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Why don't fans want Charli XCX and No Rome to collab with The 1975? A look at past controversies and backlash

Fans say she can work with anyone else but Matthew Healy from The 1975

Charli XCX has further confirmed the rumors that she and The 1975 and No Rome are collaborating. Charli took to her social media on February 28 to reveal that she is "forming a supergroup" with the two acts, but not all Netizens are inclined to agree with her choice of collaborators.

"V excited to be forming a supergroup with @no_rome and @the1975," the singer-songwriter wrote on Twitter, adding a tornado emoji. Additionally, No Rome said that new music would be “coming out sooner than u think.” Early February, No Rome wrote on Twitter, "Me, (the creator of music) Charli XCX & The 1975 have a song together. Got the masters done and waiting on video edit cuts."

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Charli's announcement comes after several rumors were floating around the Internet since 2019. Initially, Charli teased it during an Instagram Q&A when she admitted that there were several collaborations that didn't get a chance to feature on her 2019 album 'Charli', one of which was with The 1975.

At the time, she said, "I like DEEPLY love the 1975… I really wanted them to be a part of the new album," according to Don't Bore Us of The Brag Media. "We spoke about songs and pop music and it was gonna happen for a minute but then it didn’t (schedules / touring – reasons like that, nothing bad)." She added, "I would love to make music with them. Matty has great pop sensibility. He’s very smart."

Then The 1975 frontman Matty Healy spoke of Charli XCX and teased a collab months later in a Twitter Q&A. "Charlie XCX is a fucking force. She wrote Pop 2 IN A WEEK and when she told me that I was a bit like ‘….erm yeah cool sure’,” he wrote. "Sent her a beat at like 5pm yesterday,” Healy shared, adding, "And woke up this morning to a HIT. A MONSTER TUNE!!" Matty was asked if he would feature on the track and he replied, "not sure yet but me and [No] Rome and George [Daniel, The 1975’s drummer and producer] produced."

Fan reactions

Meanwhile, many Charli XCX fans aren't too pleased to hear she's forming a group with The 1975 for a song. "Do another icona pop collab please anyone but 1975," said a fan on Twitter while another wrote, "charli xcx you do not need to collab with the 1975 it will ruin my entire year." Another fan tweeted, "charli xcx 1975 supergroup...... mortifying if true..."

Meanwhile, several The 1975 fans are left scratching their heads as to why the hate. "Can someone explain all the hate for the 1975? Did I miss something?" asks a fan.

Another fan added, "Why does everyone suddenly hate the 1975? They’ve been my favorite band for years."

So why the hate?

To answer the above question, let's have to look at the band's history as well as a controversial tweet with a song released amid the Black Lives Matter protests last year. The expression 'each to their own' applies in some right here as The 1975's music isn't for everyone's taste but the band also has a strong following of loyal fans. The 1975 also has a history of controversy tethered to their name but that controversy often ignores the solidarity that the band has with the very things they've been accused of coming against.

One of the early instances occurred in 2018 when Matty claimed that misogyny "doesn't happen in rock and roll anymore" but "still exists in hip hop". In an interview with Fader he said, "One of the problems is the youth of hip hop. At the moment, with Soundcloud rap, it's become a bit of a drug-taking competition, and that happened in rock and roll. Those things get weeded out the longer those things exist." He later apologizes, stating that he understood his statement came off as "patronizing, uninformed and reductive".

A year later, the singer drew criticism as well as support when he kissed a male fan on stage during a show in Dubai on Wednesday in protest of the country’s strident anti-LGBTQ laws. Then in 2020, said he refuses to apologize after being under fire over a joke he made about artists in self-isolation. In a swift post-and-delete action, the singer tweeted, "Stop telling people to support you we don’t want your EP and zine bundle now Laura we’re going to die.”
 
In May 2020, he also faced backlash for a tweet about the Black Lives Matter movement following the death of George Floyd. “If you truly believe that ‘ALL LIVES MATTER’ you need to stop facilitating the end of black ones," he wrote. Healy included a link to the band’s song 'Love It if We Made It', which features lyrics about racism and police brutality.

Several Netizens accused the artist of using the BLM movement to promote his own music. He then deleted the message and tweeted, "Sorry I did not link my song in that tweet to make it about me it’s just that the song is literally about this disgusting situation and speaks more eloquently than I can on Twitter."

Are you excited for a collab with Charli XCX, The 1975, and No Rome? Do you think the criticism Matty Healy has faced in the past is enough to get him excluded? Leave us your thoughts in the comments below.