Matty Healy calls himself 'best songwriter'; takes playful swipe at Taylor Swift: 'I’m being sincere'

During The 1975’s latest headline show, Matty Healy called himself a “generational wordsmith” and seemed to poke fun at Taylor Swift’s album ‘The Tortured Poets Department’.In his usual cheeky style, the 36-year-old musician used a bit of trademark stage humour at the Glastonbury Festival in England on Friday, 27 June.

He set the mood for his band’s hit song ‘Chocolate’ by flashing gibberish lyrics on the festival’s main screen.According to a video by Variety, Healy told the crowd before the song, “I want to be sincere for a second with everybody. What this moment is making me realise is that, yeah… what this moment’s making me realise is that, and I’m being sincere, I probably am the best.”

Joking about being a poet

“I’m probably the best songwriter of my generation.

The best, what do we say, a poet, ladies and gentlemen, is what I am,” Healy added, with a clear hint of sarcasm. “Generational wordsmith. I just wanted to remind you, you know, in the next couple of minutes, these lyrics, this poetry, I bleed for you. Alright? Just take that in, alright? Take it away, boys.”The band then launched into ‘Chocolate’, with the crowd laughing along at the nonsense subtitles. According to the Daily Mail, Healy later told fans he was “only joking about being a poet”.

A subtle nod to Taylor Swift?

This comes more than a year after Swift put out ‘The Tortured Poets Department’, which included songs about her brief time with Healy. Tracks like ‘Guilty as Sin?’, ‘Fresh Out the Slammer’, ‘I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)’, and ‘loml’ seemed to touch on their short romance.The two dated for a few weeks in 2023 before splitting in June. A source told PEOPLE at the time their relationship was “always casual”.Swift moved on with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, while Healy is now engaged to model Gabbriette Bechtel, after announcing it in June 2024.

More music and surprise returns at Glastonbury

Elsewhere in their Glastonbury set, The 1975 performed hits like ‘Somebody Else’, ‘It’s Not Living (If It’s Not with You)’, ‘Give Yourself a Try’, and ‘About You’. The festival’s other big acts include Olivia Rodrigo on Sunday, 29 June, and Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts on Saturday, 28 June.Friday’s gig was The 1975’s first since wrapping up their ‘Still… at Their Very Best’ tour in March.Meanwhile, two years after he struggled to finish his 2023 Glastonbury set due to his Tourette’s syndrome, Lewis Capaldi made a surprise return to the stage. The singer told fans it was “so good to be back” and joked “second time’s a charm”.