“Catfish” co-host Kamie Crawford believes Taylor Swift is using Travis Kelce to distract from her previous fling with “problematic” Matty Healy, lead singer of The 1975.
“She was in a relationship with [Matty] Healy, it was public. The PR for that went really bad and the PR for this is doing really well,” Crawford, 30, says on Pvnew’s “Virtual Reali-Tea” podcast to promote Season 8 of her MTV show.
“So, good luck,” she continues. “… I used to love The 1975, still love some of the songs. But he’s made some very problematic comments.”
Crawford goes on to acknowledge that 33-year-old Swift’s romantic involvement with Healy, 34, came shortly after she broke up with longtime beau Joe Alwyn this spring.
“She was in a longterm relationship,” she says. “Then she was in a relationship with someone that wasn’t good. And I think people are skipping over that. I think people are thinking that, like, [Matty] Healy was the rebound guy.”
Swift’s fans were shocked that the superstar had moved on with Healy, given his track record of controversial behavior and statements.
During a February 2023 appearance the “Adam Friedland Show” podcast, the British musician made racist verbal attacks on “Princess Diana” emcee Ice Spice — a future Swift collaborator.
In a disturbing display, Healy laughed as the podcast hosts mocked Chinese accents and called Ice Spice an “Inuit Spice Girl” and a “chubby Chinese lady.”
Healy publicly apologized to Ice Spice during a subsequent concert.
In September 2023, Ice Spice told PvNew she was “so confused” by Healy’s remarks, adding that he said sorry in person “a bunch of times” when they bumped into each other at a fashion event.
During the same podcast — which was later removed from Spotify for its offensive content — Healy admitted to watching “hard-core pornography” on “Ghetto Gaggers,” a porn site known for having videos showing the humiliation and brutalization of women of color.
While Kelce has been accused of cheating by his ex Maya Benberry and has a known penchant for smoking weed, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end has a relatively cleaner image than Healy.
Crawford’s “Catfish” co-host, Nev Schulman — who also joined in on the “Virtual Reali-Tea” chat — can’t help but wonder if Swift’s rumored romance with Kelce is not so much a tool to distract from her Healy relations but to help the NFL and its star player.
“I don’t know what is actually happening there or if anything’s happening. My wife [Laura Perlongo] and I have already speculated, ‘Is it just a publicity stunt for the NFL?’” he muses.
“I had never heard of that guy, although I know he’s an accomplished football player,” Schulman, 39, adds. “So, it’s great for him.”
Crawford jokes that she doesn’t know “who we should be more afraid of” after sharing their opinions on Swift and Kelce. “NFL fans or Swifties?” the former pageant queen asks with a laugh.
Meanwhile, Schulman claims that Swift is “a fan of ‘Catfish,’” assuring us, “She has told me that she loves the show.”
Swift attended the Kansas City Chiefs and Chicago Bears game this past Sunday, sitting next to Kelce’s mother, Donna, in a private suite after meeting Kelce’s loved ones at his Kansas City, Mo., mansion beforehand.
The Grammy winner then joined the Super Bowl champion and his teammates at an afterparty, where the pair was pictured cuddling up to each other.
“Catfish” returns to MTV with all-new episodes Tuesday, Oct. 3, at 8 p.m. ET.
