recorded music on YouTube, which create a large following on other social media sites like Tumblr and Twitter. Although the music is popular in today’s society, it is still seen as rebellious due to the topics and feelings portrayed in each song. Unlike the 1980’s rebellious rock bands, Matt’s music was influenced by his life and struggles instead of starting music and falling into that lifestyle.
The 1975 is an English band from Manchester composed of four male band members: Matthew ‘Matty’ Healy (vocals and guitar), Ross MacDonald (bass guitar), Adam Hann (guitar), and George Daniel (drums). Unlike many youth rebel leaders, Matty Healy actually came from a middle class, successful family (Hann). His parents were British actors and split in 2012 when The 1975 was finally receiving large gigs. This is where the song “Is There Somebody Who Can Watch You?” came from; it was written to explain the feelings Matty was experiencing due to his parents’ split and feeling like he had no home (Hann). One lyric in The 1975’s song “Is There Somebody Who Can Watch You?” says, “I preferred it before// We should ring dad more// Lost our house// Hold me close”. This experience changed his view on his life because he now felt that he had nowhere to return to. His lyrics also give off the feel of being lonely and feeling guilty about his parents’ divorce, as though it were his fault, or he could have done something different. This relates to many young people in today’s culture because of the commonality of divorce within families, and the feelings created by divorce. Teens, especially, blame themselves for their parents’ divorces, which lead to them feeling isolated and lonely. This is what Matt focused on because music helped to make him feel “real” and less “alienated from the world”, which are both common themes in youth rebel writing (Trendell). This is just one example of a song that was taken from Matt’s personal life that is filled with impactful lyrics and raw pain.
Another example of rebellious writing in The 1975’s album, The 1975, deal with more common struggles faced by inner-city teens: drugs, sex, and alcohol. Although, the most prominent factor for The 1975’s songs is drug addiction. Matt’s addiction to drugs and alcohol started at a young age due to his feelings of alienation caused by some of his father’s friends’ comments about a Michael Jackson video when Matt was around the age of 6 (Trendell). When asked about drugs in the GIGWISE interview, Matt said, “I wasn't a heroin addict – I never lost it to heroin – but I was a coke addict big-time. I was 18. I dabbled in everything. I wanted to be Jack Kerouac. I thought I was as decadent as all of that. I thought: the world will catch up...” (Trendell). The drugs served to separate Healy from the alienation he was feeling at home. Alcohol and drugs became a way of life to Matt due to his mother, Denise Welch, who was known for struggling with depression, drug addiction, and alcoholism (Middlehurst). The songs “Chocolate”, “The City”, and “M.O.N.E.Y.” all portray Matt’s struggle with alcohol, sex, and drug addiction with catchy lyrics that stick in the heads of listeners.
The song “Chocolate” from the album The 1975 created a large stir in the music industry in 2013. The music video for “Chocolate” has over 3.8 million views on YouTube, and the song was No. 39 on Billboard’s Alternative Chart (Hampp). Although the song is catchy, the lyrics are deep and meaningful to Matty because of his history with drug abuse. In “Chocolate”, Matt sings the lyrics, “’Now, you’re never gonna quit it (x3)// If you don’t stop smoking it’, that’s what she said...// Oh, my hair smells like chocolate”. In an interview with Bang Tidy Music, Matt explains that ‘chocolate’ is referencing drug use, namely weed, and the relationship between the kids doing illegal things (drugs and drinking) and the police (Castellani). Drugs were seen as something to do to kill the boredom, much like they are now. This is another way that The 1975’s lyrics connect with the modern generation. Weed is a fairly common drug in the teen community now, and the police are seen as bored enforcers trying to kill youth fun, which is exactly what Healy sings about in “Chocolate”.
“The City” and “M.O.N.E.Y.” have their fair share of drug references, but they are also prime examples of sex. For example in “The City”, one verse says, “Don’t call it a fight when you know it’s a war.// With nothing but your t-shirt on.// And go sit on the bed ‘cause I know that you want to.// You got pretty eyes, but I know you’re wrong.”. This song illustrates Matt’s use of women as objects. He used the woman within the song as he saw fit. Within the same song, Matt sings, “If you wanna find love then you know where the city is”. Matt doesn’t see the sexual encounters with woman as love; he sees ‘love’ as the corruption within the city. The lifestyle of nonstop partying and experimenting with everything created a basis for all of his songs.
In “M.O.N.E.Y.”, Matt uses catchy lyrics to help people understand the struggle of needing affection due to the corruption of his life through drugs, money, sex, and alcohol. One verse starts with, “Tabs with unlimited 0’s// New clothes// Bloody nose// Powders and walking back home// Has he got enough weed? No// Broken phone// Retching on the floor alone”. This verse speaks to the amount of money wasted on drugs, sex, and alcohol, the loneliness that money cannot take away, and the overall theme of not being good enough. The lonely man in the song wants unlimited money to keep the women with him, but once he is out of money, he is home alone and throwing up alone. The last verse really resonates a lonely feel, which draws in audiences who can relate to his feelings of loneliness and doing anything to get rid of it. Another section of lyrics is, “He doesn’t like it when the girls go// Has he got enough money to spend?”. This section ties into the theme of not being able to dull the loneliness because the girls only come around when money is involved, but the man does not have enough money to keep them any longer. Although drugs, alcohol, and sex have been common youth rebel writing topics within music, Matt Healy plays on the idea of the loneliness and inadequacy caused by drugs, sex, and alcohol.
Although the album, The 1975, was well received by audiences selling over 100,000 copies over a two day period according to NME, the album only received a 2 out of 5 star rating from The Rolling Stone magazine due to “enunciation” issues and the need for an “editor” (Ganz). Even with this harsh rating, the band was asked to support the Rolling Stones’ English tour over the summer of 2013 (McCormick). The rating also caused a huge stir and backlash by fans. The Guardian gave the same album a 4 out of 5 star rating (Hann). The rating from The Guardian was received by fans positively. According to another album review, The 1975 is seen as a “media darling” (“Album Review”). This is due to Matt’s charming personality and likeability. Another reason people are attracted to the album as a whole is due to the songs being “reflections of [Matty] and what he’s done, even when he’s painted in the most unflattering light, as cruel or uncaring or apathetic” (Hann). Matt tries to tell the truth through his songs. In another interview with Bang Tidy Music, Matt explains that his songs are a way to “finally get the truth out there and off [his] chest” (Castellani). This blatant honesty attracts audiences from the younger generations with understanding lyrics and soothing melodies.
Another way The 1975 rebels as a whole is through appearance. Matt is always seen with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth, 1980’s clothes inspired by his favorite movies by John Hughes, unruly hair, tattoos, and piercings (Hann). When browsing sites like Tumblr, Matty is worshiped as a perfect bad boy type with a kind soul. Although when asked about social media, Matt said they try the “less is more” approach (“The 1975 Interview”). This could be caused by Healy’s love of 1980’s movies, which follow an understated beauty approach to everything. Another way that The 1975 ties in the ‘80’s rocker chic look is by filming all of their music videos in black and white with a story line filled with “the usual young adult angst and hormones” which were common in Jack Hughes’ films (“Album Review”). Matt’s open fascination with the rebels in John Hughes’ films causes many of the seemingly coincidental appearances. The teen to early twenties generation still have a fascination with these films and the dark, sexualized appearance of The 1975. Matt also attracts male and female attention because although he is not bisexual or gay, he likes attention from all genders, which ties back to his previous comments about feeling alone. In his interview with The Guardian, Matt explained his feelings more clearly about his need for attention and love:
I feel like there’s a genuine hole in me. A little death, almost. I need stimulation. I used to need physical stimulation constantly, whether that be from listening to the sound of my own voice or flirting with guys or girls. I’m not bisexual, but that moment when you realise someone likes you- it’s the best feeling in the world. (Hann).
His inability to connect with people led to his experimental behavior with women and men simply because the feelings of loneliness became too much for him, which he used to build angst within his music.
The 1975 are modern day youth rebel writers because of their lyrics and appearance. They are highly popular due to their raw honesty and impactful lyrics filled with struggles caused by drug, sex, and alcohol abuse. The 1975 gained the most popularity through self- recorded music on YouTube, which create a large following on other social media sites like Tumblr and Twitter. Although the music is popular in today’s society, it is still seen as rebellious due to the topics and feelings portrayed in each song. Unlike the 1980’s rebellious rock bands, Matt’s music was influenced by his life and struggles instead of starting music and falling into that lifestyle.
Here is Matty Healy with his mother, Denise, and brother, Louis.